Takedown (2006)

I've enjoyed author Brad Thor, and his larger than life action hero, Scott Harvath. Thor writes with authority on the exploits of this ex-Navy SEAL, and the thankless job he does as the President's right hand man in singlehandedly cleaning up messes that no one else wants to even get involved with. If you've never read this series, start at the beginning, and work your way through as you're in for a treat. Each of the novels stands as a global thriller.

Takedown is the followup novel to Blowback. By the fifth book of a series, things often get kind of formulaic. Fortunately, this is not the case here, and Takedown stands as well as any novel in this series, maybe better. This novel concerns itself with a post-9/11 doomsday plot that seems so plausible, it's kind of scary.

A group of terrorists coordinate an attack on Manhattan, on July 4th no less. At first it seems that they are trying to recover a prisoner that the US is holding in NYC, and they are well organized and will stop at nothing to recover him. This attack cuts off Manhattan from the outside world when the bridges and tunnels are all under fire. New York's finest are also scattered, and tied up in other boroughs.

Harvath happens to be in the city, and after rounding up some military buddies starts the chase, although he's not even sure of whom at first. In the middle of this, a secret government program is stumbled upon which only deepens the intrigue of this. There are also several NY locations that will be familiar to those of us that live around here. (The encounter with the mounted policeman in Central Park is a classic.)

My one criticism of Takedown is that with only a few pages to go, too much additional plot unfolds. Just when all the loose ends are tied up, a mere three pages later, the reader is left with another cliffhanger. I was pleased to figure out that the next novel in the series, The First Commandment is already out, so I won't be hanging for too long.

Overall Grade: A

For all of our reviews by Brad Thor, click here.

Reviewed by Jonas

Blowback (2005)

It’s been a while since I last read a Brad Thor novel, but when I noticed that our readership has sustained interest in the reviews of the first three books in the series, I decided to seek out the fourth. Reading a Brad Thor novel, unlike some other some authors, takes considerable effort. His books are heavy, like a rich dessert, and they take time to consume and digest with their multiple subplots, and far flung foreign locations. Still, for those that persevere, the reward is worth it.

The title, Blowback, refers to when a CIA plan goes awry, and there is fallout. Once again, like in Thor’s other books, the hero is Scott Harvath, the all-American ex-SEAL, ex-Secret Service Agent, who does the President’s special missions which frequently involve “coloring outside the lines,” to get the job done. Early on in the novel, Harvath is once again outside the bounds of his authority, and he is bordering on being a rogue agent (in other words, just about where he is in the previous three novels). One plot involves his continuing hunt for a high ranking terrorist that he sparred with in the second novel.

The other major plot involves an unconventional weapon with Islamic terrorism behind it. Interestingly, the author did some research and incorporates a biological weapon that was planned to be used by Hannibal, the Carthaginian with those war elephants in the Alps, on his attack of the Roman Empire in ancient times. This has kind of a paleopathlogy twist to it, as an ancient disease is on the verge of being reintroduced into modern times with potentially devastating results. Harvath is once again off to save the world- again!

Another aspect of the novel involves the “What if?” scenario of a united Muslim world, and what this would mean to the future world order. It’s kind of intriguing to realize that if combined, a combined Muslim nation could easily rival any world power for domination. I always liked geopolitics, and these kind of scenarios, although not the simplest to cook up, are interesting to consider.

As Blowback progresses, we are taken to both several European and Middle Eastern locations. I also liked that we go back to an area of Switzerland from the first novel, The Lions of Lucerne, and even reuse a character. A good serial writer can make things mesh like that, and Thor shows us once again, that he is up to the task.

Blowback is a more serious kind of thriller novel. While it is a little over 400 pages, with so many locations and plots, it reads like something considerably longer. While it requires more concentration than some other fiction, and can’t be read in an afternoon at the beach, it is well worth the effort. If you want a global thriller on a grand scale, than Blowback is for you.

Overall Grade: A-

For all of our reviews by Brad Thor, click here.

