Blowback (Scot Harvath, #4)

Blowback (Scot Harvath #4)

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4.11 of 5 stars 4.11  ·  rating details  ·  4,161 ratings  ·  168 reviews
A weapon designed to decimate the Roman Empire has just become the number one threat to the United States.From the national bestselling author of "The Lions of Lucerne, Path of the Assassin," and "State of the Union" comes the most gripping international thriller yet featuring Navy SEAL turned covert counterterrorism agent Scot Harvath.

"Scot Harvath is the perfect all-Amer...more
Hardcover, 433 pages
Published by Atria Books (first published June 21st 2005)
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Anne  (Booklady) Molinarolo
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...more
Will
Jun 07, 2013 Will rated it 5 of 5 stars  ·  review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
Karen
Archaeologists make a stunning discovery in a pass high in the French – Italian Alps, but do not live to tell the tale. A year later, Islamic scientists begin dying in seeming accidents or outright assassinations and kidnappings all around the world. And then a US army unit moves into the peaceful, multi-religion village of Asalaam near Mosul in Iraq. They are checking up on some Christian missionaries who haven't been heard of but are startled to find half the village dead from a horrible, flu...more
Max
Good premise for a book: A mysterious illness that only kills non-Muslims, a very patriotic special ops guy getting hung out to dry and an overzealous senator looking to make a big political move.

It had some interesting bits of information about Hannibal and ancient chemical warfare. The parts in the book when the action gets going it keeps up at a good pace.

However, I found the writing a bit jittery. The whole angle with his personal relationships and failed attempts just seemed out of place. A...more
Nathaniel
So I like to read thrillers whenever I take a trip by plane. I'm routinely disappointed, but I still keep it up. Brad Thor's Blowback is not the worst, but it's definitely not much above mediocre either.

Here's an example of the main problem I have with the book. [MINOR SPOILER ALERT]

In one chapter, a king explains why he hasn't banished his rebellious son by explaining that if you had a child, you wouldn't be able to bear sending him away from the land of his birth, no matter how dangerous he wa...more
Patrick Gibson
I can’t use the work ‘blow’ any more. Lets face it—‘blow’ is a lot more funny than it used to be. It has taken on new multiple meanings since the 1970s indicating either drug use or highly entertaining sexual act. Mostly, these days we are on our own deciphering the correct connotation, if any. Can you imagine how confused I became when I realized the movie ‘Blow’ was not the biography of Linda Lovelace and ‘Come Blow Your Horn’ was not about doing toot at band camp? ‘Blowback’ is a real word—ap...more
Ru
"Blowback" is a pulse-pounding, in-your-face, espionage thrill ride - I'd expect nothing less from author Brad Thor, who is one of my favourite authors. It's been quite a while since I finished reading "State of the Union", and reading this book was like visiting with an old friend. I've always enjoyed the character development of Navy SEAL-turned-Secret Service agent-turned Special Operative Scot Harvath from book to book. Harvath is not just a character that advances the story - you experience...more
Brad
Another nice thriller from Thor. Harvath (our hero) has to lay low for a while, as a power-seeking senator looks to use him as a sacrificial lamb. While he's on the down low and without much connection to his usual resources, Scot has to try to find the source of and stop a terrible bioweapon from being unleashed.

I was pretty excited when I discovered that a bioweapon was one of the central plot devices. I totally called what one of the elements of it was, and was surprised that the experts in t...more
Karen
I marked this as read, but the reality is that I didn't finish it. I also will not read any more of Thor's books. Where to begin? First, he interjected his strongly conservative political beliefs by creating a character that was clearly based on Hilary Clinton (initials HC, strong woman, husband also in politics, elected to the senate in a state she moved to just to run) but totally grasping, power-hungry, and evil. Unlike Clive Cussler's books, Thor lables his politicians. the Republicans are a...more
Terry Huebner
This is the 4th in the series of thrillers written by Brad Thor involving former Navy Seal Scot Harvath and the first I have read. This one seems similar to the Mitch Rapp series authored by Vince Flynn and if you like one series you will probably like the other as well. Although it's too soon to say if I will grow to like Harvath as much as Rapp, this was a pretty good start for me. Here, Harvath is tracking a wanted terrorist when he gets caught on video beating up the wrong man, fact which pl...more
Malissa Thurman
I did not like this book as much as the other Scott Horvath books I have read. Granted I am reading/listening out of order, I still plan on finishing them all. In my opinion this one had way too many characters. It was difficult to keep up with who was doing what and the relationships they had to the multi-layered plots.

