72 Hours to Midway: The USS YORKTOWN's Miracle in the Pacific A Pacific Naval War Novel In May 1942, the United States Navy was losing the Pacific War against Japan. Pearl Harbor lay in ruins. American carrier strength was dangerously thin. And one battered aircraft carrier-USS YORKTOWN-returned from the Battle of the Coral Sea so badly damaged that many believed her combat days were over. What followed was one of the most extraordinary feats in naval history. 72 Hours to Midway tells the gripping, historically grounded story of how engineers, sailors, and commanders raced against time in Pearl Harbor Navy Yard to perform what should have been months of repairs in just three days-so that YORKTOWN could sail back into battle. That decision would help shape the outcome of the Battle of Midway, the turning point of the Pacific War. Blending meticulous research with compelling storytelling, this novel places the reader inside engine rooms, on flight decks, and across command tables where exhaustion, uncertainty, and imperfect intelligence ruled every decision. From smoke-filled compartments below the waterline to the strategic calculations of Fleet Admiral Chester Nimitz, the story reveals how victory depended not just on pilots and admirals-but on welders, machinists, damage-control teams, and leaders willing to accept terrifying risk. This is not a tale of inevitability. In May and June 1942, no one knew America would win the war. Every choice was made without hindsight, under the weight of lives, steel, and distance measured in thousands of unforgiving miles of ocean. Why readers will care: A rare, engineer's-eye view of World War II naval warfare A dramatic, human account of the Battle of Midway beyond the flight deck A tribute to the enlisted sailors and officers whose work kept fleets alive Historically accurate events woven into a powerful narrative of uncertainty and resolve 72 Hours to Midway is historical fiction grounded in real events, real ships, and real consequences-telling the story not just of a battle, but of the decisions and sacrifices that made victory possible. For readers of naval history, World War II fiction, and anyone fascinated by how close history came to turning another way.