Hard Target: A Novel [Hardcover]

Howard Gordon (Author)

Book Description

Release date: January 3, 2012

From the producer of 24, the exciting follow-up to Gideon’s War involves a harrowing attempt to stop a homegrown terrorist plot to destroy the U.S. government.

When FBI Agent Nancy Clement discovers evidence of an impending terrorist attack on U.S. soil, higher-ups at the Bureau are leery of her chief source: a meth-head informant affiliated with a white supremacist group.  But Nancy follows her hunch and calls in Gideon Davis to evaluate her source.  Like Nancy, Gideon becomes convinced that a serious plot exists, but the informant is murdered before either he or Nancy can get more details from him.  So Gideon enlists his brother Tillman—newly sprung from prison through a presidential pardon obtained by Gideon—as an undercover operative to infiltrate a group of white supremacists who may be involved.

Eventually, Gideon and Tillman get on the trail of the real conspirators and uncover their audacious plan to eliminate the entire top tier of the U.S. government during the State of the Union Address.  With only Nancy’s support, Gideon and Tillman go rogue to stop the powerful titan behind the conspiracy before the entire government is toppled.

With nonstop action and ticking time-bomb suspense, Hard Target will keep readers turning pages, and their hearts pumping fast.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

The follow-up to Gideon’s War (2011) reads like another intense season of 24, the show Gordon produced. Gideon Davis is enjoying retirement and life with his fiancée when he receives evidence of an impending terrorist attack on Washington, D.C. His contacts at his former employer don’t believe him or his source. After investigating a bit further and discovering ties to a white-supremacist movement, he recruits his brother, Tillman, to help him stop the plot before lives are lost. Tillman realizes the only way to succeed is if he infiltrates the group. The suspense never wavers for a second, and the main characters are solid. Gordon does a great job of balancing the development of the heroes and nonstop action. Fans of Vince Flynn and the television adventures of Jack Bauer will eat this up. Gordon just keeps getting better. --Jeff Ayers

About the Author

Howard Gordon has been a writer and producer working in Hollywood for more than twenty years. He is the executive producer of the hit television show 24. Prior to his involvement with 24, Gordon was a writer and executive producer for The X-Files. This is his first novel. He lives with his family in Pacific Palisades, California.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 288 pages
• Publisher: Touchstone; First Edition edition (January 3, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1439175829
• ISBN-13: 978-1439175828
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #819,361 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Gideon's War was not a fluke! January 6, 2012

By William P. Dillon

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

A man with a grudge against the United States government, because his son came back from the war with amputated limbs, concocts a plan to avenge his son. He is going to take out the highest levels of government at the President's State of the Union address. A meth addict with some information about the plan confronts Gideon Davis to try to "sell" him the information. When the addict disappears, Gideon begins to believe it is all for real.

Hard Target is not as outlandish as some moments of Gideon's War but is every bit the roller coaster ride.

Hard Target is a huge success! This is a page turner, even more so than Gideon's War. Hard Target is very exciting and suspenseful.

Howard Gordon has become a "must read" author for me. I can't wait for his next book! Thanks for an exciting ride!

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Hard Target January 7, 2012

By grumpydan VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

Gideon Davis learns of a possible attack on the US government by a militia group and with the assistance of his brother and fiancé, they try to convince the powers that be. Thwarted by the FBI and others, the two brothers go on their own to stop the impending attack.

This action packed suspense is slowed down by lengthy narratives and the climax is somewhat predictable. It is what it is; reads like a television movie plot.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Page-turning suspense January 7, 2012

By Bill Weinberger

Format:Hardcover

I have to clarify: Three stars means I (ultimately) liked Hard Target. It had a tight plot with page-turning suspense, realistic situations and settings, and spare writing. Once I connected with the situation and the plight of the characters, it was not easy to put down. That should have gotten it four stars, but I have to knock off a few points.

First, a half point off because I did not immediately feel connected with the protagonist. The author used a prologue to try to get the reader into the situation and define the bad guys. While this might work for a television show (the author is a successful television writer and producer), in this case it seemed more of a distraction. When we meet up with Gideon Davis in chapter one, the reader is wondering why we are spending time with this loser on his way to work, instead of finding the fate of the poor woman in the prologue.

Another half point comes off for all the head hopping. This is the not the first time I've been assaulted by viewpoint roaming from character to character in a thriller. This may be a stylistic choice and most readers might not notice. I find it jarring and distracting when it happens within a single chapter or scene. It just chops things up too much, giving the story the feel of a badly edited movie-of-the-week.

Otherwise, this was a pretty decent read and I can recommend it for anyone looking for some hard action adventure.

Disclosure: I received a free copy of this book for review.