Fast-Paced Romp Through a Realistic Apocalypse
“The Sun will last another five billion years,” agreed all the world’s scientists—except two.
After a massive solar flare wipes out nearly everything more complex than jumper cables, the Sun dims, and Earth's climate begins to rival that of Mars. The U.S. government, led by a distant presidential successor, takes shelter in a bunker, grappling with life-threatening global conditions as humanity is tossed back into the Stone Age.
While the Raven Rock Mountain Complex is isolated, the rest of the world slowly devolves into a cosmic snowball. Recognized as an extinction-level event, a team of four embarks on a mission to rekindle the Sun using the world’s most powerful nuclear missile. Alex Tate, along with his quirky sidekick Mick Moore and two war-hardened federal agents, Hans Jupp and Dirk Karsten, brave a frozen wasteland, encountering friendly preppers and dangerous thugs. Quincy and Teedarius, marooned at a remote Arkansas catfish processing plant, provide comic relief during their engaging struggle for survival.
Chapter One
Read Reviews
A truly chilling apocalyptic action-adventure thriller with gutsy heroes, an impossible mission, unthinkable challenges, and edge-of-your-seat suspense!
★★★★★
- Lynessa Layne, USA TODAY Bestseller & Book of the Year Silver Falchion Award Winner
Once you start reading Eight Minutes by Gregory N. Whitis, there is no putting it down. The narration is excellent, and the writing is crisp, engaging, and filled with well-crafted dialogue that brings the story to life. I loved the vivid descriptions, which helped create a mental picture of what was happening. This thought-provoking work also got me thinking about issues like climate change and the kind of damage that such events could cause to civilization. The author also used suspense to great effect, which kept me on the edge of my seat. He ensured the plot flowed seamlessly, leaving no room for confusion for the reader. This was an amazing read, and I would love to see this great work turned into a movie. I look forward to reading something else by this talented author.
★★★★★
Frank Mutuma, Readers Favorite Reviews
....Delving into author Gregory N. Whitis’ apocalyptic novel, Eight Minutes, creates gratefulness for
the bleakest of winter days. Suspenseful, action-packed and terrifying, this story is a page-turning
survival thriller.....
★★★★★
Carolyn Breckinridge, Goodreads Review
After Greg's second book, Nighthope, I proclaimed him to be the next great American author. That may have been premature but Eight Minutes locked him in. One of the best books I have ever read. Incredible attention to detail without getting out in the weeds. A gripping adventure/science fiction tale that has you brought in from the start. Will no doubt hit the big screen. But don't believe me--buy it and see for yourself. I'd rename it 2:45 AM because that's when I finished it.
★★★★★
- Eugene "Les" Torrans, Rison, AK
Imagine awakening to anticipate a sunrise that never comes. Eight Minutes is a science fiction end-of-the-world experience that follows the aftermath of a massive solar flare that, in effect, ends civilization overnight…. Libraries that choose Eight Minutes to add to collections strong in apocalyptic sci-fi will find the story thoroughly compelling. It’s easy to recommend to patrons who enjoy stories of survival, adaptation, and social and philosophical inspection. Packed with political, military, scientific, and survivalist perspectives, Eight Minutes represents an action-packed page-turner of a tale that is nearly impossible to put down.
- Diane Donovan, Midwest Book Review
A great and fun read
I loved the first two books Greg Whitis wrote; Nighthope (his second) was a book I couldn't put down because of the outrageous situations around catfish farming in the south. And then came his third, Eight Minutes. Totally different from his previous two, but so well written about an event (a solar flare and a dying sun) that you just had to know what was happening next because it was so believable.. A little bit of humor (of course related to catfish), but gripping and suspenseful. As with his first books, the characters were so likable (or not), you just hoped there would be good outcomes for those characters you fell in love with, and you couldn't stop reading until you knew.
★★★★★
- Betty Jean Scharath
Better fasten your seat belt!
There's no waiting around for something to happen when you start reading this book! It's fast-paced and a great escape. The book is well-plotted and kept me in the story, with characters I could root for (and a few to root against.) There's humor, too. The characters had enough depth that I cared whether they'd survive. I also liked the minor characters and how they were dealing with total catastrophe. I was on the edge of my seat to see if our heroes could manage, against all odds, to save the world.
★★★★★
- Anne Weston
Wow. Eight Minutes is another great book by Greg Whitis!
He has stepped away (mostly) from his good catfish farming stories, but still manages to keep aquaculture close at heart with 2 guys at a catfish processing plant keeping warm by drinking their boss’s whiskey and burning frozen chunks of rendered fat. The time he spent researching the possibilities for this book are apparent by his attention to the smallest detail. Glad I have a 1964 car that is not dependent on computers so I can get around after the catastrophic Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) resulting from huge solar flares on the Sun (the big one could happen!).
★★★★★
- David Straus
Don't miss this title. A thriller you won't be able to put down!
