A series of highly-successful thriller novels by American author Brad Thor, centering around ex-Navy SEAL and Secret Service Agent Scot Harvath. After saving the President from a kidnapping threat, Harvath becomes a solitary black-ops agent tasked with singlehandedly stopping terrorist plots across the globe. First published in 2002 and still continuing nearly two decades later, Harvath has gone up against a variety of enemy forces.
Tropes featured in this work include:
- 10-Minute Retirement: Harvath tries to retire several times, but is always dragged back in to handle the terrorist plot of the day.
- The Ace: Harvath, in spades. Especially in later books, it's rare for him to find himself outmatched by a single opponent.
- Action Girl: Harvath frequently encounters highly-trained female operatives on his adventures. When done well, they're just as lethal and effective as he is. When written poorly, they're a Girl of the Week at best.
- Brandishment Bluff: In The Lions Of Lucerne, Harvath purchases an Airsoft Glock due to not being able to get his hands on a real weapon. Subverted in that is works briefly, but his opponents quickly figure it out.
- Elites Are More Glamorous: Harvath is a former member of SEAL Team 6 and a Secret Service Agent, meaning that he has extensive experience with kicking ass.
- Gun Porn: Frequently, with loving descriptions of the weapons used by Harvath and his associates.
- Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique: Harvath uses this frequently.
- One-Man Army: Harvath frequently goes up against scores of opponents and emerges unscathed.
- Real Life Writes the Plot: Many elements of the books are inspired by The War on Terror.
- Retired Badass: State Of The Union reveals that Harvath's friend and mentor Gary Lawlor used to be an elite Vietnam-era deep cover agent charged with setting off nuclear weapons in the event of a Russian invasion.
- This Looks Like a Job for Aquaman: In the first book, Harvath leads a Secret Service team alongside the president not because he is their most experienced combatant, but because he is their best skier, and the President is on a skiing trip.
