Exclusive: Bestselling author Jack Carr shares excerpt from 'Beirut,' his new nonfiction book on terror

Bestselling author Jack Carr's new nonfiction book, "Targeted: The 1983 Beirut Barracks Bombing," combines compelling storytelling and meticulous research about the attack on U.S. Marines.

The first light of dawn stretched across the Beirut sky at 5:24 a.m. that Sunday, Oct. 23, 1983. "The birds were singing louder than I’ve ever heard birds sing. It was like a symphony." Traces of the men’s lives were captured in photographs of wives, girlfriends, and children taped to concrete walls and tucked inside worn wallets. "He was wearing a blue shirt and had the smile of a crazy person on his face when he looked at me." For those on the ground, the split-second detonation, which would kill and maim hundreds, proved unimaginable.  "I was pinned. I couldn’t move. I didn’t know what happened." Jack Carr is the No. 1 New York Times bestselling author of "The Terminal List" and host of the "Danger Close Podcast." His latest book is "Red Sky Mourning" (Atria/Emily Bestler Books, June 18, 2024). He is a former Navy SEAL Task Unit commander and sniper with deployments to Afghanistan and Iraq. 

"Those who have read my James Reece ‘Terminal List’ series or who follow me on social media know the importance I place on history, particularly the history of warfare, terrorism, insurgencies, counterinsurgencies and special operations," Carr previously told Fox News Digital in an interview.