“The Level 26: Dark Origins App and iTunes Extras makes reading more entertaining than ever,” Zuiker said in a press release. “We’re delivering new levels of engagement way beyond mere white pages.”

Fans who purchase the book from the App Store or iTunes Extras will be able to read the novel and watch the cyber-bridges on a single device. Zuiker posted information and screencaps of the app on Level26.com, which you can find here.

Level 26: Dark Origins is $12.99 in the App Store (for the iPhone and iPod touch) and the iTunes Store.

When Zuiker got the idea for Level 26, which combines a traditional novel with the visual power of short video “cyber bridges”, he wanted to draw in fans familiar with his other work. “I wanted to build a short bridge from CSI to Level 26,” he explained. “I didn’t want my first ‘digi-novel’ to be a romance book and I have so much information from research I’ve done for CSI that it makes perfect sense that I would do a serial killer-type novel.”

Zuiker added that “it feels pretty good with no one telling me what to do. There are no cooks in the kitchen. There’s no network to answer to. I wanted to have something that was unadulterated that I could really run with. Kind of like Joss Whedon’s Dr Horrible.” But would he consider doing a crossover between his new project and the one that made him famous? “I’ve been thinking about it,” he revealed. “It would be a lot of fun to have Sqweegel on one of the CSIs. It would certainly work. We’ve had some talks about movies, but right now I’m just focused on getting the book off the ground. The next book launches in 2010, so we’re focused on building a strong house.”

Level 26 is a very graphic, violent novel. Zuiker said that was done on purpose. “At the time, I didn’t want readers to pick up the book and say, ‘I can get this on television,’” he explained. “That was my biggest fear. So it’s like an NC-17 CSI episode. The traditional book reader might be feeling that this is a little too dark, and I can sympathize with that. But my thoughts were I’m going to learn as I go forward. Book two will be very much a psychological thriller with less shock value.”

In CSI news, Zuiker said they are hoping for a visit from former leading man Petersen. Now that his onscreen wife Sara Sidle (Jorja Fox) is back indefinitely, the question remains whether Grissom will reappear in the Las Vegas Crime Lab any time soon. “We’re trying to get Billy back,” Zuiker said. “It’s really up in the air right now. He’s sorely missed and I’d love to have him back. Nothing would please me more to get Billy back.”

Title: Level 26: Dark Origins

Author: Anthony E Zuiker with Duane Swierczynski

Release Date: September 8, 2009

Publisher: Dutton

ISBN: 978-0-525-95125-4

Price: $26.95

CSI creator Anthony Zuiker combines a thrilling, fast-paced narrative with a new spin on storytelling in his debut Digi-Novel. Written with Duane Swierczynski, Level 26: Dark Origins tells the story of a group of investigators with the Special Circumstances (Special Circs) division of the federal government as they track down the highest ranking serial killers. There are 25 levels used to categorize serial killers, but Special Circs is working to find the only man ever placed in a category of his own: Level 26. The man is called Sqweegel, and he is known to have killed more than 50 people over the span of 20 years. He rapes, tortures, mutilates, shoots, burns and poisons his victims. He is literally able to get away with murder because there is no forensic evidence to tie him to his crimes. He wears a full body suit so that he doesn’t leave so much as a skin cell behind at a crime scene. The only man who has ever come close to catching Sqweegel is Steve Dark (Daniel Buran), but Dark left Special Circs behind for good after Sqweegel killed his entire foster family.

Dark is a compelling character, consumed by darkness and driven to the brink. After his family was killed, Dark headed down a morally grey path in an attempt to hunt Sqweegel down. Ultimately, he failed. When the story begins, Dark is still struggling to maintain the normalcy he was able to regain after he met his wife Sibby (Tauvia Dawn). Meeting Sibby changed his life. Sibby, and the baby they’re expecting together, is Dark’s reason for living, and it’s the reason he wants nothing to do with Special Circs or the hunt for Sqweegel. Unfortunately for Dark, staying away isn’t an option. Sqweegel is a looming presence in his past, and the past has a way of catching up to people.

