Review: Brad Thor's BLOWBACK

BLOWBACK

Function: noun
: an unforeseen and unwanted effect, result, or set of repercussions
: CIA code name for an agent or operation that has turned on its
creators
: botched covert action


Former Navy SEAL Scot Harvath in an instant realizes he's blown and many fatwa will be placed upon his head. Al Jazeera has captured him beating a poor, helpless Iraqi, not his nemesis Khalid Sheik Alomari, a superior and ruthless Al Qaeda assassin he has been tracking for months. Though his face is not seen, the American Flag patch on his camouflaged fatigues is. He is immediately recalled to D.C. He is forced to resign from the Office of International Investigative Assistance at DHS by popular President Jack Rutledge. He's stunned to learn that his years of service and loyalty to this President mean nothing. Or do they?

Ripped from the Headlines, Thor delivers a chilling fast-paced plot that is both smart and frightening. Entombed in an Alpine glacier, an ancient weapon designed to annihilate the Roman Empire has been found. A group with Al Qaeda links led by the Scorpion intends to use it to bring America to her knees.

A group of Islamic scientists working on the miracle of the 'Sword of Allah' are dying in accidents arranged by Khalid Sheik Alomari while villagers and Christian Missionaries in Northwest Iraq die a slow painful death as do the Soldiers from Arrowhead Brigade SBCT who discover this diseased village devoured by "Algul!! Algul! Algul!" (vampire) leaving only the Sunni. The Christians and Shiites all are dead. Scot reluctantly accepts a Black Operation to find the only surviving scientist who may know the connection between the deaths, the deadly biochemical, and the 'Sword of Allah, because he must avoid a subpoena from the powerful obdurate Senator Helen Carmichael. Bring down Rutledge, and become the first woman POTUS, no matter the cost to the country or allies her secret dossiers.

Without support from his government, Harvath must accept help from the Uncle of the kidnapped scientist (whom he doesn't trust) and beautiful Molecular Biologist Jillian Alcott. Jillian and Scot soon discover a possible connection to the missing scientist and the biological weapon as they evade Khalid Sheik Alomari and murder charges. As they race across Europe, and the Middle East, the reader delves into the terrifying world of Wahhabism, the Royal Saudi family, and the Profit's lineage to stop the pandemic that is about to released upon the world, while Harvath's former bosses try to stop the Senator.

Although slightly too long, Thor totally convinces the reader of this world's situation that I wondered if any Al Qaeda read it. If they did, I TRULY am frightened! Great story.

Anne Molinarolo