Eight Lives Down: The Story of a Counterterrorist Bomb-disposal Operator's Tour in Iraq

Searing heat...cold fear...silence. It's just you and the bomb...In this riveting first-person account, bomb-disposal operative Chris Hunter takes us behind the scenes in an eye-opening, never-before-seen portrait of the most dangerous job in the most dangerous place on earth. By the time he got to Iraq, Chris Hunter was one of the most experienced bomb-disabling operators in the British armed forces. But Iraq was different, a place where terrorists and soldiers were climbing the same deadly learning curve. Where new devices and new tactics led to countermeasures, and the line between killer and innocent bystander was impossible to draw. As Hunter’s unit became more skilled at disabling bombs, the bombers became more skilled and determined—until Hunter ended up with a price on his head and bombs designed just for him. From a horrifying ambush in the heart of Shia-dominated Basra to the chilling interrogation of a captured bomber, Hunter delivers a first-of-its-kind account that is gritty, immediate, and heartbreaking—the chronicle of a man clinging to his sanity, his marriage, and his duty to his fellow soldiers.