Most Popular Books by Stephen Coonts

1973. The Vietnam war.

A smash bestseller that spent over six months on the New York Times bestseller list, Flight of the Intruder became an instant classic. No one before or since ever captured the world of Navy carrier pilots with the gripping realism of Vietnam veteran Stephen Coonts, who lived the life he wrote about. More than a flying story, Flight of the Intruder is also one of the best novels ever written about the Vietnam experience. It''s all here—the flying, the dying, the blood and bombs and bullets, and the sheer joy—and terror—of life at full throttle. "Gripping...Smashing. —The Wall Street Journal Grazing the Vietnam treetops at night at just under the speed of sound, A-6 Intruder pilot Jake "Cool Hand" Grafton knows exactly how precarious life is. Landing on a heaving aircraft carrier, dodging missiles locked on his fighter, flying through clouds of flak—he knows each flight could be his last. Yet he straps himself into a cockpit every day. "Extraordinary!"—Tom Clancy Then a bullet kills his bombardier while they''re hitting another ‘suspected'' truck depot. Jake wonders what his friend died for—and why? Hitting pointless targets selected by men piloting desks just doesn''t make sense. Maybe it''s time to do something worthwhile. Something that will make a difference... "Superbly written." — Washington Times Jake and his new bombardier, ice-cold Tiger Cole, are going to pick their own target and hit the enemy where it hurts. But to get there and back in one piece is going to take a lot of nerve, even more skill, and an incredible amount of raw courage. Before it''s over, they''re going to fly into hell.

From a New York Times–bestselling author: A military pilot is entangled in the hunt for a Cold War spy selling high-tech secrets to the USSR. Navy pilot Jake Grafton flies fighter jets with ice water in his veins. But when he’s assigned a desk job in the Pentagon as the head of a top-secret stealth bomber program, his nerve is tested as never before. Colleagues start dying mysteriously, test flights are sabotaged, and the program is threatened at every level. If Grafton can’t infiltrate a web of espionage and counterespionage centered on the deadly traitor code-named the Minotaur, he stands to lose much more than just his career. The Minotaur is an exhilarating thriller revealing the complexities of military technology R&D by the acclaimed author of Flight of the Intruder, The Red Horseman, and other novels. In the words of Tom Clancy, “Stephen Coonts, like Jake Grafton, just keeps getting better.” This ebook features an illustrated biography of Stephen Coonts, including rare photos from the author’s personal collection.

Jake Grafton, a Defense Intelligence agent, is dispatched to Moscow. His mission is to keep the twenty thousand nuclear weapons from the former Soviet Union from getting on the black market, but there are many who would like to see him fail.

Captain Jake Grafton faces the duel threats of a determined assassin and a vicious drug lord, both intent on plunging the U.S. into chaos.

Stephen Coonts'' bestelling novels takes readers into the heart of harrowing, pulse-pounding action, whether on land, on sea, or in the air. Now, this master of full-tilt, blockbuster suspense turns into a lush setting 90 miles from U.S. soil. In Cuba, Fidel Castro lies dying. Human sharks are circling. And one man has his finger on the trigger of a weapon that will change everything... Admiral Jake Grafton is overseeing a shipment of nerve gas being transferred for a top-secret U.S. stockpile at Guantanamo Bay. But a power struggle inside Cuba has ignited an explosive plot and turned a horrific new weapon on the U.S. Now, Jake must strap himself into the cockpit of a new generation of American aircraft and fly blind into the heart of an island that is about to blow--and take the whole world with it...

