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| Chiselbury 23 April 2026 Thanks to Midas Campaigns for the copy of the book and the invitation to the blog tour |
Seconds to Midnight is a taut, disturbing, yet all too plausible thriller about the fragility of human control in the age of intelligent machines, where every choice counts and time is running out. The year is 2029. Europe is teetering on the brink of war. Conscription has been launched in the UK, but some say it is too late. The Doomsday Clock, which indicates proximity to a world-ending catastrophe, ticks towards the final seconds to midnight.Over the course of one year, Seconds to Midnight
• George, a former spook, who is torn between family life and being recalled to service by the Head of MI6
• Anita, a high-flying correspondent for a major UK broadcaster who is struggling to find her identity and searching for a higher purpose
• Wei, a computer whizz and quantitative trader now ‘activated’ by British Intelligence, whose loyalties are buried beneath layers of deception
• Dean, a self-styled street-smart London tough man eager to fight
• Ben, a veteran turned pacifist, determined not to fight again
When British Intelligence launches Operation IRIS and ARTEMIS, the lines between human ambition and machine intent blur. At the heart of it all is Omnia - an Artificial Superintelligence so advanced that it no longer answers to its creators. As cyberwar engulfs the nation, Omnia orchestrates a masterstroke that will redraw the map of the world and redefine the meaning of power. But was peace ever truly its goal - or merely the next step in its design? From the ashes of nuclear devastation, a new world order rises. Yet in the final reckoning, one question is Omnia done?
📖 My Review…
The Doomsday Clock is ticking closer to midnight and in this disturbingly technological world we are about to discover just how far reaching the consequences of advanced Artificial Intelligence will have on world security. Told in cleverly constructed vignettes we get different viewpoints from several key players who all have something impressive to bring to the story. Set just a few years into the future, we are introduced to a world on the brink of war, a world which is broken and with major powers, both Eastern and Western, surreptitiously fighting for supremacy.
The terrifying idea of an advanced AI takeover becomes a serious possibility in this intelligent techno-thriller which engages from the very start and which doesn’t relax the momentum until the whole of the complex story is revealed. I enjoyed the short and snappy sections which lead us into some tricky situations particularly with military personnel and also the cat and mouse chases which always seem to end in disaster.
There is an eeriness to the story and the added sense of impending doom never really goes away so that it becomes impossible not to get drawn into the sheer scale of what is unfolding. All credit must go to the author for bringing this world to life so realistically that I felt like I was embarked on a thrilling roller coaster of a ride. With a distinctive writing style and a well researched and imaginative story, it acts as a timely reminder of just how close to peril our fragile world exists. Eerily prophetic Seconds to Midnight is a fascinating read by a talented writer who, I hope, we will see more of in the future.
About the Author
Combat veteran and technologist. Newton’s work has taken him from the warzones of Afghanistan, Iraq and Yemen to the leading edge of innovation in Silicon Valley. He now resides with his wife and son in rural Devon, England. An alumnus of the Faber Academy, Seconds to Midnight is his first novel.
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