Megadeth Icon Dave Mustaine Sets Release Of 'In My Darkest Hour' Memoir

Official Announcement | Published: Mar 19, 2026 1:44 PM EDT

(SRO) Da Capo, an imprint of Grand Central Publishing (GCP) and the Hachette Book Group announce the publication of IN MY DARKEST HOUR: A Memoir by Dave Mustaine with Joe Layden on September 8, 2026.

"In My Darkest Hour is Dave Mustaine at his most revealing, vulnerable, and true," stated Ben Schafer, Executive Editor, Da Capo. "With lacerating honesty and soulful reflection, he speaks to the universal human experience of facing serious illness and how it changes a person, their family and friends, and one's relationship with creativity. Da Capo is proud to publish Dave Mustaine's most unblinking memoir to date, one that isn't only for Megadeth fans."

"One of most harrowing experiences of my adult life has been my seven-year journey through cancer treatment and onward into remission," Dave Mustaine says about the experiences detailed in the forthcoming book. "This story is considerably more than just go to the doctor, get diagnosed, get treatment and hopefully I live happily ever after. This was a journey of me saving myself, staying alive, keeping my family together, and continuing to make music through it all."

Dave Mustaine is no stranger to pain and suffering. He battled demons all his life-including an alcoholic father, addiction, and black magic-and turned fifty-eight believing he'd survived the worst. But in 2019, Mustaine was forced to face the loss of his instantly recognizable voice and the disintegration of his musical talent. Diagnosed with squamous cell carcinoma at the back of his tongue, his entire career-and possibly his life-was about to end.

For Mustaine, it was one more opportunity to fight like hell.

In My Darkest Hour takes readers from the treatment room to the studio as Mustaine chronicles how his diagnosis inspired him to take up the pen and guitar pick, going from radiation and chemotherapy appointments straight into hours-long recording sessions, resulting in Megadeth's sixteenth studio album, The Sick, The Dying...and the Dead! Along the way, Mustaine details how confronting his own mortality brought him closer to his family, taught him how to ask for help, strengthened his faith, and challenged the vulnerability of his art.

Filled with perseverance, hope, and the determination to never let the bastards grind you down, In My Darkest Hour is a masterful portrait of a Dave Mustaine that the world has yet to see, and serves as a moving reminder that even our most invincible heroes are human.

Now, six years removed from that initial diagnosis, Mustaine is seeing the biggest success of his 40-plus-year career with Megadeth's final studio album and tour. Committed to go out on top, Megadeth's new album (released in January 2026) debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 in the U.S., marking the band's highest debut week ever on the chart. Around the world, the album garnered critical acclaim and hit #1 in 11 countries and landed Top 5 positions on 11 additional charts.