State of the Union

This is the third part of Brad Thor's popular series of Scott Harvath novels, the totally all American, ex-SEAL, ex-Secret Service agent. This plot is a little different from the prior novels as it concerns itself with Russian suitcase nukes. After Russia "pretends" to lose the cold war, sleeper cells in the US get activated and portable nukes get strategically placed to blackmail our President into pulling back our military from superpower status. The country turns to Harvath (who else can save the world?) to solve the problem, and get inside Russia.

I found State of the Union to be an enlightening twist back to simpler days when Russia was the "evil empire," and we knew who the enemy was. As usual, Thor takes us on a whirlwind tour with robust descriptions of multiple European locales (in his previous life he produced a travel show). The plot is not completely far fetched as there have always been rumors of Russian suitcase nukes that are on American soil. The story is told in a well paced fashion, with only minimal breaks in the action. We also get to see Harvath use some of his prior SEAL training which hadn't come up earlier in the series.

I recommend State of the Union to all readers of adventure fiction. I'm sure they won't be disappointed.

Overall Grade: A

For all of our reviews by Brad Thor, click here.

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Path of the Assassin

Path of the Assassin is the sequel to The Lions of Lucerne, by Brad Thor. Here we follow the career of Scott Harvath, Presidential Secret Service Agent. Thor has successfully created a larger than life action hero in Harvath, but still is believable, and still mortal.

In Path of the Assassin, Harvath takes a break from his day job guarding the President. Here, he is hot on the chase of terrorists involved in The Lions of Lucerne's plot. Both his SEAL and Secret Service training are needed as we circle the globe. He parachutes, helicopters, drives cars and motorbikes, and races boats as the novel progresses. This is breakneck, pedal to the metal action all the way.

His new romantic interest in this novel is Meg Cassidy. She is a public relation expert that gets unwillingly thrown into the hunt for the terrorist. Harvath and Cassidy meet during a rescue operation from a plane in Egypt. Harvath, like in the previous novel, must operate independently, and even ignore orders from superiors, to get the job done.

This novel is well plotted, and well paced. The other strength is how the scenes are incorporated into the plot. Each exotic land is expertly described, and well detailed with the sights, smells and sounds. After a Thor novel, I feel not only like an armchair critic, but an armchair traveler as well.

Path of the Assassin is a well done sequel to The Lions of Lucerne. I'm confident that fans of action thrillers will not only enjoy it, but look forward to the next novel in the series.

Overall Grade: A

For all of our reviews by Brad Thor, click here.

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The Lions of Lucerne (2002)

The Lions of Lucerne is the debut novel from Brad Thor, and was published in 2002. Thor had previously been involved with a television program of travel. He uses his extensive knowledge of locations to enhance this novel. This novel is the start of a growing series, currently six novels strong.

The hero is Scot Harvath. He is works as a Secret Service agent assigned to the Presidential security detail. His qualifications include being an ex-Navy SEAL, and he is about as hard as they come. He is in optimal physical condition, can handle just about any weapon, and his bare hands are quite deadly. In short, he makes some other action heroes look like wimps, although Thor still keeps him believable throughout.

The plot focuses on that the President has been kidnapped. Oh, and Harvath, morally sworn to protect the President at all costs, while trying to pick up the trail, is on his own government’s junk list. Let’s just say he has to “color outside the lines” in order to get the job done and keep himself alive.

If you want an action novel, this is it. This is one of the few novels that can match Dan Brown’s breakneck action speed. This thing is truly “pedal to the metal” from cover to cover. It doesn’t let up even on the last page! There are also enough tech toys sprinkled in to keep any subscriber of Popular Mechanics intrigued.

The whole plot is so intricate, it takes quite a bit of effort to unravel the entire thing as layer upon layer get peeled back. It was quite enjoyable, and could even be read twice to take it all in. Adding to the realism are the locations, both American, and European. We can feel the locales, and they are described by an author that has actually been there, and not just from a guidebook.
I enjoyed The Lions of Lucerne very much. The plot twists and turns kept me reading, and it was difficult to put it down. I can’t wait to read the other books in the series. Expect them to be reviewed in the near future!

Overall Grade: A


lions of lucerne book review

For all of our reviews By Brad Thor, click here.