Final Eclipse

by Matthew Huddleston

Formats

E-Book

$3.99

Softcover

$20.99

Hardcover

$43.99

E-Book

$3.99

Book Details

Language : English

Publication Date : 9/5/2024

Format : E-Book

Dimensions : N/A

Page Count : 292

ISBN : 9781665761550

Format : Softcover

Dimensions : 5.5x8.5

Page Count : 292

ISBN : 9781665761543

Format : Hardcover

Dimensions : 5.5x8.5

Page Count : 292

ISBN : 9781665761567

About the Book

How do you conquer a planet? Take away the sun. (It’s easier than you think…) NASA research satellites suddenly go silent as a mysterious dark “spot” appears in front of the sun. A young Kevin Mycroft discovers that the spot is steadily growing in size, threatening to throw the entire earth into permanent darkness. When senior NASA scientists, including Kevin’s father, begin intentionally hiding the truth, Kevin convinces his friends to take action on their own. But is there anything they can do to fight the grim fate that awaits the planet? The origin of the eclipse soon reveals that cold and darkness are not the only enemies lurking in the shadows. And as each fight for survival seems to backfire, Kevin’s hopes fade while he questions whether he, or anyone else, can be the hero that the world so desperately needs.

About the Author

Since 2008, Matthew Huddleston has taught and mentored students as a physics professor at Trevecca University in Nashville, Tennessee, while continuing to do research in magnetospheric space physics. The topics of his classroom lectures often become inspirations for stories, and he believes that the science of the real world contains more wonder and mystery than anything he could invent as an author.

Customer Reviews

This book is a brilliant blend of science and compelling storytelling. It feels similar to a Michael Crichton novel but for young adults. The science is fascinating without being too complex to understand, and the themes are spot on for this age group. I can't wait to read the next one!

Emily Brooks
The book was easy to read. It held my interest through the whole book. Look forward to the next in the series.

Rick Kahre
An interesting read that will keep you on your toes while simultaneously open your eyes to how cool physics can be!

Emily
As modern science fiction has become more and more farfetched, the Final Eclipse honors the roots of the genre, while also breathing new life into it. With its exciting, earth-shattering plot, the reader will be gripped by the inspiring characters in the book and their efforts to survive and fight the darkness that has fallen across the globe. With the true heart of a teacher, Huddleston grounds his book in plausible scientific ideas, explaining them in a way that will fascinate the reader instead of falling into tedium. With its firm basis in science, high-stakes original storyline, and compelling characters, the Final Eclipse is one of the best Science Fiction works I have ever read.

Caleb Pierce
A very engaging story that reads like a YA version of an Andy Weir novel.

