Brad Thor’s latest thriller, Shadow of Doubt, has everything you expect from him — a complex plot with seemingly inscrutable mystery, characters so compelling that by the end you feel certain you’ve made more than a few fascinating new acquaintances, and the telling of story so seamless you’ve been transported, entertained, and refreshed. Thor is a master of the delectable fair of the mind who revels in sharing his impeccable palate for sumptuous prose. You’ll savor Shadow of Doubt. Every plot twist, harrowing battle, and passionate entanglement add complexity and depth to a sensory experience.
But, beyond the thrill, Thor infuses Shadow of Doubt with the hard realities of geopolitics that lock nation states in the perennial struggle for advantage and dominance. Scot Harvath is once again a reluctant, but pivotal figure in the battle for global position. Nuclear brinksmanship is alive and well, pitting Russia, Norway, France, and America in a conflict where the stakes involve the most destructive weapons ever conceived by mankind. A murder is the catalyst, as a labyrinthine interconnectivity of seemly unrelated events reveals a depraved plot to bring the world to the verge of a nuclear exchange—all to satisfy one man’s hubris.
Harvath risks the woman he loves to pursue his late wife’s killer, and wreak vengeance upon the instruments of global catastrophe. Thor says, “It’s the hardest book I’ve ever written.” Having read this book from cover to cover, I can say it is likely Thor’s best Harvath novel to date. The product tells the tale of how hard Thor has worked to deliver a book worthy of every reader’s time. Whether you’re a diehard Harvath series fan, or you’re new to the franchise, you’ll plunge into his universe as comfortably as lounging in your favorite reading chair.
Thorough research is a fundamental discipline within the thriller genre, and that’s how Thor manages to get it right — time after time — in his fiction. It’s no coincidence, as his bio states, that Thor was “recruited by the Department of Homeland Security’s ‘Red Cell’ program: an elite group of writers and artists commissioned to brainstorm terrorist scenarios for the U.S. government.”
Though highly successful fiction writers like Stephen King certainly don’t have it easy, as Thor told Townhall, authors who produce thrillers are compelled to write within some very technical parameters. So, it makes the job, in some respects, more challenging.
Getting it right is one of Thor’s hallmarks, and Shadow of Doubt does not disappoint. Viewing this latest Harvath thriller through the lens of a combined twenty six years of local and federal law enforcement experience, Thor has written a bulletproof story that incorporates, with pinpoint accuracy, the nuances of national scale investigation, special team tactics, and the conflicts type A personalities often create.
Providing fascinating insights into the Brad Thor process of research to publication, he told Townhall, “I don’t want to be so current that the headlines beat me to publication day. I want to beat the headlines…often you’ve got a year lag time with a book coming out... for me when I’m looking at current geopolitics… I can go to Townhall and find an article, whether it’s about the attempted assassination that you’ve written about with the Secret Service… I want to read that article before that person writes that book, because I need it this year.” For Shadow of Doubt, Thor published his reading list, including articles and white papers. For the hardcore Harvath fan, or aspiring author, it’s a treasure trove of background information.
And, referring to the use of AI enhanced surveillance technology in Shadow of Doubt, Thor said, “I knew about the tech. The NYPD has had some amazing technology… I said, ‘I wonder if the French have this because it would really help my plot’, and I looked into it and not only do the French have it, but they got it specifically for the Olympics… but they had to rewrite their privacy laws so they could use the AI assisted technology… it was an interesting tidbit that the French had to rewrite their own laws to use this technology.”
Thor incorporates cutting edge AI theory and tech to produce a story that compels you to keep turning pages. The tension he builds is based on issues as current as headline news, and you’re left to wonder when you’ll see what Thor presages in actual prime time reporting. The conflict between Russia and Ukraine provides a bloody, nuclear tipped backdrop to the drama that unfolds between Scot Harvath, Solvi (his fiancee), the CIA, and an intrepid French DGSE agent — all of them plucking at tripwires leading to a Russian nuclear device, teetering at the precipice of deployment.
Thor told Townhall that, “I call what I do faction. Where you don’t know where the facts end and the fiction begins.” Shadow of Doubt is definitely a piece of high “faction.” It’s an easy escape into the gripping, terrifying, and endlessly gratifying world of Scot Harvath. Definitely not mere escapism, Thor’s latest thriller is a deep dive into the black worlds of realpolitik, spy craft, and special operations. Shadow of Doubt features a beautifully detailed and composed jacket, dark and brooding behind the vibrant red, white, and blue of our national flag. Scot Harvath’s America is still the bold, shining city on a hill. And, in this case, you can judge a book by its cover — an inspired tale of love, patriotism, and daring. On sale today!