Tom Riggins (Michael Ironside) is another interesting character, good at his job but not good at much of anything outside of that job. His relationship with Dark is stronger than his relationship with any of his ex-wives or estranged children. It provides an interesting dynamic between the men throughout the novel. Along with Constance Brielle (Ava Gaudet), Riggins is Dark’s main support within Special Circs. Constance is a character that doesn’t get much focus in Dark Origins, but I find myself drawn to her. I’m curious to see how her character progresses in subsequent novels. Secretary of Defense Norman Wycoff (Glenn Morshower) is another one I’m keeping my eye on. He is an intriguing character, but he is rarely the focal point of the action in Dark Origins. The character is undoubtedly important to the story, and it will be interesting to see where they take him.

Dark Origins is more than a traditional novel. It’s the book that has everything. It has an interesting story, it has video segments to add another dimension to the storytelling, it has a social community at Level26.com where readers can interact and find extra content, and it even has gorgeous, twisted illustrations sprinkled throughout the book. Each image is relevant, and there is a lot to appreciate about Marc Ecko’s work. From the very first black-and-white drawing you come across, the illustrations set a tone for the novel. I often found myself turning back to get another look at some of the previous drawings.

As Zuiker explained in his most recent interview with CSI Files, Dark Origins is the first Digi-Novel. It combines a traditional crime novel with short video clips called cyber bridges that bring the characters to life and drive readers from the book to the internet and back again. The reader completes several chapters of the book, and then he or she is given a code to log on to Level26.com and access the relevant cyber bridge.

Without a good story, video segments and online social communities are icing without a cake to hold them up. Fortunately for Level 26, the story is the strongest part of the Digi-Novel. The video segments add another dimension to the characters and narrative, but the story easily stands on its own. It’s good that it does because Level 26 represents a brand new approach to fiction, and readers may not be prepared to completely abandon the traditional novel to try it out. And while many people are constantly plugged in to the World Wide Web with their portable devices, there are still a lot of us who aren’t. My means of internet access is a shared desktop computer plunked in the middle of the family room. Lingering near the computer in order to watch the cyber bridges as they come is a bit limiting, and the content of the bridges is not always something you’d want to watch with a 15-year-old looking over your shoulder.

I could have saved up several bridges and watched them all at once when I had the time, and my comprehension of the story would not have suffered. However, I wanted to experience the novel the way it was intended: read several chapters, watch a video, and then jump back into the book. It was a bit cumbersome at first, and I would often have to set the book aside until I was able to access the computer to watch the cyber bridge. That was frustrating, but by the time I got near the end of the book, I was used to the process. However, it would have been better to have an internet-accessible laptop sitting next to me as I read.

When I watched the first cyber bridge, I wondered just what I was getting myself into. Some elements were slightly over-the-top, and I was worried that the bridges would push the envelope just for the sake of pushing the envelope. As I continued reading the book and watching the video clips, I was pleased to find that, with one or two exceptions, the cyber bridges did an excellent job of enhancing the narrative rather than distracting from it.

As a woman who tends to nitpick TV shows and the like, I couldn’t help being a bit thrown by discrepancies between the book and the cyber bridges. A blue nightie becoming a tank top and panties is not a major issue, but the cyber bridges are an integral part of the book. Every detail is important if two separate mediums are being combined into a cohesive final product.

I like that the bridges covered a wide range of scenes, from Sqweegel’s twisted brand of torture to romance, lab analysis and even a few phone messages; however, for that reason, I enjoyed some of the bridges far more than others. I liked the visuals provided by a lab scene, but a romantic scene with Dark and Sibby felt gratuitous to me. The relationship between them is developed so well in the novel that I didn’t need to see that particular encounter brought to life. Overall, I think the bridges maintained a pretty even balance. I also enjoyed the acting from the stars of the cyber bridges, although some of the dialogue and delivery fell short of my expectations for segments created by the man behind CSI and starring such an excellent cast.

