Set after the events of Black Ice (2021), Thor opens his latest Scot Harvath thriller, the 21st in the series, in India. The action opens in the Galwan Valley of the western Himalayas. It is a barbaric, mostly hand-to-hand, mediaeval style battle that lasts nearly six hours. The Chinese soldiers who have started this surprise attack are eventually defeated by the Indian Snow Warriors, a decorated regiment in India. Knowing they have been beaten, the Chinese activate an energy device against the Indian soldiers. This heats up the water molecules underneath their skin, causing them excruciating pain while the surviving Chinese escape.
Meanwhile in Kabul, Harvath and his team are on a mission to extract a high-value Afghani asset called Topaz.
Apparently, Ritter was killed because of his secret mission to create an Asian NATO comprising the United States, Japan, Australia and India to counter the growing influence of China in the region. And as a string of coordinated events begins playing out around the world, American authorities believe that a far more sinister game is in the offering.
Once again, Thor continues his incredible, and unprecedented run of can’t-miss thrillers. And he has managed to keep the magic alive with over two decades worth of work. Always growing, developing, and fleshing out his cast - which in this book also includes newcomers Asha (an agent with RAW, India’s premier foreign intelligence agency) and Vijay (a retired Indian law enforcement officer) - Thor adds layers to his characters and gives readers more depth into their personalities.
Then there’s the action. Nothing quite beats riding shotgun with Harvath when he’s hunting the bad guys. Here, Thor treats readers to an early sequence so explosive that it offers them a prelude of what’s to come.