Three Minutes to Doomsday

An Agent, a Traitor, and the Worst Espionage Breach in U.S. History

By: Joe Navarro

Narrated by: George Newbern

An intense cat-and-mouse game played between two brilliant men in the last days of the Cold War, this shocking insider’s story shows how a massive giveaway of secret war plans and nuclear secrets threatened America with annihilation.

In 1988 Joe Navarro, one of the youngest agents ever hired by the FBI, was dividing his time between SWAT assignments, flying air reconnaissance, and working counter-intelligence. But his real expertise was “reading” body language. He possessed an uncanny ability to glean the thoughts of those he interrogated.

So it was that, on a routine assignment to interview a “person of interest”—a former American soldier named Rod Ramsay—Navarro noticed his interviewee’s hand trembling slightly when he was asked about another soldier who had recently been arrested in Germany on suspicion of espionage. That thin lead was enough for the FBI agent to insist to his bosses that an investigation be opened.

What followed is unique in the annals of espionage detection—a two-year-long battle of wits. The dueling antagonists: an FBI agent who couldn’t overtly tip to his target that he suspected him of wrongdoing lest he clam up, and a traitor whose weakness was the enjoyment he derived from sparring with his inquisitor. Navarro’s job was made even more difficult by his adversary’s brilliance: not only did Ramsay possess an authentic photographic memory as well as the second highest IQ ever recorded by the US Army, he was bored by people who couldn’t match his erudition. To ensure that the information flow would continue, Navarro had to pre-choreograph every interview, becoming a chess master plotting twenty moves in advance.

And the backdrop to this mental tug of war was the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the very real possibility that its leaders, in a last bid to alter the course of history, might launch a devastating attack. If they did, they would have Ramsay to thank, because as Navarro would learn over the course of forty-two mind-bending interviews, Ramsay had, by his stunning intelligence giveaways, handed the Soviets the ability to utterly destroy the US.

The story of a determined hero who pushed himself to jaw-dropping levels of exhaustion and who rallied his team to expose undreamed of vulnerabilities in America’s defense, Three Minutes to Doomsday will leave the reader with disturbing thoughts of the risks the country takes even today with its most protected national secrets.

Wow! Incredible Story!

This story was mind blowing! I love a good spy story but the fact that Joe's story was true and he tracked and captured this traitor in the 1980's makes this bone chilling. Hearing such an espionage tale and how deeply compromised our nation was in the late 1980's and early 1990's by the two spies talked about by Joe in his book, it scares me to think about others that may not get caught. I am glad to hear and want to thank Joe for his heroic efforts to not give in to the pressures and give up when most would have. His persistance possibly literally saved the world but definitely literally saved the entire United States and NATO nations from nuclear disaster. I DO hope we have solved the nuclear authenticator issue. We will never know if they did or didn't unless we get or have top secret clearance. If you are lost by my review, I suggest buying and listening to this audiobook. If you like a great back and forth police interview drama story. This is it! It has a good amount of suspense in it too. I could not believe all the different U.S. agencies and foreign governments and their special agencies that were getting "involved" making Joe's work all that more challenging. Check it out, you'll be glad you did! #Espionage #LawEnforcementDrama #GlobalSetting #Suspenseful #NuclearThreat #TagsGiving #Sweepstakes

Doomsday Averted

Who knew? Which intelligence agency knew? NO ONE! No one but the spies! This tale of espionage will send chills down your spine and leave you wondering HOW COULD IT HAVE HAPPENED! Could it happen again? Now? Get ready for some sleepless nights asking just those questions.

Wow!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. Great audiobook with great narration. My favorite since Boys in the Boat. I’ll probably listen to it again.

A great listen

Not only is this an interesting story, there is much to learn in it on many levels. The information in the book can help with your interpersonal skills, and it gives a glimpse into the toll on the dedicated agents of the FBI.

A man

Incredible the amount of duty and patriotism this man displayed. Sacrifice of self for a greater cause. If only men like this still walked the important halls. Even this man at that time wasn’t popular in Washington. No wonder, the amount of injustice, sellouts and pure wickedness that resides there in the hearts of the men and women who pursue the power but not the sacrifice it takes to serve God and country.