Alabama author Gregory Whitis will grab you on the first page and won't let go until the last word. You'll be on the edge of your seat until the end.
★★★★★
- Eve Engle Kneeland
(Whitis) takes an almost unimaginable scenario, a frozen Earth caused by a failing Sun, and weaves an extraordinary tale filled with reluctant heroes, determined villains, grit, revenge, love, regret, heartbreak, and triumph. You’ll love it.
- WB (Walt)
There is surely much to fear from global warming. But not in this novel--the world will end in ice. What if the sun created a new hybrid isotope that burned at a much lower temperature? Well, heat from the sun would decrease, and our planet would become a cold snowball spinning through space.
Also, as if we weren’t in enough trouble, there is a massive solar flare that fries satellites and space stations, causing computers to fail, except those that happen to be deep in tunnels. All aircraft drop out of the sky. The President was on Marine One—she’s gone.
Assistant NASA director Alex Tate takes charge. He and his family are whisked away to Raven Rock, the U.S. government's deep underground bunker. The few people in the bunker can survive for a while, but just sitting around eating canned goods is not a story.
Tate devises a theory. If they can shoot an ICBM loaded with plutonium and hit the sun, perhaps this will restart the sun's burning hydrogen and save the planet. Tate, another brainy astrophysicist, and two Ranger types go into action.
First, they take the secret tunnel from Raven Rock to the White House to get needed equipment, then, in a specially equipped Super Humvee, set out to a base in Minot, North Dakota, to fire a nuclear missile at the sun.
Whitis takes the reader to sites to see how folks are doing. Mostly, not well. Darwin reigns. Violence is nearly universal. Food runs out. Everyone is freezing. In a nice piece of comic relief, two men in Lake Village, Arkansas, find themselves in a warehouse stocked with tons of frozen catfish.
On their journey to Minot, Tate’s crew fights biker gangs, jihadists and desperate people, but they cannot be deterred. The action is relentless and this novel has pace and, pun intended, high energy. Tate’s mission is, by the way, successful. A happy ending. About 8 billion people die. One million survive.
- Edited for brevity by Author Gregory N Whitis. Original version available at Don Noble's Book Reviews, Alabama Public Radio.
This was the very best apocalyptical novel I have ever read, and I do not use accolades often.
- Julie
Anyone who likes grounded sci-fi will enjoy this one!
- Damien Edwards
End of the world thriller.
- Patty H
The Sun goes out. Now what?
- Patricia Correll
Great Read… Author has an incredible imagination…
- TG
Suspenseful and fast paced apocalyptic thriller. Goes full throttle from start to finish.
- Lisa A Wilton
A fun, fast-paced thriller. Don’t start this book too late at night.
- Renee Beam
Unique fast paced tale. It would make a great movie!
- JM
Action-Packed- Save the World!
- Beverly Thorn
Great Read… The fast pace reminds me of Clive Cussler…
- David Cline
Good science fiction. Very well written.
- Raylene Lyon
Scientists dash across a Mad Max in Parkaland world to save the Earth.
- John Szalasny
I was forced to consider, “what if”… and it wasn’t pretty. Great read!
- CKH
Well, what do you do when the sun dims and the world turns into an iceball?...Read the novel and find out.
- Martin Crosby
This novel will make you appreciate each day’s sun rise, while also warning about how fragile life on earth truly is.
- J. Smith
A gripping novel of suspense. I could not put it down.
- Helga Visscher
Eight Minutes grabbed me right from its bold premise and never let go.
- Charlotte
A fast paced and gripping read. It was hard to put down.
- Kay Swanson
Read it twice.
Alexandria, Virginia
The first rays of an August dawn filtered through the massive white oak in the gated neighborhood. Bo, the household's golden retriever, nuzzled Alex Tate's bent elbow. Tate squinted at the trickle of light coming through the closed Venetian blinds.
“Bo, lie down.”
Bo jumped, planting his heavy front paws on Tate’s chest.
Tate rubbed his eyes, staring at his dog. “What’s got into you?”
His wife, Tali, stirred. “What’s going on?”
“Bo needs to go out.”
“But it’s dark outside.”
She rolled over, groping for her Garmin Forerunner on the nightstand. “Not even five yet.”
Alex flipped the sheet off and stumbled into the hallway, Bo at his heels. He opened the front door, and Bo darted out. Alex folded his arms across his chest, noticing the chill in the air. Bo didn’t sniff out his usual spot for relief but instead urinated in several places along the yard’s perimeter.
What’s all that about?
As Bo returned to the door, Tate glanced at the digital display for his amateur weather station next to the doorframe. The screen indicated falling temperatures, rising barometric pressure, and a steady east breeze. That’s strange. A combination of increasing pressure and winds out of the east. Usually, east winds were a portent of impending storms and falling pressure. And it had turned unseasonably cool. He checked the battery indicator on the bottom edge of the screen. The lithiums were five by five.
Bo waddled past him and lay by the rear patio door, peering outside, seemingly waiting for the sunrise.