"Longtime Coonts fans who share his political leanings will best appreciate this outing."—Publishers Weekly "The story moves along at a brisk pace, with plenty of intrigue, which will please thriller fans."—Booklist "Since switching publishers a few years back, Coonts has consistently delivered high-powered, conspiracy-laden political thrillers that are perfect for fans of Vince Flynn and Brad Thor."—Real Book Spy It Starts with a Murder . . . Will It End with a Coup? Stephen Coonts, master of suspense, has captivated readers around the world by writing thrillers ripped from the nation’s headlines. His newest, The Russia Account, pits CIA officer Tommy Carmellini against a murderous international financial conspiracy that leaves a trail of death and corruption, extending from a small bank in Estonia to the highest reaches of the Kremlin and the halls of Congress—perhaps even to the CIA itself, putting Admiral Jake Grafton, the head of the CIA, in the crosshairs of an assassin. Burglar-turned-CIA-warrior Tommy Carmellini has starred in eight previous Coonts thrillers. With the help of his mentor, Admiral Grafton, Carmellini has always managed to foil his enemies. Discovering and defeating the powerful forces behind this massive bloodstained financial conspiracy that threatens the very foundations of the United States government, and maybe the life of the president of the United States, will be his most difficult challenge yet—and perhaps, he suspects, an impossible one. By turns thrilling, shocking, and even prophetic, The Russia Account is Coonts in top form. It is a reading experience not to be missed.

Grafton is assigned the task of finding a stolen nuclear submarine.

Japanese nationalists launch World War III. Technothriller.

Following the success of his New York Times bestseller, Cuba, Stephen Coonts once again combines masterful storytelling with a frighteningly plausible scenario set in one of the world''s most volatile hot spots. This time, however, for Admiral Jake Grafton the stakes will be chillingly personal. Jake Grafton takes his wife, Callie, along when the U.S. government sends him to Hong Kong to find out how deeply the U.S. consul-general is embedded in a political money-raising scandal. And why not? Jake and Callie met and fell in love in Hong Kong during the Vietnam War, and the consul-general is an old friend from those days, Tiger Cole. The Graftons quickly discover that Hong Kong is a powder keg ready to explode. A political murder and the closure of a foreign bank by the communist government are the sparks that light the fuse . . . and Tiger Cole is right in the middle of the action. When Callie is kidnapped by a rebel faction, Jake finds himself drawn into the vortex of a high-tech civil war. Drawing on the skills of CIA operative Tommy Carmellini, in order to save his wife Jake Grafton must figure out who he can trust-both among the Western factions vying for control of the volatile situation, and among the Chinese patriots fighting for their nation''s future-and make sure the right side wins.

But all is not as it seems, and before long Dean and Girard must use all their skills just to stay alive ...

When newly appointed CIA director Jake Grafton hears murmurings of a Chinese plot to attack the US and assassinations of upper level goverment officials occur, he must investigate the threat and stop China.

The New York Times–bestselling icon of the techno-aviation thriller takes to the skies in this memoir of a great American adventure in an open-cockpit biplane. It was a bird’s-eye view of America—and the trip of a lifetime for author Stephen Coonts and his fourteen-year-old son. But even for Coonts, who had clocked 1,600 hours as a naval aviator and was the recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross commendation, this was a first. He’d be flying closer to the earth than he ever had before. His big yellow wood-and-canvas bird was the Cannibal Queen, a Stearman open-cockpit biplane built in 1942. Destined for the scrap yard, it was rescued and restored for what Coonts would call his “Stearman summer.” On a clear June afternoon in 1991, Coonts and his son took off to see the country the same way the barnstormers flew their Jennys: with a map and a compass. Coonts followed highways, railroad lines, back roads, mountains, rivers, and landmarks. For the next three months, seeing old friends and meeting new ones, he touched down on the diverse landscapes of each of the forty-eight contiguous states to record the stories of the American countryside, its spirited people, and its rich history. Soaring from big cities to the heartland, experiencing everything from Bourbon Street jazz and small-town barbershop quartets to greasy spoons and backyard barbeques, the author of Flight of the Intruder and The Art of War captures not only the singular thrill of biplane aviation, but a nostalgia for the simple pleasures of an America thought lost and forgotten. Stephen Coonts found it, and in The Cannibal Queen he shares every exultant moment. This ebook features an illustrated biography of Stephen Coonts, including rare photos from the author’s personal collection.

The most daring -- and deadly -- terrorist plot of all time is about to unfold aboard the supercarrier USS United States. If it succeeds, the balance of nuclear power will tilt in favor of a remorseless Arab leader. And it looks as if no one can stop it - except navy "jet jock" Jake Grafton. "Cag " Grafton is one helluva pilot. His F-14 Tomcat is one helluva plane. But some of Jake''s crewmates have already vanished. A woman reporter who boarded the ship in Tangiers may not be who she claims to be. And Jake may have to disobey a direct order from the President himself for one spine-tingling, hair-raising Final Flight.

