Description

The Sunday Times bestselling edge-of-your-seat exploration of what would happen in the event of nuclear war, perfect for readers of American Prometheus: The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer.

*Shortlisted for the Baillie Gifford Prize for Non-Fiction 2024*

‘Essential’ New York Times
‘A stomach-clenching, multi-perspective, ticking-clock, geopolitical thriller’ Forbes
‘Tells a terrifying story in a devastatingly straightforward way’ Guardian

Nuclear war begins with a blip on a radar screen.
This is a minute-by-minute account of what comes next.
It has to be read to be believed.

There is only one scenario other than an asteroid strike that could end the world as we know it in a matter of hours: nuclear war.

Until now, no one outside official circles has known exactly what would happen if a rogue state launched a nuclear missile at the Pentagon. Second by second and minute by minute, these are the real-life protocols that choreograph the end of civilization as we know it.

Decisions that affect hundreds of millions of lives need to be made within six minutes, based on partial information, in the knowledge that once launched, nothing is capable of halting the destruction.
Based on dozens of new interviews with military and civilian experts who have built the weapons, been privy to the response plans, and taken responsibility for crucial decisions, this is the only account of what a nuclear exchange would look like.
Nuclear War is at once a compulsive non-fiction thriller and a powerful argument that we must rid ourselves of these world-ending weapons for ever.

‘This terrifying book is a must-read for every world leader’ Mother Jones
‘These are scenes straight out of Dr Strangelove’ Telegraph
‘At once methodical and vivid’ The Economist

* A New York Times bestseller (March 2024) and a Sunday Times bestseller (April 2024)

Publisher Review

A stomach-clenching, multi-perspective, ticking-clock, geopolitical thriller rooted in the seeds of our own destruction, planted nearly 80 years ago at the Trinity test site by the scientists of the Manhattan Project who brazenly dared to rip the building blocks of our universe apart... I couldn't put the thing down, feverishly turning page after page until I finished it on the plane ride home... Nuclear War: A Scenario should be required reading for everyone alive today. * Forbes * Books like Annie Jacobsen's gripping "Nuclear War: A Scenario" are essential if you want to understand the complex and disturbing details that go into a civilization-destroying decision to drop the Bomb on an enemy. -- Barry Gewen * The New York Times * This terrifying book is a must-read for every world leader. * Mother Jones * Extraordinary... Her book delivers more detail than has been available to the public before... Terrifying. * New Scientist * Based on hundreds of interviews with many retired security officials and more-or-less declassified information in the public domain, what it captures brilliantly is the emotional chaos into which leaders would be plunged in such a situation.... These are scenes straight out of Dr Strangelove. * Telegraph * Using hard data from top military, government, and scientific sources, and brilliantly weaving in historical facts and technical data, Annie Jacobsen masterfully explains the nuclear issue in riveting story form, turning her readers into experts on the one issue that must concern us all. I guarantee that even the most knowledgeable readers will learn something, if not a lot. Everyone, especially politicians and heads of state, must read this important and very timely book. I cannot recommend it enough. -- Carlos Umana, co-president of International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Jacobsen seeks to break through jargon and details in order to tell a terrifying story in a devastatingly straightforward way. * Guardian * At once methodical and vivid. In documenting the minutiae of the apocalypse, the writing is redolent of 'Hiroshima', a seminal article by John Hersey published in the New Yorker in 1946. * The Economist * In Nuclear War: A Scenario, Annie Jacobsen, gives us a vivid picture of what could happen if our nuclear guardians fail...Terrifying. * Wall Street Journal * A vivid account... Jacobsen lucidly lays out complex information, based on well-referenced research and interviews with credible experts... The current global arrangements for managing risk and preventing cataclysm cannot be taken for granted. * Times Literary Supplement * What readers are saying about Nuclear War: 'At times I felt as if I was reading fiction and had to keep reminding myself that it's fact' 'It reads like a thriller... a brilliant read and impressive feat of research and storytelling' 'This book is a must-read for anyone who thinks nuclear weapons are the problem of a bygone era' 'Exceptionally well researched, the author's sources are impeccable, ably supported by technical information... a hugely powerful, sobering and compelling read' 'Clearly very well researched and well sourced. 10/10' 'A hugely informative piece of work that gives an enlightening insight into the world we live in today' -- NetGalley reader reviews