Brad Thor's latest Foreign Agent spills thrills and lots of blood. Not for the faint of heart, Foreign Agent is amazingly connected to what's happening in today's world of politics, terrorism, and espionage.
Scot Harvath is the man the president can count on to do whatever must be done. Scot's employed by a private intelligence company run by an old-school CIA guy. Harvath's position provides deniability for any who use his multiple former SEAL and espionage skills. A series of events with ISIS earmarks spanning the globe and winding up on the White House lawn send Harvath on a chase first to capture those suspected of organizing various attacks but pointing to a singular individual with a totally unexpected agenda. The problem is the agenda is killing too many Americans and diverting all efforts to discover whatever the end game is.
Thanks to the calm - and perhaps just slightly demented - interrogator with all kinds of strange toys designed to make prisoners talk in addition to the dwarf tech-wizard Nicholas, Harvath and his diverse band of assistants set out to accomplish the impossible. With the aid of a CIA drone, the constant threat of discovery and death in every improvised plan, Scot Harvath makes some heavy duty promises to a couple of locals who risk their lives right along with him and two warrior twin brothers with their makeshift crew of self-appointed soldiers. If Harvath can somehow make it out alive with these brave men, those promises will be kept.
Scot Harvath wastes no time with wicked men. He's become hardened to the games played by those who plan to kill in large numbers. His given window of opportunity to confess or explain the next plan of action is tight and narrow before the pain begins. If necessary, certain individuals end up in Malta - a particular location where no one would want to go. Others end up executed on the spot of their resistance.
In Foreign Agent Scot Harvath must travel to several locations using multiple contacts to capture various prisoners. Terror attacks, assassinations, suicide bombers, and double agents comprise the pages of this novel. It's an exciting but deadly journey at every event and nothing in this one is easy as the escalation of ISIS attacks lands in the front yard of the White House.
There's more cussing and a bit of sexual content in this one. Not unexpected or excessive - just more than in some of Brad Thor's other novels. Also considerable violence and blood spatter. Although Foreign Agent ends on a positive note, there seems to be a conundrum of choices ahead for Thor's protagonist. Although Harvath is a savvy agent with superfluous skills, the character seems to be in a catch-22 situation. He's in love, but he's a warrior patriot. He's hardened himself at one end of his personality but tenderized himself to the possible love of his life. The romance thread in Foreign Agent is thin, but it permeates the story well under the radar. As a reader, I can't help but wonder what this character will decide because in this story it doesn't seem like he will be able to have both.
Highly recommended for its amazing poignancy to today's events, the insights into terrorism and its players, and for continuing the well-established legacy of the Scot Harvath stories.
Father, you're all that matters in this writing biz. I pray Brad Thor would incorporate you into his work. I pray for continued inspiration for Brad and for protection from all harm for him and his family. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.