Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    State of the Union
    State of the Union
    State of the Union
    Audiobook11 hours

    State of the Union

    Written by Brad Thor

    Narrated by George Guidall

    4.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    “The perfect all-American hero” (Nelson DeMille, #1 New York Times bestselling author) Scot Harvath is on the hunt for a dangerous killer bent on world domination in this white-knuckled thrill ride from #1 New York Times bestselling author Brad Thor.

    America’s worst nightmare has just become a brutal reality. The most unlikely terrorist enemy of all now holds a knife against the country’s throat. With both diplomatic and conventional military options swept from the table, the president calls upon Navy SEAL turned Secret Service agent, Scot Harvath, to disable a brilliantly orchestrated conspiracy intended to bring the United States to its knees. Teamed with beautiful Russian Intelligence agent Alexandra Ivanova and a highly trained CIA paramilitary detachment, Harvath embarks on an adrenaline-fueled search that spans the world—and leads to a final, deadly showdown on American soil, with a lethal and sinister enemy from the past.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherSimon & Schuster Audio
    Release dateJan 4, 2011
    ISBN9781442342293
    State of the Union
    Author

    Brad Thor

    Brad Thor is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twenty-three thrillers, including Dead Fall, Black Ice (ThrillerFix Best Thriller of the Year), Near Dark (one of Suspense Magazine’s Best Books of the Year), Backlash (nominated for the Barry Award for Best Thriller of the Year), Spymaster (named “One of the all-time best thriller novels” —The Washington Times), The Last Patriot (nominated Best Thriller of the Year by the International Thriller Writers association), and Blowback (one of the “Top 100 Killer Thrillers of All Time” —NPR). Visit his website at BradThor.com and follow him on Facebook @BradThorOfficial, on Instagram @RealBradThor, and on X @BradThor.

    More audiobooks from Brad Thor

    Related to State of the Union

    Related audiobooks

    Thrillers For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      The Worst Thing You Can Do Is Nothing

      Jan 10, 2023

      Stanislav did not want to join the army. It was his mother who said he must. Stanislav’s father didn’t argue. Father had once been brave enough to fly a fighter plane in World War II, but that had been a long time ago. One glorious act of bravery in

      11 min read

    • Article

      Farewell, Old Friend

      Jun 22, 2018

      Farewell, Old Friend
      4 min read

    • Article

      Readers' Letters

      Jul 26, 2023

      SIR: I have just celebrated my 80th birthday and been much acclaimed by my family and friends. Even the government has got in on the act, as it has increased my state pension by 25p a week. Unfortunately, my village shop has hardly anything to offer

      5 min read

    • Article

      Let's Hear It For Tyranny!

      Mar 22, 2018

      Now that he is in effect Russia's president for life, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin has ordered another big win for himself at the polls. This time he was awarded 76.7 percent of the vote at last rigged count. He just picks a number, a number to his l

      3 min read

    • Article

      The Magic Flute

      Apr 4, 2023

      The Magic Flute
      7 min read

    • Article

      Readers’ Letters

      Aug 25, 2021

      Readers’ Letters
      4 min read

    • Article

      A Friendly Face In A Foreign Place: My Encounter With A Soviet Soldier

      Feb 2, 2024

      He was sitting on a low stone wall in a park in Moscow. He wore heavy black boots, tight black pants, a black jacket, and a sheepskin shapka on his head. He had military medals pinned to his chest. He sat calmly watching as people walked past. A few

      3 min read

    • Article

      To Russia With Love

      Nov 12, 2019

      To Russia With Love
      10 min read

    • Article

      ‘I’m Not Scared Of War Any More’: Death And The Penguin Author Andrey Kurkov On Life In Kyiv

      Apr 5, 2022

      Even newly arrived in London, 1,300 miles away from Ukraine, Andrey Kurkov feels as if he’s in a war zone. His phone – its settings still monitoring the location west of Kyiv where he is based – buzzes constantly with warnings of air raids. Ukrainian

