Anthony Sadler and Spenser Stone

On August 21, 2015, Ayoub El-Khazzani boarded train #9364 in Brussels, bound for Paris. There could be no doubt about his mission: he had an AK-47, a pistol, a box cutter, and enough ammunition to obliterate every passenger on board. But when he emerged, he encountered something he hadn't anticipated: three Americans who refused to give in to fear. Anthony Sadler, Alek Skarlatos, and Spencer Stone were childhood friends, taking a vacation together. They had some relevant training: Stone was a martial arts enthusiast and Airman First Class in the US Air Force; Skarlatos was an active duty member of the Oregon National Guard; and all three were fearless. But their decision—to charge the gunman, then overpower him even as he turned first his gun, then his knife, on Stone—depended on a lifetime of loyalty, support, and faith. THE 15:17 TO PARIS is the gripping, true story of a terrorist attack that would have killed more than 500 people if not for their actions, but it is also the story of three American boys and their friendship. Using each hero's point of view in sequence, this book skillfully reconstructs the drama of the attack, while weaving in the stories of the protagonists' lives and the friendship and loyalty shared between them. Among the things they can talk about: * The day their lives changed forever: The moment the gunman entered the train, what went through each of their minds and how they collectively decided to act * A reconstruction of the fight: How Alek Skarlatos, in defending himself and everyone else on the train, was fully prepared to shoot and kill the terrorist El-Khazzani, knowing full well that it might also kill his best friend Spencer Stone. (And how Stone had given him permission to do so, knowing that his life hung in the balance). Had the gun not jammed, twice, it would have meant certain death. * How their lives changed since the attack: from the glamorous (appearances on Dancing with the Stars and Who Wants to Be a Millionaire to meeting President Obama), to the personal (how the experience shaped each man's commitment to friendship, family, faith, and country). * The role of faith in each man's life and how the incident deepened and changed their connection to their personal faiths * How the experience renewed each of their sense of patriotism and commitment to serving their country (two of the three are currently serving in the military—one is in sniper training and the other in the National Guard.)