The story begins with the discovery of a meteorite (a rock that falls to Earth from space) buried in the Milne Ice Shelf of the Arctic Circle by a team of NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) scientists. This meteorite is found to contain an insect-like fossil, seemingly proving the existence of extraterrestrial life.  The discovery could potentially be a deciding factor in the presidential election, in which one of the key issues is whether to continue funding NASA. The incumbent President of the United States, Zachary Herney, favors supporting space research, whereas his opponent, Senator Sedgewick Sexton, advocates for dissolving NASA.

The discovery is quickly covered up by NASA and the President of the United States, Zachary Herney, in order to distract from a political scandal. Meanwhile, Rachel Sexton, a National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) intelligence analyst, and daughter of Senator Sedgewick Sexton, is sent to the remote Arctic research station to investigate the discovery on behalf of the President.

The team sent to the Arctic Circle comprises Rachel and four other civilian scientists: Michael Tolland, an oceanographer who is a household name because of his frequent television appearances; Norah Mangor, a glaciologist with a cold and prickly personality; Wailee Ming, a brilliant paleontologist; and, finally, Corky Marlinson, a highly strange individual who is also one of the leading astrophysicists in his field. As they investigate the meteorite, they begin to uncover a web of deception and conspiracy that threatens to rock the foundations of the US government.

Their investigation leads them to discover that the meteorite has been planted there in order to deceive the public. The deception is part of a larger plan by the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) and a group of wealthy industrialists to secure funding for a classified satellite program. The NRO, headed by William Pickering, is willing to go to extreme lengths to protect their secrets, including murder.

As the investigation continues, Rachel and Michael find themselves in a race against time to expose the truth before they are silenced by the NRO. They are attacked by a Delta Force team that had secretly been spying on them. The Delta Force soldiers kill Ming and Mangor while Rachel, Tolland and Marlinson succeed in fleeing. However, in hostile Arctic conditions, they are in appalling conditions and about to perish on an ice floe when the Navy submarine USS Charlotte saves them. Rachel alerts presidential advisor Marjorie Tench and NRO director William Pickering of the attack, and Pickering sends an air transport to bring them back to the United States.

In the meantime, in Washington, D.C., Marjorie Tench tries to ruin Sexton’s campaign by blackmailing his aide Gabrielle Ashe with photos of an extramarital affair she had with Senator Sexton and reveals that Sexton is secretly favored by a coalition of private aerospace corporations who advocate profiting from NASA’s dissolution. Ashe discovers that Tench’s accusations are genuine, but also that NASA lied about the meteorite’s origin.

When Rachel, Tolland, and Marlinson re-analyze their data at Tolland’s research-ship off the coast of New Jersey, they find that the meteorite is a fake. When the Delta Force squad launches a surprise strike, Rachel faxes her father the data asking for help. The subsequent fight results in the deaths of all the members of the Delta Force, the sinking of their chopper, and the identification of Pickering as their leader. Pickering says that he created the fictitious meteorite to support Herney’s cause and keep NASA from dissolving. While Rachel, Tolland, and Marlinson are being picked up by a Coast Guard Osprey, the ship and Pickering are being drawn into a vortex.

In a news conference, Sexton hoped to use Rachel’s fax to implicate NASA and the president in a meteorite hoax, but Gabrielle and Rachel swapped the fax for photos of Sexton’s affair with Gabrielle, publicly embarrassing him and ending any chance he had of becoming president. Michael and Rachel’s storyline ends with the couple’s romantic relationship.

Science, politics, and deception are all themes that are explored in the fast-paced and riveting drama Deception Point. Readers will be on the edge of their seats from the first to the last page of this nonstop adrenaline journey.