      7 min read

    • Article

      Stranger in a Strange Land: Dave Eggers’s ‘The Parade’

      Feb 14, 2019

      Eggers is a master of point of view; you adhere to his protagonist, even if you have little or nothing in common with him, and even when you’re not entirely on his side. The post Stranger in a Strange Land: Dave Eggers’s ‘The Parade’ appeared first o

      5 min read

    • Article

      Go Home While You Can Still Draw Breath: Dispatches from Ukraine

      Mar 5, 2022

      If Putin succeeds in hanging Zelensky and installing his puppet in Kyiv, would it even be possible to go back? Would it be wise? Would you, if you could? The post Go Home While You Can Still Draw Breath: Dispatches from Ukraine appeared first on The

      4 min read

    • Article

      Commonplace Book

      Dec 2, 2019

      Is not January the hardest month to get through? When you have weathered that, you get into the gulf-stream of winter, nearer the shores of spring. —Henry David Thoreau, Journal, February 2, 1854 [T]he pure luxury of a cloudless sky designed not to

      4 min read

    • Article

      Excerpts From The Works Of The 2024 Whiting Award Winners

      Apr 10, 2024

      The 2024 Whiting Award winners were announced Wednesday night. Below are excerpts from their work.

      19 min read

    • Article

      Stop Hating on Adjectives!

      Jun 12, 2019

      A common admonition in creative writing pedagogy is, “Cut as many adjectives as possible.” I propose that this rule springs from mere prejudice. The post Stop Hating on Adjectives! appeared first on The Millions.

      7 min read

    • Article

      Nick Barrett

      Mar 5, 2020

      Nick Barrett
      11 min read

    • Article

      How Shakespeare Can Help Us Understand the Russian Invasion of Ukraine

      Mar 9, 2022

      Hold your loved ones close. Don’t lose heart or give in to fear. A life defined by resentment, envy, or revenge is no life. It will lead to nothing good. The post How Shakespeare Can Help Us Understand the Russian Invasion of Ukraine appeared first o

      5 min read

    • Article

      I Sit With Her in the Dark as She Weeps

      Mar 25, 2022

      The count of those of us now living as refugees passed three million midweek last week. That’s Atlanta, Las Vegas, Seattle, Washington D.C., and Cleveland, Ohio, all fled in three weeks of bombing. The post I Sit With Her in the Dark as She Weeps app

      4 min read

    • Article

      Matt Heafy

      Oct 12, 2021

      Matt Heafy
      4 min read

    • Article

      Feedback

      Oct 15, 2020

      Feedback
      5 min read

    • Article

      The Escape Of Koravitch

      Sep 30, 2019

      The Escape Of Koravitch
      16 min read

    • Article

      Stand Up And Shout

      Aug 17, 2023

      Stand Up And Shout
      13 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for State of the Union

