The Third Man Factor is an extraordinary account of how people at the very edge of death often sense an unseen presence beside them who encourages them to make one final effort to survive. This incorporeal being offers a feeling of hope, protection, and guidance, and leaves the person convinced he or she is not alone. There is a name for this phenomenon: It's called the Third Man Factor.

If only a handful of people had ever encountered the Third Man, it might be dismissed as an unusual delusion shared by a few over-stressed minds. But over the years, the experience has occurred again and again, from 9/11 survivors, mountaineers, divers, polar explorers, and prisoners of war to sailors, shipwreck survivors, aviators, and astronauts. All have escaped traumatic events only to tell strikingly similar stories of having sensed the close presence of a helper or guardian. The force has been explained as everything from hallucination to divine intervention. Recent neurological research suggests something else.

Fascinating for any listener, The Third Man Factor at last explains this secret to survival, a Third Man who—in the words of famed climber Reinhold Messner—"leads you out of the impossible."