The Last Patriot

 

THE ENTERTAINMENT CRITIC BOOK REVIEW, BY JAMES MYERS

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THE LAST PATRIOT

By Brad Thor

Published by: Atria Books, an Imprint of Simon & Schuster

Publication Date: July 2008

Price: $26.00

352 Pages

ISBN-13: 9781416543831

Four Star Rating ****

 

 

 

Brad Thor, a graduate of the University of Southern California and former member of the Department of Homeland Security's Analytic Red Cell Program, is the New York Times bestselling author of The Lions of Lucerne, Path of the Assassin, State of the Union, Blowback, and Takedown. He and his wife -- a physician to the Chicago Bulls and the Chicago White Sox -- divide their time with their two children between Chicago and the Greek island of Antiparos. Visit his website at www.bradthor.com.

 

 

            “In 1972, workers in Yemen had made a startling discovery. Restoring the aging Great Mosque at Sana'a, said to have been one of the first architectural projects of Islam commissioned by the prophet Mohammed himself, the workers uncovered a hidden loft between the mosque's inner and outer roofs. Inside the loft was a mound of parchments and pages of Arabic texts that at some point had been secreted away, and were now melded together through centuries of exposure to rain and dampness. In archeological circles, such a discovery was referred to as a "paper grave."

Cursory examinations suggested that what the grave contained were tens of thousands of fragments from at least a thousand early parchment codices of the Koran.

Access to the full breadth of the find had never been allowed. Bits and pieces had been made available to a handful of scholars over the years, but out of respect for the sanctity of the documents, no one had ever been permitted to study the entire discovery. No one that is, until Dr. Marwan Khalifa.

Khalifa was one of the world's preeminent Koranic scholars and had spent the majority of his professional career building relationships with the Yemeni Antiquities Authority and politely petitioning it to allow him to review the find. Finally, there was a changing of the guard and the new president of the Antiquities Authority, a significantly younger and more progressive man, invited Khalifa to study the entirety of what the workers at Sana'a had uncovered.

It didn't take long for Khalifa to realize the magnitude of the find.”

 

 

            Brad Thor’s new political suspense thriller, The Last Patriot, is an electrically charged book, with a topical premise that grips your attention.  Scot Harvath, former Navy seal turned covert Homeland Security Operative is thrust into a mystery that is centuries old and as deadly as they come.  There is a secret, a final and startling revelation spoken by Mohammed to only his closest companions.  Within days he is assassinated.  Thomas Jefferson (remember ‘the shores of Tripoli’ in the Marine hymn?) uses the secret to force the violent Muslim Pirates of the Barbary Coast to cease robbing US ships and forges a truce.  Present day, men are dying as the secret apparently has surfaced again, this time in the form of notes that Jefferson took on the original manuscript of Don Quixote; a manuscript that is up for sale. 

 

            This secret is of such a nature, that once the world knows it, all of the radical, insurgent Muslim sects in the world would have to stand down, ceasing all revolutionary activity.  But as desperate as the American government is to cease the secret, the insurgents are just a determined that the final revelation of Mohammed remain hidden forever.  The modern day terrorists cannot abide the abrogation of all of the Qur'an's exhortations to violence and calls upon the adherents of Islam to be peaceful in word and deed.  At the beginning of THE LAST PATRIOT, Harvath and his girlfriend Tracy are vacationing in Paris, France, when they witness a car bombing outside a café. Harvath is immediately thrust back into the life he thought he had left behind forever --- that of Special Operative for the President of the United States and defender of Homeland Security worldwide. The intended victim of the car bomb, saved by Harvath, is a college professor and scholar who is actually on a secret mission on behalf of U.S. President Rutledge. It involves the professor, Anthony Nichols, obtaining a first edition of DON QUIXOTE that was once owned by Jefferson.

 

            Simultaneous to this action is an event on U.S. soil, in which a man named Andrew Salam is apprehended in a murder case in Washington, D.C. and taken in by the CIA for suspicion of terrorism. Salam, while being questioned by Aydin Ozbek, claims he was operating under direction of the FBI and had been specially recruited for a covert operation to track down members of certain Islamic organizations that threaten U.S. security. Ozbek and the CIA learn that Salam was duped and was never actually operating with the FBI. He was taken on by a former American operative, Matthew Dodd, who has since converted to Muslim and is working as a high-level assassin for some Islamic fanatics.

 

Dodd is also in pursuit of the same book that Nichols --- and now Harvath --- is after. The only difference is that Dodd has been commissioned by Islam to kill anyone who comes close to obtaining it. The text that replaced Mohammed's final revelation contains the most violent passages in the Koran. Allegedly, included in the original version were peaceful passages directly counter to what militant Muslims and Dodd believe to be true.

 

The pace moves fast and furious as all of the sub-plots converge in the race to find this ancient text. As stated by Nichols: “The mere suggestion that the Koran is incomplete runs absolutely counter to what every Muslim is taught. To accept the premise that the Koran is incomplete would mean accepting that it is not perfect.” This information provides the motivation of all the central characters and allows the reader to hang on every hair-raising turn that occurs along the way.