    4.5/5

    578 ratings20 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 3/5
      Another Brad Thor/Scot Harvath super-spy saves the day novel. This time the story brings back the Cold War - turns out the Cold War never ended, it was simply sleeping. Completely over the top survivability by the main hero, but entertaining nonetheless. Thor's books are page turners and help me escape the stresses of the real world.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      Hannah's parents are in the midst of life in the sixties - her father a radical university professor and her mother an artist. Conventional Hannah is something of a disappointment to them, and soon finds herself married and living in small town America. The first part of this novel is narrated by Hannah during this part of her life, and culminates in an incident where, against all her better judgement she is forced to break the law. The second part of the novel jumps the reader forwards by 30 years to a point in time where, when her family finds themselves under scrutiny, Hannah's past catches up with her. This novel, as the titles suggests, reflects on the state of a marriage, and the state of the USA in two very different eras.
    • 4/5
      An interesting and not too challenging read. I preferred the earlier part of the story.
    • 5/5
      Although, it doesn't hold a candle to the Vince Flynn novels, the first 3 books in the series have kept my interest. It's not very believable (which says a lot of youve read Flynn's Mitch Rapp novels) and I've done quite a bit of eye rolling as Harvath escapes his inescapable situations. But all that being said, it's an entertaining read and I plan to continue the books through.
    • 3/5
      Entertaining, unchallenging, quite enjoyable.
    • 5/5
      Douglas Keendy is an author that I like. His woman characters are strong, interesting and real people, and this book was a good read too. It is the story of Hannah Buchan over a long period of time. It is the story of her marriage to Dan. Hannah to the disappointment of her mother marries Dan, a doctor, at a young age and settles in a small American town. While there she receives a visit from one of her father's protegees radical Tobias Judson. At this point in time her husband is out of town visiting his dying father. Hannah becomes sexually involved with him over those few days, and when it turns out that the law is after him and he must flee to Canada Tobias coerces Hannah into driving him there. Hannah regrets her infidelity and from then on works hard at her marriage and is faithful to her husband who becomes a prominent surgeon in Portland. But when her daughter Lizzie goes missing, and the now born again Christian Tobias decides to write a book of his life including a chapter about his time with Hannah her whole world implodes. It is a case then of his word against hers and Hannah has a fight on her hands while at the same time desperatley trying ti find out what has happened to her daughter. We have the intrusion of the press into her life and the conflict between Hannah and her son and his wife, both conservative Christians and pro lifers who take exception to some of Hannah's comments and her behaviour. And then there is the reaction of her husband when he finds out about Hannah and Tobias and the trip to Canada. It is an absorbing story, well worth a read.
    • 5/5
      Great book Scott's no Mitch Rapp but it's awesome nonetheless
    • 5/5
      Good plot and fun to listen to! It will keep you engaged the whole time!
    • 4/5
      Third book in the series and they just go from strenght to strength. Really enjoying the series
    • 3/5
      I really like the character of Scott Harvath. I like to think there are more men with his qualities protecting the United States of America than we could possibly imagine.
      I do however, find it a little more difficult, each time I read one of Brad Thor's novels to enjoy all the acronyms shared and all of the definitions. Please don't misunderstand me, Brad Thor is definitely one of my favorite authors. But as the novels continue, sometimes all the acronyms and definitions so carefully shared in the midst of the story seem to stop the flow for me. It makes me wonder if it happens to other readers too.
    • 5/5
      Scott Harvath ans his adventures always entertain - the best
    • 5/5
      I was seriously thrown off by the narrator. Scott Horvath has a voice, and for me this wasn't it. Other than that, another great Harvath story by the great Thor.
    • 4/5
      Great story. Action packed. Really enjoy listening to the exploits of Scott Harvath.
    • 5/5
      Book 3 has Scot Harvath's deep in the thick of it to stop the Russian's secret mission to destroy the world's only superpower! Scot that learns several suitcase nukes are placed in major cities throughout the country and the President quickly gathers his NSC to come up with a plan while keeping the unsuspecting American citizens in the dark. Should they launch a first strike against the newly formed Mother Russia and how do they attack their new online secret defense system?
    • 5/5