I think it's funny, Brad Thor is so right wing, red spews from the pages. Still I enjoy his stories and ignore the whole they are stupid and wrong and I am more patriotic and "r...more
Kyle
This was my first Brad Thor and Scot Harvath book. Interesting at all levels. The story plot keeps drawing you in deeper and deeper. The intrigue, suspense, and plot are well developed. Building moment by moment, with small pauses for the reader to catch up and digest what has just happened and to contemplate what is coming around the corner.

Did I enjoy it? Yes! Will I read another book in this series? Yes! This was just a good story period. Nothing to fall in love with, nothing compelling or ep...more
Julie
Everything Scot Harvath has worked for to help America fight terrorism is now crashing down. If Helen Carmichael has anything to do about it, America will see the 'real' truth behind the President Jack Rutledge and Scot Harvath. It is the only way she can make sure her name is on the ballet for Vice-Presidency. Because of threats at home, Scot is sent across the world, without contact to back home, to chase an assassin and find what ancient weapon he has released upon a small tribe in Baghdad th...more
Createpei
Brad Thor is back on track with Blowback.

This was a super interesting storyline - albeit full of stereotypes and biases that are likely much easier seen post 9-11, it was none-the-less a true page turner.

The story lines follow two distinct plots. Firstly the attempted political and career discrediting of the main character, Scot Harvarth, by a US Senator who has her sights set on the Vice-Presidential and ultimately Presidential nomination though the destroying of the current sitting President.

T...more
Anita
Brad Thor's main character, Scot Harvath, is a man to behold. While I found his antics a little too much to believe in this book, I found myself engaged by the storyline. Middle Eastern politics, mixed in with historical war figures and bioterrorism from books over 3000 years old. It has my mind leaping at parts. Thor did bring his character back to reality a couple of times, when right in the middle of dangerous stunts he would wonder where his life was heading and if he was taking his career t...more
William Crosby
In many ways, characters are stereotypical. Still, lots of action, fast read and the main character was saved by a woman several times as a change of pace from Harvath always saving the world.

Does make several contentious statements. For example: "Not all Muslims are terrorists, but without fail all terrorists are Muslims." Seems to me there are a lot more than Muslim terrorists. IRA, Basques, NeoNazi/Aryan groups. The FBI, after Obama was elected, noted an increase in those groups and in severa...more
Dale
Based on some dubious assumptions

Published by Pocket Books in 2006.

Brad Thor's thriller Blowback delivers as far as the international thrills and chills go. Main character Scot Harvath is a counter-terrorism expert on the tail of an Al-Qaeda operative who catches wind of something new - a plague that is being resurrected from the ancient past to be used against all non-Muslims.

Harvath pursues his leads across Europe and the Middle East - that part is lots of fun. I have issues with Thor's treatm...more
Ruthy
I saw this book at my mother-in-law's house and thought, hmmm, maybe I'll give it a go. Didn't read the back cover, didn't look up the author, didn't look up the synopsis. Stone cold read.

Love it! Again, I never thought I would be a fan of political thrillers. At first, I thought...for a brief second...this this would have a super natural twist to it...just a little. But it wasn't and that's okay!!

I like Scot Harvath and to read more and more of this very interesting guy. And Brad Thor is not b...more
Marti
Just when I think that I have read a really action filled thriller, then another one like this comes along. It is fascinating to think that some of Hannibal's soldiers might have been preserved in ice along the route through the Alps. What isn't is to think of various ways men have come up with germ warfare or pestilence to kill off the enemy. Scot Harvath is the hero who works with others to defeat some villains and make the world more safe than it might have been. Obviously he and his 'team' c...more
David H.
This is the first Brad Thor novel I have read. Even thou, this is a novel, I learned much about Muslum religion and culture, as well as Hannibal, the ancient invader. The plot and background information was enthralling. The novel was well written, and easy to read. My only complaint was that the main characters weren't as complex as I would of preferred them to be. Overall, I would recommend this novel to anyone looking for a book dealing with modern day issues such as politics and terrorism, pl...more
Horizon
I accidentally read this one first when I thought that I had them in order, but as with most adventure/spy thrillers, it didn't matter. Thor masters the intrigue game ad keeps the ball rolling at full speed. What struck me though was that he captured the political thriller, such as Richard North Patterson or Vince Flynn, plus the action adventure, as Flynn again or Lee Child, but he also incorporates the historical mystery a la Dan Brown and Steve Berry. After finishing I immediately rearranged...more
Andrew Kendall
I very much enjoyed this novel. It was full of historical references, coupled with tense actions scenes. Scot Harvath is definitely a likeable character, even though he's a bit of a "G.I. Joe" type. My only real issue was that the author is all too obvious in his dislike for democrats, and the character "Carmichael" was clearly (loosely) based around Hilary Clinton, who I happen to admire.
I would absolutely recommend this book, and as it's the first Brad Thor novel I've ever read, I will look f...more
Jason
If you are a fan of Ludlum, you may like Brad Thor. If you are a fan of "24" & "Burn Notice" you may like Thor's novels. If you are a right-wing conservative who believes in "might is right", then you'll like Brad Thor's novels. I like Thor because he writes a good thriller & keeps the criticism of liberalism on the down low (totally unlike author Vince Flynn's novels).
In this thriller, counter-terrorism operative, Scot Harvath, sets out to prevent a Muslim caliphate from becoming a rea...more
Doran Barton
I was a little skeptical when I started reading this book because recommendations for Brad Thor had come from people who also liked Brad Meltzer and Andrew Gross and I found their work to be less satisfying that I would have liked.

