The 13th Hour: Chaos
by Richard Doetsch
September 5 - 30, 2022 Virtual Book Tour
A Mesmerizing Thriller Told in Reverse
On a warm Fourth of July in the quiet town of Byram Hills, Nick Quinn watches as his wife and daughter die in an unprecedented terrorist attack. Amid the disaster, Nick is approached by a dying friend who hands Nick an antique pocket watch.
Emotionally shattered and desperate, Nick takes the watch and is shocked to find himself propelled back in time to where he was an hour ago, before the attack on his town. Quickly stopping the course of events, his relief is shattered as life spirals in an even more tragic direction.
At the top of each hour, the watch sends Nick back two hours to live one hour again, a backwards march to relive each hour of his day. A twelve-hour journey providing precious but limited time to protect Julia and Katy and uncover the source of the ever-growing threat.
But each time Nick thinks he’s solved the crime and secured the future, he uncovers new levels of deception, agony, and betrayal, ultimately revealing a far more sinister plot with unexpected players and grim, global consequences.
If Nick hasn’t set things right by the 13th hour, not only will his wife and daughter be lost forever to the chaos, but an even greater catastrophe will be unleashed upon the world.
My thoughts:
Clear your schedule for a day or two because you are not going to want to tear yourself away from this book until the very end!
I have watched movies/tv shows that use the reverse time travel theme, but this is the first for a book and I am absolutely in awe of how flawless Doestch pulled this off. I didn't read the first book, but this one blew me out of the water. I was literally biting my nails because of the constant growth of thrill with each page turn.
Nick is a well-built, in-depth character who drives us through the journey. His family and life are stake and you feel every heart wrenching consequence that the wrong decision could cause. And you're on "borrowed" time/chances - 12 of them to be exact.
The plot is such a twist compared to other time travel stories I have read, and I couldn't put it down. It's absolutely genius in how everything is backwards, yet it makes complete sense if you take your time and focus on it. I felt like there were times I was torn as to why Nick would make the choices he did -- but then as I kept reading, it would come into light and make sense. I adore books that make me question my own train of thought.
I think Nick made some terrible decisions, but it highlighted the good vs. evil and right vs. wrong theme all throughout the book. We, as readers, can say "OMG! WHY would he do that?", but in reality, we all would go to the ends of the earth to change things knowing we were on a timeline like that.
Overall, this is a book that I am going to re-read soon. It's that good!
I received a complimentary copy for reviewing purposes. All opinions are my own.
Praise for The 13th Hour: Chaos:
"The story truly excels with its engaging, nonstop pursuit of the truth… Genuinely intriguing whodunit... A fun and compelling time-travel thriller… The taut, well-conceived plot unravels and reforms with twisty surprises and elements of politics, revenge, and Machiavellian villainy."
Kirkus Reviews
"Doetsch delivers another compelling and complex thriller. The twists and turns are non-stop"
Library Journal (Starred Review)
"Ingenious. A jigsaw puzzle in book form. A love story, a political potboiler, and a thriller that upends expectations with every turn of the page. It carried me from heartbreaking opening to the razor edge of its ending in one sitting. My foot is already tapping as I wait impatiently for a third installment!"
James Rollins, #1 NY Times bestselling author
"The 13th Hour: Chaos boasts a blistering original structure that propels the story along at a relentless pace... A thinking man’s thriller... With Doetsch driving, it’s a wild ride indeed..."
The Providence Sunday Journal
"I haven’t read a race against time this intense… The 13th Hour: Chaos is a time-bending adventure of epic proportions and scary consequences."
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Book Details:
Genre: Mystery Thriller Published by: Permuted Press Publication Date: May 3rd 2022 Number of Pages: 384 ISBN: 1637583060 (ISBN13: 9781637583067) Series: A Nick Quinn Thriller; The 13th Hour Series Book Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Apple Books | Goodreads
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About the Author:
Richard Doetsch is the author of six international bestsellers published in twenty-eight countries, with several acquired for film and television. He is an adrenaline junkie with a passion for kitesurfing, skydiving, SCUBA diving, triathlons, and defying gravity in Zero G aircraft. He has served as CEO, president, and director in the real-estate industry, managing, creating, and preserving more than 50,000 units of affordable housing with an emphasis on social and community programs.
He is married to his childhood sweetheart, Virginia, who is the impetus and inspiration behind everything he writes.
Catch Up With Richard:
RichardDoetsch.com Goodreads BookBub Instagram - @richarddoetsch Twitter - @richarddoetsch Facebook - @richarddoetsch
This is a giveaway hosted by Partners in Crime Tours for Richard Doetsch. See the widget for entry terms and conditions. Void where prohibited.
Fantastic review! I absolutely agree - I loved this one!