      In his third offering of the Scot Harvath saga, Brad Thor finally gets around to placing Harvath in his element: counter-terrorism. In the first offering, "The Lions of Lucerne," the former Navy Seal is featured in his role of Secret Service agent. In "Path of the Assassin," he ties up loose ends from book one and transitions away from Secret Service work and into the field he was so obviously made for. Harvath has to be one of the most highly trained individuals in history, and in "State of the Union," he will need every bit to make it out alive and save millions of innocent lives.The story really starts in the early 1980's when the Cold War was at its peak. Both the Soviets and Americans had placed sleeper agents with suitcase nukes in position to detonate them in major cities. However, mutually assured destruction (MAD) was keeping both countries at bay. Fast forward 20 years to the present (this book was published in 2004) and we meet General Sergei Stavropol. The General has waited patiently for his plan to come together, and with the completion of the Soviet missile defense system, the concept of mutually assured destruction no longer applies. The first thing Stavropol does is try to eliminate the US sleeper agents with their suitcase nukes. Almost all are killed and Gary Lawlor, formerly of the FBI and currently Scot's boss at the Office of International Investigative Assistance (OIIA), the counter-terrorism branch of the government, has gone missing.Stavropol, operating from a position of dominance, holds the US president hostage. His ultimatum: either the US retreats from the world stage both financially and militarily and the President announces this during his state of the union address, or his sleeper agents will set off the nearly two dozen suitcase nukes spread around the country in strategic cities. Even one of the nukes could kill millions, and leaving the world stage would be devastating for the US economy. Things look bleak for President Jack Rutledge and Stavropol seems to be holding all of the cards, but Rutledge has an ace in the hole - Scot Harvath. With only one week to work miracles, Harvath sets out to do the improbable. With help from some of the CIA operatives from the previous book, as well as beautiful but deadly Soviet agent Alexandra Ivanova, who's loyalty is in question, Harvath must disable the missile defense system and find the suitcase nukes before it's too late.If one reads enough of these books, the outcome is not in question. The interesting thing is to see how Harvath goes about accomplishing his task. With equal part skill and luck, Harvath doesn't have a moment to spare when we finally reach the climax.This book is full of action and the scenario is definitely plausible. Just like the James Bond books, Scot Harvath has a tendency to get into tight spots, and also an uncanny ability to get out of them. I enjoyed this book more than the previous two, as counter-terrorism is Harvath's niche. I liked his involvement with Meg Cassidy from the last book, but she barely makes an appearance in this one. I guess Scot's career doesn't leave much room for a personal life. Nevertheless, I rate this 5-stars as the action kept the pages turning for me. I am looking forward to book 4 in the series.
    • 5/5
      This is what I have excepted from the Russians since the Wall came down, I don't know if it was my time in the Army but I have never trusted the Russians and I may give them more credit they deserve, but this was how I envisioned the next conflict between us starting. Brad Thor is a very good writer not only does he know and understand his subject he keeps your attention from start to finish never slowing down and always keeping you on edge. I hope the rest of Mr. Thors books are as good as State of the Union. Damn fine writing!
    • 3/5
      I really like the character of Scott Harvath. I like to think there are more men with his qualities protecting the United States of America than we could possibly imagine.
      I do however, find it a little more difficult, each time I read one of Brad Thor's novels to enjoy all the acronyms shared and all of the definitions. Please don't misunderstand me, Brad Thor is definitely one of my favorite authors. But as the novels continue, sometimes all the acronyms and definitions so carefully shared in the midst of the story seem to stop the flow for me. It makes me wonder if it happens to other readers too.
    • 2/5
      Wasn't real impressed with the book. The premise didn't seem too possible to me.
    • 4/5
      Mother Russia is back - back with a vengeance. Thor spins quite the yarn with this story - while everyone else is telling tales of Islamic terrorists around every corner, Thor does a 180 and dips back into the Cold War to dust off Russia as America's primary nemesis. With Russia armed to the teeth with suitcase nukes ready to go off on US soil, America v. Russia in the 21st Century makes for quite the read. Although I could do without the Hollywood-esq last couple of pages, the overall storyline is strong and keeps you churning through the story at a wicked pace. Seems like his books get better as the series goes on.
    • 3/5
      Unfortunately, the weakest of the Scot Harvath books. The plot seemed to be thrown together without the author having asked a lot of important "what if" questions before proceeding with plot developments. The latter portions of the book also seemed to lack the detail of the earlier portions, which gave me the feeling that the author hurried to get through the book, rather than taking his time to fully develop the story and characters. I kept feeling that I needed to read the "director's cut" to see what I'd missed.