Scot Harvath returns in Edge of Honor thriller

 July is just around the corner and with it just like clockwork is the next installment in Brad Thor’s Scot Harvath book series.

“Edge of Honor” is Thor’s 25th book and 24th in the series. Clearly, Thor owns July. Having a new Harvath thriller each July has become a patriotic tradition up there with fireworks, hot dogs and apple pie.

“I’d be thrilled to be the book that people can count on every year for Fourth of July,” Thor said.

“Edge of Honor” opens with the American super spy being retired and enjoying a six-month honeymoon with Solvi, the Scandinavian beauty who is a deputy director with the Norwegian Intelligence Service. As Harvath prepares to introduce his new bride to her first Fourth of July celebration at the nation’s capital, the two are explosively drawn back into the game.

This time, the enemy isn’t foreign, it’s domestic. A change in administration and shifting politics undermines the safety and security Harvath has sacrificed so much for, and this new battle threatens everything he holds dear.

“Edge of Honor” is a change of pace from Harvath’s history of hunting down bad actors from Russia and the Middle East. Although exciting and suspenseful in its own right, “Edge of Honor” dials down the torture and brutality that were hallmarks of earlier Harvath adventures. And that’s fine. Thor’s narrative style and use of suspense and speculation keep the pages turning.

I started listening to the audio versions of Thor’s first 15 books in 2016. I binged listened for months, letting the stories blend from one book to the next. By the time I was caught up I was hooked and hungry for the next adventure.

I began reviewing Thor’s books in 2022 with “Rising Tiger.” None of his books have ever disappointed me. Even though I struggle to find time to physically read a book, I somehow manage with each of his. I got to meet Thor in 2017 at a book signing at Murder by the Book in Houston. Since then, we’ve had sporadic communication on Facebook. On Thursday I did a phone interview with him and got him to share some of his secrets.

One thing I’ve always wanted to know what how he manages to predict the future so well. Things he writes a year in advance are current events when his books arrive. For example, in “Edge of Honor” it is speculated that the Iranians are behind the attacks that bring Harvath and Solvi back into action. As I’m reading this, the United States is dropping bombs on Iran.

“I’ve always been a voracious consumer of news, and I think that’s where it comes from,” he said. “I think it’s that ability to look at the news and say, ‘Okay, what’s the rest of the story? Where might this lead?’”

Thor also shared with me that while he was writing about Harvath providing protection for a friend who lost his security detail in the change of administration, it happened in real life.

“While I was writing the book, we found out that a couple of former Trump administration people had lost security details, like Mike Pompeo, John Bolton. But what was funny is I had already been writing about this when it actually happened,” he said.

For those of us who can’t wait for July and the arrival of a new Harvath adventure, Thor shared that a deal years in the making has finally been signed and Harvath will become a TV hero with a streaming series produced by Sony Pictures Television. An eight-episode first season is being developed based on his first book, “Lions of Lucerne.”

“I don’t know when they would bring it to market, but hopefully you’ll get the enjoyment of having read the books and then seeing how they get adapted for television. Because, you know, they have to change stuff in Hollywood, but I’m involved in the changes … and I was totally down with it. You’re still gonna get Scot Harvath,” he said.