 

The book is a Dan Brown/Da Vinci code type thriller that is a genuine page turner.  There is more tension in this book than many a political thriller.  Heart-pounding and high voltage, this is a great book to end the summer with.

 

 

You Tube Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEwvYT2ecrk

 

Brad Thor’s Website: http://www.bradthor.com/

 

 

NEW INTERVIEW FROM JAMES MYERS, THE ENTERTAINMENT CRITIC: NEW YORK TIMES #1 BEST SELLING AUTHOR, BRAD THOR, AUTHOR OF THE LAST PATRIOT

 

            Please check out the new interview by James Myers, The Entertainment Critic, of Author Brad Thor and his NY Times #1 Best Selling Thriller, The Last Patriot. 

 

From the Publisher:  “Brad Thor, master of suspense and New York Times bestselling author of The First Commandment, returns with his highest-voltage thriller to date. In a pulse-pounding, adrenaline-charged tour de force, Navy SEAL turned covert Homeland Security operative Scot Harvath must race to locate an ancient secret that has the power to stop militant Islam dead in its tracks.

June 632 A.D.: Deep within the Uranah Valley of Mount Arafat in Mecca, the Prophet Mohammed shares with his closest companions a final and startling revelation. Within days, he is assassinated.

September 1789: U.S. Minister to France Thomas Jefferson, who is charged with forging a truce with the violent Muslim pirates of the Barbary Coast, makes a shocking discovery - one that could forever impact the world's relationship with Islam.

Present day: When a car bomb explodes outside a Parisian café, Scot Harvath is thrust back into the life he has tried so desperately to leave behind.

Saving the intended victim of the attack, Harvath becomes party to an amazing and perilous race to uncover a secret so powerful that militant Islam could be defeated once and for all without firing another shot, dropping another bomb, or launching another covert action.

But as desperate as the American government is to have the information brought to light, there are powerful forces aligned against it - men who are just as determined that Mohammed's mysterious final revelation continue to remain hidden forever.

What Jason Bourne was to the Cold War, Scot Harvath is to the War on Terror. Brad Thor has created "the perfect all-American hero for the post September 11 world" (Nelson DeMille)and will keep readers glued to the pages as he once again takes them across the globe on a heart-pounding chase where the stakes are higher than they have ever been before.”

 This interview is available exclusively on The Entertainment Magazine found at http://www.theentertainmentcriticmagazine.com.  The review of the book is also available on the site under the ‘Reviews’ Section.  You can also purchase the book in our store.

 

To listen to the interview:  To access the interview, look under the Interview section.  Click on the MP3 player in the lower left corner.  You'll see the interview listed, click on Brad Thor’s name in the player, the interview will take a moment to download and then will begin playing   Enjoy the interview, and please drop us a line at james@theentertainmentcritic.com and let us know how you liked the interview and if there is anything we can do to improve our process.

 

 

Brad’s Website: http://www.bradthor.com/

You Tube Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66FYBX3esVo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCM0zMYa3U4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3pubbqtL0Q

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEW INTERVIEW FROM THE ENTERTAINMENT CRITIC: JENNIFER RARDIN, AUTHOR OF BITTEN TO DEATH

 

            Please check out the new interview by James Myers, The Entertainment Critic, of Author Jennifer Rardin about Her New Top Selling Book, Bitten to Death. 

 

From The Publisher:  Jaz Parks and her vampire boss, Vayl, have already fought demons, vampires, and reavers. Now, juggling work and family takes on a new dimension as she tackles her latest challenge: nail the Raptor before he can reduce her to Jaz-bits, survive a head-on crash with Vayl’s violent past, and lever her twin’s military career back on track before a dishonorable discharge ruins his life. To top it off, she must also contend with her father’s issues. Is he losing his mind? Or is someone really trying to kill him - from beyond the grave?

 

 This interview is available exclusively on The Entertainment Critic website found at http://www.theentertainmentcritic.com. 

To listen to the interview:  To access the interview, look under the Interview section.  Click on the MP3 player in the lower left corner.  You'll see the interview listed, click on Jennifer Rardin’s name in the player, the interview will take a moment to download and then will begin playing   Enjoy the interview, and please drop us a line at james@theentertainmentcriticcom and let us know how you liked the interview and if there is anything we can do to improve our process.

 

 

Jennifer’s Website:  http://www.jenniferrardin.com/index.php

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

NEW INTERVIEW FROM THE ENTERTAINMENT CRITIC: JEFFERY DEAVER, AUTHOR OF THE BROKEN WINDOW

 

            Please check out the new interview by James Myers, The Entertainment Critic, of Author Jeffery Deaver, about his new Lincoln Rhymes book, the new best seller, The Broken Window.  

 

From The Publisher: “Lincoln Rhyme and partner/paramour Amelia Sachs return to face a criminal whose ingenious staging of crimes is enabled by a terrifying access to information....

