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'Wild Bill' Hiccock #1
Eighth Day: Quarterback Operations Group Book 1
A chemical engineer sets in motion a horrendous explosion killing hundreds of commuters and himself. Hollywood's hottest sex symbol assassinates a sitting Senator. A grandmother stages a sophisticated attack on a train causing massive damage. An airplane full of Silicon Valley's brightest is blown up while refueling. A series of deadly, unrelated events or the unlikely start of an insidious new terror network?
As Science Advisor to the President, William "Wild Bill" Hiccock is tasked with assembling a team to identify and stop the threat, whether homegrown or foreign. His team, a retired Navy Admiral, a wise-guy computer hacker sprung from federal prison, and his ex-wife, a leading behavioral psychologist, must identify and destroy their elusive adversary who always seems to be a step ahead.
As Science Advisor to the President, William "Wild Bill" Hiccock is tasked with assembling a team to identify and stop the threat, whether homegrown or foreign. His team, a retired Navy Admiral, a wise-guy computer hacker sprung from federal prison, and his ex-wife, a leading behavioral psychologist, must identify and destroy their elusive adversary who always seems to be a step ahead.
478 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 26, 2008
114 people are currently reading
217 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
February 19, 2011
This book reminds me a lot of "The Manchurian Candidate". If you remember in "The Manchurian Candidate" people were brainwashed to respond to external stimuli to perform acts they would never have thought of doing.
"The Eighth Day" takes this one step further. If I remember correctly in the sixties Madison Avenue made an attempt to control our buying habits by subliminal advertising. If you were watching a movie and they wanted you to purchase a drink, a picture of a desert would be flashed on the screen, you would not consciously see it, but your mind would perceive it and you would find yourself feeling thirsty.
What if someone was able to devise a computer program where a message would be flashed on your computer screen and a message would be entered into your sub-conscious mind?
The United States is being confronted with several major attacks on chemical plants and think tanks. The logical explanation is a terrorist attack, the only problem is no one is taking credit for the attacks. It also seems that the attacks are carried out by people committing suicide after the attack.
A break comes when, by accident, a person who just caused a massive train derailment is captured. She is an elderly woman with no past history of violence or criminal activity. She becomes the key in finding out how these attacks are being planned and who may be behind them.
There is plenty of action and suspense in this book, but it is the technological part of the book that makes it great. It becomes so real that you must wonder if something like this can really happen.
This is a Borders Books exclusive and must be ordered through them.
"The Eighth Day" takes this one step further. If I remember correctly in the sixties Madison Avenue made an attempt to control our buying habits by subliminal advertising. If you were watching a movie and they wanted you to purchase a drink, a picture of a desert would be flashed on the screen, you would not consciously see it, but your mind would perceive it and you would find yourself feeling thirsty.
What if someone was able to devise a computer program where a message would be flashed on your computer screen and a message would be entered into your sub-conscious mind?
The United States is being confronted with several major attacks on chemical plants and think tanks. The logical explanation is a terrorist attack, the only problem is no one is taking credit for the attacks. It also seems that the attacks are carried out by people committing suicide after the attack.
A break comes when, by accident, a person who just caused a massive train derailment is captured. She is an elderly woman with no past history of violence or criminal activity. She becomes the key in finding out how these attacks are being planned and who may be behind them.
There is plenty of action and suspense in this book, but it is the technological part of the book that makes it great. It becomes so real that you must wonder if something like this can really happen.
This is a Borders Books exclusive and must be ordered through them.
May 14, 2012
Nicely paced action thriller with enough side storylines to keep a good flow.
Read
June 22, 2012I really liked thiss book! A thriller that was fascinating with interesting characters and unexpected twists.
June 11, 2012
Well written and suspenseful. A bit far fetched from a factual standpoint but enjoyable nonetheless.
September 7, 2012
I enjoy this new to me author!
November 21, 2021
Worth reading.