Joey
It is so rare to read science fiction these days that both inspires the imagination and also teaches real science. This last week I reviewed Three Body Problem, which I raved about because it does just that. Final Eclipse is another of the few. It has a small group of friends using deduction and science to battle against a conspiracy of unseen, sinister extraterrestrials who are hell-bent on conquering the planet. And best of all (for a worldbuilding sucker like me), along the way you get to learn a lot about physics, history, and a smattering of so many others, from astronomy to sea ice to SOFAR to intriguing military technologies to why Iceland would be the best place on Earth to survive a winter apocalypse. In addition to all that, this is also a very special book to me personally. You see, about 6 years ago, I started a writer’s group that meets at me and my wife’s home. We set out to do one thing really well together: to give high quality constructive feedback regularly that manages to be both highly rigorous and uplifting. Of the writers in that group, we’ve covered a lot of ground together over the years. We’ve struggled together to figure out so many things, encouraged each other in the lows, celebrated together in the highs. And several novels have gone through our group. But today, the first one is getting published. I couldn’t be more proud, because, as much as this book is definitely the brain-child of Matthew, it also feels a little bit like the child of the whole writer’s group, the proverbial village that it takes to raise a child. It’s Matthew’s biological child, but we all got to participate in a really substantive way, and that’s just really cool. I often call Matthew the world’s most fascinating man. He’s a physics professor, a world traveler, an astronomer, a voracious reader of science fiction and many other genres, and he’s always taking some absolutely epic trip somewhere, kayaking down a river in the Congo to be the first one to film a remote waterfall, or traveling to the Azores Islands to do research for his book, or to Iceland to do research for his book, or…did I mention this guy does some incredible research for his books? Who does that??? He’s also just one of those people who are a seemingly infinite treasure trove of interesting information. And a gifted teacher. I’ve seen him teach complex physics topics to a mixed audience on the spot with ease. Okay wow, I’ve gone far afield from talking about the book. The book! Final Eclipse is epic. The first part is brooding. Our heroes and heroine become privy to the fact that the world as we know it is about to end. But almost no one on the planet knows it yet. People are just going about their days, few of them—outside a small handful of scientists—aware that there’s any problem at all. But there is, and it’s sinister. Kevin’s father is a top scientist at an agency that monitors satellites. Particular satellites: the ones that monitor the sun. And then one day, all of these satellites mysteriously go dead within a moment of each other. What could it be? Equipment malfunction? Solar flare? They test out the standard list of theories, but nothing checks out. Until someone comes up with a strange theory. You see, all of these satellites are at a very special location in space. If you’re monitoring the sun, the best place to put your satellites is a location called L1. It’s one of the LaGrange points: particular spots around the Earth wherein, if you put a satellite, the forces of gravity all equal out so that it will stay put indefinitely without you having to expend any energy to keep it there. The L1 point is the place partway in a line between the sun and Earth, at just the spot where the gravity of Earth and the gravity of the sun equal out, pulling in two exact opposite directions (obviously much closer to the Earth than the sun to compensate for the fact that the sun is 300,000 times heavier). Anyways, what’s such a big deal about this LaGrange point? Well if you think about it, if you wanted to put something between those two bodies…indefinitely…such as, I don’t know, a huge shield to block all sunlight from getting to the Earth…voila. Someone’s out to kill all life on the planet. The plot progresses along several lines. Without giving too much away, I’ll just say that this is about good old fashioned fighting against the alien invaders, plus there’s the pandemonium of the masses preparing for impending doom, there’s the malice of nations against one another, there’s militaries and nations and a bit of politics, but most importantly, there’s the mystery unraveling slowly of figuring out: who exactly are these aliens? What kind of people would attack the earth in this way? How can we prepare for them? More is continually revealed as we adventure all over the globe, and it’s quite satisfying. Oh and one other thing. Far from reading like a textbook, this is pretty easy reading. In fact, one of the other writers in our group described it as “YA (young adult) for grown-ups,” and I have to agree. It’s fun, but not stupid. I’ve read my fair share of bad YA. One of the classic YA pitfalls is to make it seem like for some reason, it’s just the kids who are capable of doing anything to save the world, and all the adults are idiots…pure wish fulfillment. But this book is refreshing because it doesn’t do that. The adults are doing the big plans and everything—much more realistic—but at the same time, our young heroes and heroine have a major part to play, and we get to see the world through their eyes. And it’s just a lot more fun that way. I feel like I’m getting the best of both worlds. Okay, if I talk any more about this book I’m going to give things away. Go out and read it today! It’s a fun ride.

Levi Hobbs
A good first outing for the author. Good sci-fi is a welcome addition in the current young adult environment. Character development is possibly the authors greatest strength, as we see multiple characters grow and mature. The story touches on some real truths, another thing that sets it apart from its peers. Overall, I look forward to a follow-up.

Jacob
A sci fi page turner that makes real physics interesting and aliens seem extra plausible

EP
I enjoyed the plot line and real science behind the storyline. It was a solid read and one you would sit in a recliner and lose time of the day as you turn the page.

Eric
I'm not an avid reader, but this book was recommended to me and I really enjoyed it much more than I expected. As a sci-fi book, it focused on character building and plot while introducing the reader to very intriguing and sometimes counter-intuitive science. It went sufficiently deep into less well-known concepts of physics (like Lagrange Points), and struck a great balance to avoid casually tossing big science words around or pounding the reader over the head with pages upon pages of "look how much I know about physics" (think "Project Hail Mary" without the lengthy narcissistic pontification). Instead it really brings the science alive as a well-nuanced foundation to a solid story, and adds layers of familiar human experience and emotion throughout, to keep the reader engaged and full of anticipation. I can't wait for the sequel!

Jeremy H

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