Awaken, Giant

Dr. Coby Benson is a brilliant neuroscientist at the peak of her career. Her DARPA-funded program, AWARE, promises to create a “light switch for the brain”—a photo-activated drug that will keep soldiers alert on the battlefield. She trusts the system. She believes the ethics are sound. She has no idea that she is repeating history.

When her mentor dies and leaves her a box of old files, Coby uncovers a terrifying truth: her mentor was part of MKUltra, the CIA’s secret mind control program. The same universities that took blood money then are receiving DARPA funding now. The same justifications are being used. And the same horrors are being hidden—remote overrides, surveillance capabilities, weapons disguised as medicine.

As Coby digs deeper, she must choose to either protect her career or expose the truth. Her sister Frankie, a journalist who has been chasing the story for years, knows which choice she should make. But the truth has a cost, and the system will do anything to protect itself.

Based on declassified documents and real DARPA programs, Awaken, Giant is a gripping thriller about science, power, and the courage to refuse to look away.