Path of the Assassin

After rescuing the President from kidnappers, 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 feared, most ruthless terrorist, Hashim Nidal. Having assembled an international league of Islamic terrorist networks in an ingenious plot to topple both Israel and America, Harvath and his CIA-led team must reach Nidal before it's too late. One problem remains -- they have no idea what the man looks like. With no alternative, Harvath is 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....

Horvath faces real threats to America's survival, and he must be prepared to do what it takes to protect his country. The chase in this powerful drama also involves Meg Cassidy, a public relations expert, who is the only one alive to have seen the face of the illusive terrorist leader. The question becomes who is the one being chased? Horvath and Cassidy persist on a fast and deliberate pace as they cross continents playing a deadly game of cat and mouse.

Thor's work is particularly credible because he uses real enemies of America, religious fanatics who want to destroy our way of life, which offers a refreshing change from focusing on the deranged American or Nazi businessman as cast by Hollywood and the cultural elite. This type of novel will remind you that our enemies can be more clever, more patient, and more vicious than any think tank's rational projection of the future.

Brad Thor provides the imagination and the writing ability to give the reader an explosive novel as well as the insight to think through America's future safety.


A poor sequel/continuation at best.   October 14, 2003
S. N. Gaines
12 out of 22 found this review helpful

The best thing I can say for this book is that it was loaned to me. I didn't spend any money on it. That's the best I can say.

Scot Harvath is an uber-agent. Only he knows how to do anything in the world of counter-terrorism. Once you get past this, you must accept that he can also do anything, at any time. About the only bright spot was during the section on the training at a CIA facility. The pranks were the only smile I got out of the entire book.

To be honest, after the cliched skyjacking, the cliched Arab terrorists and the cliched acts of terror that were supposed to target Israel as the bad guys, I was cliched out.

Garbage.

On the cover of the paperback it says something about Clancy fans not being disappointed. This was obviously written by a family member of the author. Buy this book and disappointment will be the least you will feel.

Take a pass on this. Save your money.


Get real....it's fiction.   August 17, 2006
R. Shaff (USA)
10 out of 11 found this review helpful

It still amazes me at times to find the literary critiques of "fictionalized fiction" from some reviewers. While everyone is entitled to their opinion, when a reader picks up a novel, plastered with fiction on the jacket and within the description on the inside jacket, why one would attempt to apply heavy doses of reality is beyond me. Fiction, short of posh fiction (read: Oprah Book Club) and literary fiction (e.g. Catcher in the Rye {a classic read to be sure}), is nothing more than an escape to an unreal world, one filled with over-the-top heroes and dastardly villians. So, when I read the reviews of Brad Thor's PATH OF THE ASSASSIN, I must chuckle at some of the reviews indicating that "Scot Harvath is not real." You think? If you want real, read McCullough, Philbrick, Goodwin, Beschloss, or any quality biographer/non-fiction author. If non-fiction is too heady or boring, then you're left with...yep, fiction.

OK, now that I'm through my cyncial snickering, yes, PATH OF THE ASSASSIN is definitely over-the-top relative to the skills, bravery, and simple aura of our hero Scot Harvath. But hey, so is James Bond. That said, Thor has written an entertaining and exciting novel in ASSASSIN, one definitely worth reading if fiction is your bag.

Scot Harvath, our near-perfect secret agent, teams with a beautiful ad exec to track down a new terrorist group (or anti-terrorist group) called the Hand of God. This group seeks maximum destruction on the Arab/Muslim population, which sends the Middle East into a frenzy of retribution, speculation, and concern over the start of WWIII (timing is fairly ironic). Harvath is brash, ubersuave, and easily "the guy you want on your team," while Meg Cassidy, our ad exec, is beautiful, brave, and vulnerable. Quite a duo, eh?

As Harvath and Cassidy travel the globe in search of this new cell, they run across the traditional terrorist groups, and the assassins they employ. The theme to this novel is pure adrenalin and action. While, without any doubt, this novel lacks the meat to be considered with Ludlum, Clancy, et al, it is a fun, easy, and action-packed read, well worth a weekend afternoon.




Horrifying!   May 25, 2004
8 out of 27 found this review helpful

By horrifying, I mean that it is a horrifying experience to read this complete piece of junk! The male, egomaniacal, wisecracking prose (which it barely is)reads like an incredibly terrible Hollywood movie. If I didn't borrow it from someone, I would definitely through it away.
Now, I admit I don't normally read this kind of thing, but I have and I have enjoyed it. The only joy I could possibly get out of this would be if the main character, Scot Horvath, was on the receiving end of one of the many missiles launched in the first 50 pages.
I can't believe this was even published. Whoever did so should be fired.


I Could Not Put This Book Down   November 1, 2007
Steve "El Jefe" Boss (Creston, Iowa United States)
8 out of 8 found this review helpful

This was an amazing book. I picked it up and read it almost non-stop for a couple of days. If you like spy thrillers, this is it. I hope they make it into a movie. I believe this was the first in the series.