As the nights draw in and the air turns crisp, there’s no better time to lose yourself in a thriller that grabs you from the first page and doesn’t let go. If you only pick up one book this month, make it the explosive new novel from a titan of the genre: Jack Carr’s Cry Havoc.
For those who don’t know him, Jack Carr is the architect of one of the most successful thriller franchises of the modern era. Carr is a former Navy SEAL who led special operations teams as a team leader, platoon commander, troop commander, and task unit commander. Carr pours unparalleled authenticity into his writing, creating stories that feel frighteningly real. His breakout series, The Terminal List, introduced the world to the unforgettable James Reece, an operator hell-bent on vengeance. That series of books became a cultural phenomenon, spawning a hugely successful Amazon Prime series starring Chris Pratt, with a spin-off, Dark Wolf. Carr’s universe is expanding, and it’s never been a better time to get on board.
Now, with Cry Havoc, Carr does something brilliant. He takes us back to the beginning, introducing a brand-new protagonist: Tom Reece. And yes, he is the father of James Reece.
This is the origin story fans have been waiting for. Cry Havoc is the first book to put the legendary patriarch center stage, exploring the man whose shadow looms large over the entire series. Carr’s signature breakneck pacing and meticulous detail are on full display, delivering a narrative that is both a satisfying standalone thriller and an essential piece of lore for the entire series.
If you haven’t read Jack Car then there’s no better place to start than with Cry Havoc. After that, you will undoubtedly find yourself ripping through everything else on offer.
Cry havoc – Jack Carr
Available on: October 7, 2025
Publisher: Atria / Emily Bestler Books
#1 New York Times bestselling author Jack Carr brings the worlds of special operations and CIA paramilitary units into direct collision in the jungles of Vietnam with his explosive new thriller introducing young Navy SEAL Tom Reece, a man torn between the blurred lines and allegiances of the military and the increasingly murky world of intelligence. This is how it all began…
1968. A time of division. A time of civil unrest. A time of war.
Just before the Tet Offensive, before President Johnson announces he will not run for reelection, before the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Bobby Kennedy, as riots and protests rage across the nation, a spy ship is captured by communist forces off the coast of North Korea.
The crew thought they had destroyed everything of intelligence value. They were wrong.
As a KGB “illegal” elicits information from a high-ranking NSA official, and teams of special operators infiltrating into Laos, Cambodia, and North Vietnam disappear without a trace, an ambitious Soviet advisor launches an ingenious plan that could forever alter the world balance of power.
Tom Reece, a SEAL operator attached to the highly classified and shadowy MACV-SOG is about to be thrust into a bloody battle to discover the truth.
From the Kremlin to the White House, from the streets of Saigon to the rugged A Shau Valley, along the paths of Ho Chi Minh Trail and into the secret war in Laos, Navy SEAL Tom Reece has an official mission assigned by Military Assistance Command, Vietnam-Studies and Observations Group, but it’s his unofficial mission that might get him killed.
The Terminal List – Jack Carr
Published: March 6, 2018
Publisher: Atria / Emily Bestler Books
Now an original series starring Chris Pratt and the inspiration for the series The Terminal List: Dark Wolf now streaming on Prime Video.
“Take my word for it, James Reece is one rowdy motherf***er. Get ready!”—Chris Pratt, all around great guy and star of the #1 Amazon Prime series The Terminal List
A Navy SEAL has nothing left to live for and everything to kill for after he discovers that the American government is behind the deaths of his team in this ripped-from-the-headlines political thriller that is “so powerful, so pulse-pounding, so well-written—rarely do you read a debut novel this damn good” (Brad Thor, #1 New York Times bestselling author).
On his last combat deployment, Lieutenant Commander James Reece’s entire team was killed in a catastrophic ambush. But when those dearest to him are murdered on the day of his homecoming, Reece discovers that this was not an act of war by a foreign enemy but a conspiracy that runs to the highest levels of government.
Now, with no family and free from the military’s command structure, Reece applies the lessons that he’s learned in over a decade of constant warfare toward avenging the deaths of his family and teammates. With breathless pacing and relentless suspense, Reece ruthlessly targets his enemies in the upper echelons of power without regard for the laws of combat or the rule of law.
“Told with a deft hand and a keen eye for detail, The Terminal List…is explosive and riveting” (Kevin Maurer, coauthor of No Easy Day) and is perfect for fans of Vince Flynn, Brad Thor, Stephen Hunter, and Nelson DeMille.
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