Stephen Coonts has earned an extraordinary worldwide reputation with his military thrillers featuring Jake Grafton, one of the most popular and recognizable characters in contemporary suspense fiction. In this exhilarating departure, Coonts takes readers on an imaginative journey into space that is as suspenseful as any of his other stories . . . When Rip Cantrell, a seismic survey worker in the Sahara, spots a glint of reflected light in the distance, he investigates-and finds a piece of metal apparently entombed in the sandstone. Before long, Rip and his colleagues uncover a flying saucer that has been resting there for 140,000 years. Their discovery doesn''t remain a secret for long. The U.S. airforce sends a UFO investigation team, which arrives just minutes before a team sent by an Australian billionaire to steal the saucer''s secrets. Before either side can outwit the other, the Libyan military arrives. Meanwhile, Rip has been checking out the saucer. With the help of a beautiful ex-Air Force test pilot Charley Pine, Rip flies the saucer away, embarking on a fantastic journey into space and around the world, keeping just ahead of those who want the saucer for themselves. Saucer is a dazzling flying story and an action-filled look at what might have been...and what might be.

In this new novel by the New York Times bestselling author, Stephen Coonts, Iran is weeks away from acquiring nuclear weapons and has every intention of using them to strike first— only Tommy Carmellini and Jake Grafton can stop a nuclear nightmare Iran is much closer to having operational nuclear weapons than the CIA believes, and Iran''s president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has a plan. Iran will become a martyr nation, and Ahmadinejad will lead the united Muslims of the world in a holy war against the non-believers. But the Americans have a secret weapon in a group of Iranian dissidents, including a brother and sister determined to avenge the death of their beloved grandfather at the hands of the religious police. They are funneling information to Carmellini. They want to stop the attack before their leader launches a new world war. But will the U.S. government believe the information they are providing, and can the Americans prevent the Israelis from taking matters into their own hands, which could prove disastrous? Returning to the kind of military and espionage story that made Cuba one of his most successful novels, Coonts weaves an unforgettable tale of men and women at war, with the sort of dramatic military action and undercover technology for which Coonts is known.

Ex-burglar and CIA operative Tommy Carmellini stumbles into a massacre at a CIA safe house where a Russian defector is being debriefed and finds himself hunted by friend and foe alike.

New York Times bestselling author Stephen Coonts delivers another nail-biting thriller starring CIA Director Jake Grafton and his right-hand man, Tommy Carmellini. The president of the United States stands on an outdoor stage, flanked by powerful members of his administration and party. Television crews are preparing for broadcast. High above the stage, on a nearby rooftop, a decorated sniper adjusts the scope on his rifle. Afterwards, America will never be the same. Jake Grafton and Tommy Carmellini suddenly find themselves on the wrong side of the law when a public act of violence throws the country into chaos just before a presidential election. After martial law is declared and rioting begins, Grafton and Carmellini must risk everything to unravel a massive conspiracy and help a new resistance movement rise up against an unimaginable enemy…

NSA operative Charlie Dean attempts to locate a missing scientist specializing in germ warfare.

"Stephen Coonts delivers another high-powered, politically-charged thriller that is not to be missed."— The Real Book Spy "[A] headline-inspired thriller with a conservative slant."—Publishers Weekly After one of the most contentious and divisive elections in American history, the new president is finally settling into the West Wing. But when his chief of staff discovers evidence that voting machines in key counties in swing states were tampered with, the whole administration is in danger of unraveling. Did someone steal the election? Are America''s enemies involved? Were the tampered-with machines actually rigged to swing the election the other way—and if so and the plot failed, what is the conspirators'' backup plan? Jake Grafton and Tommy Carmellini race to solve the mystery of a potentially rigged election before Americans'' full faith and credit in our democracy, sovereignty, and rule of law become completely undone.