 

When Lincoln's estranged cousin Arthur Rhyme is arrested on murder charges, the case is perfect -- too perfect. Forensic evidence from Arthur's home is found all over the scene of the crime, and it looks like the fate of Lincoln's relative is sealed.

 

At the behest of Arthur's wife, Judy, Lincoln grudgingly agrees to investigate the case. Soon Lincoln and Amelia uncover a string of similar murders and rapes with perpetrators claiming innocence and ignorance -- despite ironclad evidence at the scenes of the crime. Rhyme's team realizes this "perfect" evidence may actually be the result of masterful identity theft and manipulation.

 

An information service company -- the huge data miner Strategic Systems Datacorp -- seems to have all the answers but is reluctant to help the police. Still, Rhyme and Sachs and their assembled team begin uncovering a chilling pattern of vicious crimes and coverups, and their investigation points to one master criminal, whom they dub "522."

 

When "522" learns the identities of the crime-fighting team, the hunters become the hunted. Full of Deaver's trademark plot twists, The Broken Window will put the partnership of Lincoln Rhyme and Amelia Sachs to the ultimate test.”

 

 This interview is available exclusively on The Entertainment Critic Magazine, found at http://www.theentertainmentcriticmagazine.com. 

To listen to the interview:  To access the interview, look under the Interview section.  Click on the wavy lines in the top right hand corner to stop the music, and then click on the MP3 player in the lower left corner.  You'll see the interview listed, click on Jeff’s name in the player, the interview will take a moment to download and then will begin playing   Enjoy the interview, and please drop us a line at james@theentertainmentcriticmagazine.com and let us know how you liked the interview and if there is anything we can do to improve our process. 

 

Jeff’s Website: http://www.jefferydeaver.com/

 

You Tube Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6JfQopn4uMY

 

 

 

NEW INTERVIEW FROM THE ENTERTAINMENT CRITIC: LILY KOPPEL, AUTHOR OF THE RED LEATHER DIARY

 

            Please check out the new interview by James Myers, The Entertainment Critic, of Author Lily Koppel, About Her Completely Unique, Top Selling Book, The Red Leather Diary.  

 

From The Publisher: “Rescued from a Dumpster on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, a discarded diary brings to life the glamorous, forgotten world of an extraordinary young woman.

 

For more than half a century, the red leather diary lay silent, languishing inside a steamer trunk, its worn cover crumbling into little flakes. When a cleaning sweep of a New York City apartment building brings this lost treasure to light, both the diary and its owner are given a second life.

 

Recovered by Lily Koppel, a young writer working at the New York Times, the journal paints a vivid picture of 1930s New York–horseback riding in Central Park, summer excursions to the Catskills, and an obsession with a famous avant-garde actress. From 1929 to 1934, not a single day's entry is skipped.

 

Opening the tarnished brass lock, Koppel embarks on a journey into the past, traveling to a New York in which women of privilege meet for tea at Schrafft's, dance at the Hotel Pennsylvania, and toast the night at El Morocco. As she turns the diary's brittle pages, Koppel is captivated by the headstrong young woman whose intimate thoughts and emotions fill the pale blue lines. Who was this lovely ingénue who adored the works of Baudelaire and Jane Austen, who was sexually curious beyond her years, who traveled to Rome, Paris, and London?

 

Compelled by the hopes and heartaches captured in the pages, Koppel sets out to find the diary's owner, her only clue the inscription on the frontispiece–"This book belongs to . . . Florence Wolfson." A chance phone call from a private investigator leads Koppel to Florence, a ninety-year-old woman living with her husband of sixty-seven years. Reunited with her diary, Florence ventures back to the girl she once was, rediscovering a lost self that burned with artistic fervor.

 

Joining intimate interviews with original diary entries, Koppel reveals the world of a New York teenager obsessed with the state of her soul and her appearance, and muses on the serendipitous chain of events that returned the lost journal to its owner. Evocative and entrancing, The Red Leather Diary re-creates the romance and glitter, sophistication and promise, of 1930s New York, bringing to life the true story of a precocious young woman who dared to follow her dreams.”

 

 This interview is available exclusively on The Entertainment Critic Magazine, found at http://www.theentertainmentcriticmagazine.com. 

To listen to the interview:  To access the interview, look under the Interview section.  Click on the wavy lines in the top right hand corner to stop the music, and then click on the MP3 player in the lower left corner.  You'll see the interview listed, click on Lily’s name in the player, the interview will take a moment to download and then will begin playing   Enjoy the interview, and please drop us a line at james@theentertainmentcriticmagazine.com and let us know how you liked the interview and if there is anything we can do to improve our process. 

 

 

The Red Leather Diary Website: http://www.redleatherdiary.com/

 

You Tube Book Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rc6IV93DpMw

 

The Red Leather Diary on MySpace: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=336127468

 

The Red Leather Diary on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=15777600230

 

The Red Leather Diary in The Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lily-koppel/

 

Lily’s NY Times column on The Red Leather Diary: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/16/nyregion/thecity/16diar.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss  (check out the cool interactive multimedia section in this article)