The End of October

by Lawrence Wright

Genres: Disaster Fiction; Medical Thrillers; Political Thrillers

Synopsis

Brought to you by Penguin.

A DEADLY VIRUS. QUARANTINE. A WORLD IN LOCKDOWN. THE THRILLER THAT PREDICTED IT ALL.

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

'Flies thrillingly, eerily close to reality' Guardian

'This page-turner... is riveting and spookily anticipates much that has unfolded in reality' Sunday Times

A race-against-time thriller, as one man must find the origin and cure for a new killer virus that has brought the world to its knees.

At an internment camp in Indonesia, forty-seven people are pronounced dead with a mysterious fever. When Dr Henry Parsons - microbiologist and epidemiologist - travels there on behalf of the World Health Organization to investigate, what he finds will soon have staggering repercussions across the globe: an infected man is on his way to join the millions of worshippers in the annual Hajj to Mecca.

As international tensions rise and governments enforce unprecedented measures, Henry finds himself in a race against time to track the source and find a cure – before it’s too late . . .

***

'Eerily prescient. Too bad our leaders lack his foresight.' The New York Times

'Featuring accounts of past plagues and pandemics, descriptions of pathogens and how they work, and dark notes about global warming, the book produces deep shudders . . . A disturbing, eerily timed novel.' Kirkus Reviews

'A compelling read up to the last sentence. Wright has come up with a story worthy of Michael Crichton. In an eerily calm, matter-of-fact way, and backed by meticulous research, he imagines what the world would actually be like in the grip of a devastating new virus.' Richard Preston, author of The Hot Zone

WHAT READERS ARE SAYING:

'If you have a desire to really understand what is going on in the world right now, this is a novel that you cannot afford to miss!'

'Well-written and fast-paced. Most of all utterly, scarily, believable.'

'I HAVE LEARNED SO MUCH, and actually much of what I learned has informed my understanding of our current coronavirus pandemic.'

'Very well written and researched, and an all-around fascinating story'

Release date: April 28, 2020

Publisher: Vintage

Print pages: 400

Sample

Dear Readers,
 
The events depicted in The End of October were meant to serve as a cautionary tale. But real life doesn’t always wait for warnings. As I write, the entire world is enveloped in a viral disease much like the one I imagined within these pages. 
 
It’s been said that the book is a kind of prophecy, but I see it simply as the result of careful research. I asked the question: what is the gravest threat to human civilization? Nuclear war and global warming are existential threats, but throughout history diseases have periodically capsized societies. A century has passed since the 1918 “Spanish” flu that killed between fifty and a hundred million people. What if something like that returned, in our time, where travel is rapid and cities are densely populated and public health has receded as a primary concern?
 
I have applied the same rigorous standards that I bring to my nonfiction. Nothing presented here as factual is invented. I interviewed many scientists and epidemiologists who are now at the forefront of America’s effort to constrain the pandemic. As for the geopolitics I describe, I merely extended trends I observed in the world to certain logical conclusions. I spoke to top government officials and military figures. Everyone I spoke to shared the concerns I expressed herein—something like this could happen. And now it has.
 
Of course, this book is a novel. One with heroes and villains and a clock ticking in the background. It was exciting to research and to write, and what I learned gave me hope about our institutions and the people who are working to shield us from catastrophe. I was particularly impressed by the ingenuity and courage of the people who have dedicated their lives to public health. It is to them that the novel is dedicated.
 
I hope you enjoy it.
 
Lawrence Wright