Path of the Assassin (2) (The Scot Harvath Series) Mass Market Paperback – February 22, 2011

Thor’s Harvath books are good B+ thrillers. They have cliched elements but are decent special-op procedurals.After rescuing the president In the first book, Secret Service Agent Scot Harvath is now on special assignment tracking down the terrorists responsible. It’s personal: he lost friends in the attack.Meanwhile, horrific attacks on Muslim holy sites raise Middle East tensions to the breaking point. The group taking credit claims to be fanatically pro-Israel, but no one knows who they are. Israel denies all knowledge but its neighbors mobilize to invade.Harvath suspects a link between the presidential attack and these, and thinks a Mossad contact knows more than he’s saying. Washington has meanwhile begun tracking a new group believed led by a leading terrorist’s son.Harvath is summoned to help when an airliner with various dignitaries gets hijacked in Cairo. Meg Cassidy, a female passenger, leads a Flight 93-style revolt against the hijackers even as Harvath and a CIA group begin their own assault.Meg now becomes a target. Harvath feels compelled to protect her even as the CIA uses her to lure escaped terrorists out into the open. The threads draw together as Harvath and Meg, the only person to see the hijack leader’s face, go on a daring mission to take the terror cell down.Harvath is at odds with CIA special ops leader Rick Morrell, whom he thinks cavalier about risking civilian lives. Thor creates this tension not only to create an in-house nemesis for Harvath but also to set the table for him sticking close to (the of course beautiful) Meg to protect her, not only from jihadis, but from Morrell’s overzealous crew.Some elements don’t hang together well, particularly when the realistic technothriller morphs into a more melodramatic pageturner. War looms but the story doesn’t feel like it. Harvath and crew know the clock is ticking, but life goes on as normal in most places. Israel’s neighbors hold off invading. Israel seems unusually passive. I didn’t find Meg’s crash-training for a secret mission convincing, although Thor lines up the story elements requiring it.Warning: spoiler alert. Don’t read further if you haven’t read the story.The Mossad contact, who has his own it’s-personal motives, goes to an awful lot of trouble to screen Harvath from what he’s really up to. In the real world, they’d share everything they had.Yes, I know Thor wants to leave dangling the possibility that the contact, with a past doing Mossad hits on Palestinian terrorists after the Munich Olympic attack, is himself behind these attacks, but readers may sense as I did that this is a red herring.It would neither make sense for Israel to goad its neighbors to war this way, nor a fanatical ultra-patriot acting on his own. After fighting four major wars Israel no longer faces large conventional armies bristling on its borders. Why provoke them? Neither does Israel have any history of mass attacks on civilians and holy sites. It’s not part of the national ethos.Also, not to give too much away, but as we learn who the terrorist leader is, the story goes a little bwa-ha-ha, right down to the extravagantly appointed billionaire’s-lair secret hideaway in the desert. Thor works hard to provide a plausible back story, but taken as a whole, the story moves from reality into fantasy as it turns out to be more about personal grudges. It features fantastically capable terrorists able to vanish and materialize at will, never missing a trick, never losing a fight, doing it all with little or no help, and with the story neatly tied up with a bow at the end. I like my drinks neat but not my technothrillers. Reality is messier.

Brad Thor’s 2nd Scot Harvath novel is a great read. I recommend this book to any soul who loves a good thriller but who also enjoys a look behind the scenes into the many possible events that could take place around the world. We live a comfortable lifestyle in the United States, compared the life styles lived many in other countries, but there are reasons for it. The work done by those who have committed their lives to protecting the freedom of everyone around the world can, and often is, be easily overlooked by those of us fortunate enough to live our lives as free as we do. Brad’s books and the stories they tell are probably not as far from the truth as we might think. His books also remind us that if we stop trying to understand the motives of all factions around the world, we are mostly like turning a blind eye to the many atrocities that could be become very real.This book is fast paced and extremely hard to put down. Can’t wait for the 3rd book in the series. Well done Brad Thor. Keep that ball rolling!

PATH of the ASSASSIN (Scot Harvath, book 2) by Brad Thor. This action packed international thriller staring Scot Harvath in his second appearance as Thor’s James Bond type action character is a very worthwhile read. Harvath, as director of Secret Service Special Operations is sent on a mission by the president to solve the mystery of the extreme terrorist group, The Hand of God. The Arab countries and Israel are coming closer by the day to an all out war. The president is determined to find the cause and avert a conflict. Harvath, aided by a beautiful and tough Chicago public relations company owner, Meg Cassidy, who seems to be the only person who can personally identify the silver-eyed assassin, pursue their killer through the Far East, Middle East, North Africa, and Europe. The pursuit takes the form of car chases, gunfights, prison escapes and of course, ubiquitous explosions. My only complaint is that Thor could have done much more with the Meg Cassidy character. He let her fall flat then reintroduced her for a bit role only to drop her again. I hope he uses her up in follow-on novels. [As an aside, Thor’s editor needs to learn when and how to use further and farther]. I very much enjoyed the story and recommend the novel. I give it a solid 4+ rating.