The first few chapters of Blowback had me worried because the chapters were short and seemingly formulaic in structure. As the story went on, however, I found myself enveloped in the book and, to a certain extent, the characters. The science and the history used in th...more
Larry
This plot is very intriguing and the history of nontraditional warfare is amazing! Also (as usual), there’s a lot of action!

As the Scott Horvath series continues, I now realize why it doesn’t feel as “real” as Mitch Rapp. Thor has made Horvath a little too smart. He figures out everything! (Also, Scott Horvath sure has a lot of people that “owe me a favor”… which makes many more things possible for him.)

Nevertheless, it a great, fun read. I really enjoy the series. I still intend to read all of...more
Larry Johnson
Thor delivers another fast-paced thriller that has you holding on to the edge of your seat. In this novel, former SEAL and Secret Service agent Scott Harvath is targeted by an ambitious Senator to bring down the President. At the same time, Harvath is overseas searching for a terrorist assassin and a new biological weapon that is planned to be used on US soil. The ending is fast and full of surprises. I couldn't put it down for the last several chapters and was reading from 2am to 6am.
Matt Duval
While the premise is interesting, it's a bit far-fetched. But like the prior Brad Thor novels I read, the story is fast-paced and keeps you interested. Scot Harvath is the type of hero like Jason Bourne and James Bond. While some of the plot aspects are not that believable, Brad Thor does a great job of infusing a lot of history into his novels. This was much the same as this had a lot of interesting history on Hannibal and his journey through Europe and some aspects of current Muslim culture. N...more
Suby
This is the first of Brad Thor books I have had the occasion to read. My conclusion on the author after reading just one book is that he is second to none.
The plot is international bio-terrorism and we are taken through a long historical journey on the origin of Islamic terrorism.
While I can't agree with the author's contention that Artha Sasthra contains recipes for bio weapons I must agree that his inclusion of the reference makes the novel all the more dramatic.
This book is highly readable.
Pat
Audio book. Another good one by Brad Thor. The world is threatened by a potential virus that would spread rapidly. Scot Harvath is in trouble for being on a video beating an "innocent" civilian while trying to capture a terrorist/assassin. He has to go undercover to solve the problem. He's all over the world with a woman scientist who is in danger and uses the Swiss lady from an earlier novel. A lot of shooting, running... but it keeps your attention throughout.
JC
Another Harvath novel and more terrorists stopped and averted. This time it is a group claiming to have the most deadly weapon in a fast spreading disease. Harvath has to stop them against all odds and teams up with a new companion to do so. He does get some help from an old fried though. The book was a typical Harvath novel with ups and downs in terms of pace and storytelling. Harvath, as always, seems to be near invincible. The book was a bit too long for me, but overall a fun read.
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Blowback (Scot Harvath, #4)
Blowback (Scot Harvath, #4)
Blowback (Scot Harvath, #4)
Blowback (Scot Harvath, #4)
Blowback (Scot Harvath, #4)

5088
In January, I kicked off an exciting challenge--The Ultimate Reader Experience-- by inviting readers old and new to start or re-start my Scot Harvath series together; reading one book per month in order.

And to make it even more interesting, I have personally revisited each book to bring you enhanced content that will enrich your reading experience, give you a behind-the-scenes look at each novel,...more
More about Brad Thor...
State Of The Union (Scot Harvath, #3) The Lions Of Lucerne (Scot Harvath, #1) The First Commandment (Scot Harvath, #6) Foreign Influence (Scot Harvath, #9) The Last Patriot (Scot Harvath, #7)

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