A bit long, but enjoyable. All of the explanations of computers and what-not were a bit over the top, but that's to be expected.
A bit long, but enjoyable. All of the explanations of computers and what-not were a bit over the top, but that's to be expected.
March 11, 2025
great read
I liked the writing. Story kept my interest, as a lot of books I never finish. Will look for more books from this author!
I liked the writing. Story kept my interest, as a lot of books I never finish. Will look for more books from this author!
December 9, 2012
William (Wild Bill) Hiccock is the Science Advisor to the President, when unknown terrorists begin to attack the United States in a wide range of areas, with various methods. When the Director of the FBI goes after the terrorists with the same old techniques, William believes that using scientific methods would look at the picture differently and bring about a better outcome. He turns to his ex-wife and other experts to track down some of the peculiarities he sees.
This is an incredibly action packed book that reaches out to the reader on so many different levels. The setting moves all across the country and in multiple areas of the White House, dealing in political, military, and FBI/CIA relationships. Using science as a venue for the crimes, the vocabulary and focus of the book builds around various areas including computers and artificial intelligence, keeping the reader involved. The action just keeps hopping. It kept me up late for three work nights! The premise leaves your wanting to check your computer to make sure it does not have an enemy within. Hiccock is much like a mental MacGyver. If you like action packed adventure with scientific deduction, you will love this. I cannot wait to get the next book in the series.
This is an incredibly action packed book that reaches out to the reader on so many different levels. The setting moves all across the country and in multiple areas of the White House, dealing in political, military, and FBI/CIA relationships. Using science as a venue for the crimes, the vocabulary and focus of the book builds around various areas including computers and artificial intelligence, keeping the reader involved. The action just keeps hopping. It kept me up late for three work nights! The premise leaves your wanting to check your computer to make sure it does not have an enemy within. Hiccock is much like a mental MacGyver. If you like action packed adventure with scientific deduction, you will love this. I cannot wait to get the next book in the series.
August 1, 2014
This book is sort of like Tom Clancy lite... a lot of seemingly disconnected plots that coalesce into a single finale. Tom Avitabile gives it the old college try, but he's no Clancy.
"Wild" Bill Hiccock is the President's science advisor, but he ends up leading a nationwide search for the cause of a series of unrelated terrorist acts around the country. In all honesty, a lot of the other characters in the book are more interesting than Hiccock, but he does a good job anchoring the story.
The plot evolves significantly as the story goes along, somehow getting even more farfetched along the way. But it still held my interest.
There were definitely some editing errors in the first half, and I could have done without the multi-page rant about the "real causes" of 9/11, but it was still a solid read.
"Wild" Bill Hiccock is the President's science advisor, but he ends up leading a nationwide search for the cause of a series of unrelated terrorist acts around the country. In all honesty, a lot of the other characters in the book are more interesting than Hiccock, but he does a good job anchoring the story.
The plot evolves significantly as the story goes along, somehow getting even more farfetched along the way. But it still held my interest.
There were definitely some editing errors in the first half, and I could have done without the multi-page rant about the "real causes" of 9/11, but it was still a solid read.
January 18, 2011
What a person asks of a thriller: fast, convoluted plot twists; high-tech dangers; govt. blindness & scientific prowess; all with some sketchy good characters & equally sketchy villains;
this delivers.
Great is certainly isn't, but I ate it up anyway.
this delivers.
Great is certainly isn't, but I ate it up anyway.
January 26, 2010
Pseudo-scientific tosh.
July 15, 2010
I did not like this book at all - too confusing - too many things going on at the same time.
September 19, 2011
i LOVE it all the plot tiwst ,,adding that the gov't didn't have know idea who or what was behide it and it was funded by them
June 18, 2013
alot going on, good story and very scary concept, all too possible to become real.
Read
December 31, 2013Couldn't finish.
April 3, 2016
A couldn't-put-it-down read!
December 5, 2008
An okay thriller. Could have definitely used some more character development.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews