Biography
Otho Eskin entered the thriller scene in 2020 with the publication of The Reflecting Pool, to stellar reviews. The novel introduced readers to Marko Zorn, a Washington, DC, homicide detective who plays by his own rules, never uses a gun, and has strong moral instincts. This book was followed by Head Shot, Firetrap, and Black Sun Rising, all featuring Marko Zorn and named Amazon Editors Picks for Best Mystery, Thriller or Suspense, or receiving other critical acclaim. Day of Wrath, the fifth book in the Marko Zorn series, was published on July 14, 2026.
Before he turned to writing fiction, Otho Eskin, an attorney, served in the US Army and in the United States Foreign Service where he was stationed in Washington and in Syria, Yugoslavia, Iceland and in Berlin (then the capital of the German Democratic Republic). He was Vice-Chairman of the US delegation to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, participated in negotiations on the International Space Station, was the principal US negotiator of several international agreements on seabed mining, and was the US representative for the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space. He speaks French, German, and Serbo-Croatian. He was a frequent speaker at conferences and testified before the US Congress and commissions.
Otho’s career in the Foreign Service prepared him for thriller writing later in life as he witnessed political intrigue at every level of society. While stationed in East Berlin during the Cold War, the East German intelligence service (Stasi), operating on behalf of their Soviet masters, published a book entitled Who’s Who in CIA, translated into several languages and with wide distribution. This propaganda effort listed Otho and was intended to claim that he was a US spy. (He was not.) This was part of the East German and, ultimately, Soviet disinformation campaign to make the work of US Foreign Service officers serving abroad more difficult.
Otho Eskin is also a playwright. His plays include Act of God, Murder as a Fine Art, Duet, Julie, Final Analysis, and Season in Hell, among others, which have been professionally produced internationally. Duet received its UK premiere at Theatre at the Tabard in April of 2024.
Otho is married to writer Therese Keane and lives in Bethesda, Maryland.
Q & A
Tell us a little about yourself, how and when you started writing.
I love to read and I love the theater and this has stimulated a lifetime interest in writing. In my career in the Foreign Service, writing was an essential skill where accuracy, clarity and concision were the highest priority and I have adapted these skills to writing plays and, later, fiction. My first efforts in the field of fiction were short stories in the science fiction genre. I later decided to adopt these techniques to long-form fiction. I wanted to draw on my many years of living in Washington and working in the US Government. I know the city—from Capitol Hill, to the elite social circles of Georgetown, to the poor, sometimes desperate, sometimes dangerous parts of town out of the limelight. My work has involved me in the world of interagency government cooperation and infighting—sometimes savage and brutal—and have drawn on that experience to describe how Washington actually works.
What inspired you to write this novel?
I have lived much of my life in Washington, DC and know the city well—from its public monuments and grand boulevards to the other Washington which can sometimes be dangerous and ugly and I wanted to recreate this Washington as a backdrop to expose the corruption and intrigue.
How did you use your life experience or professional background to enrich your story?
I spent my career coordinating the work of many government agencies—civilian, military and intelligence—and I have drawn on this background and these experiences to write about the corruption, greed and backstabbing.
Anything autobiographical in your novel?
Nothing whatsoever.
Are any characters based on people you know?
No, except in the broadest, most generic, sense.
What part of writing your book did you find the most challenging?
Developing a main character who is both engaging and believable.
What writers have inspired you?
I admire classic mystery writers such as Graham Green, W. Somerset Maugham, Eric Ambler, John Le Carré.
What is the writing process like for you?
I try to stick to a consistent schedule of 5-6 hours a day and work at the same hours each day, normally from 12 Noon to six (I’m not a morning person). I find I do a lot of re-writing and revision as new plot points occur to me in the writing process.
What’s next for you?
I am working on two new Marko Zorn thrillers.
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