Mr. Thor has done it again! Such intrigue with a few twists and turns. The extreme situations/actions Mr. Thor painted (fictiously) between the Israelites, Palestinians and Arabs could become real headlines one day! Our hero, of course, is still kicking butt and taking names while still showing his humanity. Again, if you like war toys, you’ll love their in-depth detail..me not so much. There’s the profanity but at least there is no explicit sex scenes in the first two scot Harvath books I’ve read. I’m getting ready to read the third book in the series. Anticipating a good read!

I'm Hooked!Brad Thor has a writing style that keeps the pages turning, the events unfolding, all the while the tension builds as his books unfold with the elements of real world issues.Brad's writing style, research and vetting of the protocol of complex government, political and world issues is remarkable. You can be assured that with in the first few pages the hunt is on for those who would bring harm to the free world.Every time I read one of Brad's books I wish we really had the kind of people he portrays as the defenders and protectors of our freedoms and our country of America.Brad Thor's books deal with real life consequences and the unthinkable acts that the ever present elusive enemy of not only the United States but the entire world.You don't have to read these books in order. The character's will continue to come alive with each book with a subtle recap of the previous book. You can't read just one!

[bookcover:Path of the Assassin|7520]My type of book, and another author to add to my favourites...Obviously I like a book with lots of action, international plot, a great main character, and as usual some great villains.. sounds easy...It's not, I have read through some rubbish books.After rescuing the President from kidnappers in Brad Thor’s roaring national bestselling debut, Navy SEAL turned Secret Service Agent Scot Harvath shifts his attentions to rooting out, capturing, or killing all those responsible for the plot. As he prepares to close out his list, a bloody and twisted trail of clues points toward one man—the world’s most ruthless terrorist. One problem remains: Harvath and his CIA-led team have no idea what the man looks like. With no alternative, they are forced to recruit a civilian—a woman who has survived a brutal hijacking and is now the only person who can positively identify their quarry. From the burning deserts of North Africa to the winding streets of Rome, Harvath must brave a maelstrom of bloodshed and deception before a madman’s twisted vision engulfs the world in the fires of all-out war.The Hand of God, an apparent Israeli terrorist group, is blowing up mosques in Saudi Arabia, assassinating Arab leaders and hijacking airplanes, all in an effort to provoke the Arab world into war with Israel. Harvath tries to derail the terrorist plot and avenge the deaths of buddies killed in the first book. Aided by Meg Cassidy, a beautiful Chicago public relations expert, Harvath chases the terrorist leader and a silver-eyed assassin from Hong Kong through Europe to North Africa. However, since Cassidy is the only one alive who has seen the face of the terrorist leader, the assassin chases them, too, trying to kill Cassidy before she can point him out. The story is one bloody episode after another, with a touch of romance and colourful turf battles between the CIA, FBI, Delta Force and Harvath himself. Thor stacks the deck in favour of his hero-Harvath never makes a mistake, and his view of how counterterrorism operations should be conducted is invariably proven correct. To top it off, he boasts about his remarkable talents. With its infallible hero, fetching sidekick and wicked bad guys, this international shoot 'em up sticks close to formula, but the well-choreographed action and thrills will keep readers engrossed.Brad Thor has added some great touches of humour, that do make you grin, a great main character but did enjoy Meg Cassidy, and also Morell. Great pace, some really good twists, fast paced and action packed.Highly recommended. Five StarsJust one question, what do I read next?As my list of favourite authors becomes bigger, my collection of books to read is ever growing.Some are some great action authors to read and Brad Thor is one of them, alongside Ben Coes, Tom Wood, Mark Dawson, Mark Greaney, Lee Child, Simon Kernick, Vince Flynn, Joshua Hood, Brad Taylor, Victor Methos, J.B Turner, Will Jordan, still to read Dalton Fury, I could add many more favourites thriller/mystery authors as well !Sean Peters. Moderator of "A Good Thriller"

Two things stood out to me in this book: Firstly, it felt a lot less like we were constantly being thrown into action for the sake of action and there was better story-telling with deeper characters building. Secondly, I bloody loved the female character in this. I always concentrate on female characters in books to see if the author actually gives them a purpose or if they're just the love interest. But this one was a really strong character who helped Scot Harvath with no real sexual or romantic intentions.

The story continues, but this book stands alone. Scott is still on the trail of the terrorists who slaughtered so many of his comrades in The Lion of Lucerne. Another fast paced, full on adventure with a different female side kick. I like that the women in these books are strong and capable instead of the moaning Minnie's that appear so often. Really enjoyable fiction ..... and totally immersing fiction. Just lets you completely switch off from the real world.

A fine novel for most of the time but found boring at time with to much description of scenes .But can only wait for the next effort from my bestauthor

After finishing the Mitch Rapp books I was pining for another thrill ride.Boy did I find it.Add a little bedroom action and these would be awesome.Cant believe how old this book is and yet it still feels current. Well, apart from the Gaddafi bit.Cant wait to read the whole series.Thanks Brad