As a fan of the CSI franchise, I was intrigued by the premise of Dark Origins. A serial killer that leaves no evidence behind? Forensic evidence is the bread and butter of the CSI shows, but there is rarely such evidence for Dark and the Special Circs team to work with. Instead, Dark has to track Sqweegel down by getting inside his mind, and that’s a very twisted place to be.

Several segments of the novel offer nods to the forensic drama that made Zuiker famous, and there are a few lab analysis scenes that could fit into an episode of CSI. In fact, franchise fans may recognize the setting of several cyber bridges as the crime lab where Gary Sinise (Mac Taylor) and Melina Kanakaredes (Stella Bonasera) film CSI: New York.

Dark Origins has two planned sequels, and the series may continue beyond that. Fans can submit ideas for new characters and storylines by visiting Level26.com. Dark Origins is a scary, suspenseful ride, and the end leaves the reader wanting to find out more. I’m looking forward to reading the next installment of the Level 26 story and seeing the Digi-Novel concept evolve and come into its own.

Zuiker’s new Digi-Novel, Level 26: Dark Origins, combines a traditional crime novel with online video segments and a social community. The man behind CSI discussed the Digi-Novel concept in his latest interview with CSI Files’ Kristine Huntley. The book centers around a team of investigators trying to track down a ruthless serial killer:

It is well known among law enforcement personnel that murderers can be categorized on a scale of twenty- five levels of evil, from the naive opportunists starting out at Level 1 to the organized, premeditated torture- murderers who inhabit Level 25.

What almost no one knows—except for the elite unnamed investigations group assigned to hunt down the world’s most dangerous killers, a group of men and women accounted for in no official ledger, headed by the brilliant but reluctant operative Steve Dark—is that a new category of killer is in the process of being defined.

Only one man belongs to this group.

His targets: Anyone

His methods: Unlimited

His alias: Sqweegel

His classification: Level 26

Level 26: Dark Origins is available from Amazon and other retailers. The suggested retail price is $26.95.

As Harper explained in his most recent CSI Files interview, The Conversation: How Black Men and Women Can Build Loving, Trusting Relationships is his first book geared toward an adult audience. The Conversation looks at relationships from a single-man’s perspective, concentrating on why it is difficult for African Americans to find and maintain long-term relationships. According to the book description:

In his moving yet practical book, Hill Harper undertakes a journey both universal and deeply personal in search of answers to these questions. He has conversations with friends and strangers—married, single and divorced—and learns about their private struggles, emotional vulnerabilities, and real concerns, and begins to see common themes emerge. As his journey picks up momentum, Hill begins to recognize his own struggles in other people’s stories, and is encouraged to more deeply examine his own relationship issues.

The Conversation can be purchased from Amazon and other retailers. The suggested retail price is $22.50.

Be sure to check back with CSI Files this week for reviews of Dark Origins and The Conversation.

• One of the items up for bid in the first annual Ride 2 Recovery eBay Charity Auction is a CSI: New York set experience and wrap party with leading man Gary Sinise (Mac Taylor).
• Marc Ecko, the artist who created illustrations for CSI creator Anthony Zuiker’s upcoming Digi-Novel Level 26: Dark Origins, described the book as “CSI on amphetamine.”
• You can see pictures of CSI: Crime Scene Investigation stars Marg Helgenberger (Catherine Willows), Jorja Fox (Sara Sidle), Wallace Langham (David Hodges) and Laurence Fishburne (Dr Ray Langston) signing bikes to be auctioned for Events of the Heart, a non-profit organization dedicated to educating women about the dangers of heart disease. (Source: Jorja All Around)
• Spreety TV Online has provided a video full of tips and tricks on maximizing the CBS online viewing experience. “If people just knew how much TV is online, there would be mass abandonment of the old TV,” Spreety co-founder Ron Laughton told TransWorldNews. “We created Spreety to educate people about the legal places to watch free TV online.”