A riveting Vietnam War story--and one of the most dramatic in aviation history--told by a New York Times bestselling author and a prominent aviation historian Every war has its "bridge"--Old North Bridge at Concord, Burnside''s Bridge at Antietam, the railway bridge over Burma''s River Kwai, the bridge over Germany''s Rhine River at Remagen, and the bridges over Korea''s Toko Ri. In Vietnam it was the bridge at Thanh Hoa, called Dragon''s Jaw. For seven long years hundreds of young US airmen flew sortie after sortie against North Vietnam''s formidable and strategically important bridge, dodging a heavy concentration of anti-aircraft fire and enemy MiG planes. Many American airmen were shot down, killed, or captured and taken to the infamous "Hanoi Hilton" POW camp. But after each air attack, when the smoke cleared and the debris settled, the bridge stubbornly remained standing. For the North Vietnamese it became a symbol of their invincibility; for US war planners an obsession; for US airmen a testament to American mettle and valor. Using after-action reports, official records, and interviews with surviving pilots, as well as untapped Vietnamese sources, Dragon''s Jaw chronicles American efforts to destroy the bridge, strike by bloody strike, putting readers into the cockpits, under fire. The story of the Dragon''s Jaw is a story rich in bravery, courage, audacity, and sometimes luck, sometimes tragedy. The "bridge" story of Vietnam is an epic tale of war against a determined foe.

Stephen Coonts returns with a brand new thriller and a whole new kind of hero... Tommy Carmellini was the best burglar in the business. He was so good that most of his victims took weeks to find out they''d been robbed. But even the best slip up and they got him in the end. But then Tommy was given a choice. Go to prison or work for the CIA. State penitentiary or Langley? No choice at all. Carmellini is sent to guard a remote farmhouse where a star KGB defector is being debriefed. But when he gets there, a ruthless team of commandos are slaughtering everyone in sight...

Two massive ships are on a dual path to destruction. One is a freighter carrying nuclear materials to Japan; the other, a cruise ship heading for the Mediterranean. Neither will reach their destinations. Two factions—Japanese eco-terrorists and Middle East extremists—have joined forces to infiltrate the ships, incapacitate the crew, and change course toward a common target: The United States of America. In Washington, Charlie Dean and a team of commandos are dispatched on a life-or-death mission to blow the hijackers'' plot out of the water. Their plan: board the ship unnoticed, pose as ordinary passengers, and overtake the terrorists. But time is running out. The seized ships are crossing the Atlantic with the combined strength of a full-scale nuclear torpedo. And New York City is just on the horizon....in Stephen Coonts'' Deep Black: Sea of Terror, cowritten with William H. Keith.

Two-books-in-one in the Jake Grafton series from the New York Times bestselling author Stephen Coonts, America/Libery America: Dispatched on a trial run, NASA''s SuperAegis satellite has been created as the foundation of an international antimissle defense system. But moments after dispatch, it vanishes. Rear Admiral Jake Grafton fears something worse than a grave malfunction--he suspects sabotage...The USS America--the world''s most technically advanced nuclear submarine--is launched on its maiden voyage. Then shortly after steaming out of harbor, the unthinkable happens. Pirated by terrorists, America disappears beneath the roiling waves of the Atlantic, its Tomahawk warheads aimed directly at the United States...An ingeniously calculated war has been waged--but the rouge enemy is far more insidious than Jake Grafton ever imagined. His mission: ferret out the core group responsible, overtake the stealth sub, and destroy it. But times is running out, and the race is on for Grafton to blow the covert operation out of the water before an entire nation is brought to its knees. Liberty: On a quiet park bench in Manhattan---just miles from the ruins of the World Trade Center---spymaster Jake Janos Illin delivers a chilling secret message to Jake Grafton: A rogue Russian general has sold four nuclear warheads to a radical Islamic terrorist group, the Sword of Islam. The group intends to detonate them in America in the ultimate terror strike, the apocalypse that will trigger a holy war between Western civilization and the Muslim world. After passing Illin''s message to his superiors, Grafton is charged by the president with the task of assembling a secret team to find the warheads before America''s population centers are consumed by a nuclear holocaust. As he hunts for the terrorists, Grafton soon finds himself up to his neck in power politics, techno-billionaires, money-grubbing traitors, anarchists, and spies. He also discovers that the terrorists don''t all come from the Middle East. They come from places close to home. They masquerade as patriots. Some may even have the president''s ear. With the survival of Western civilization at stake, Grafton pulls out all the stops. Calling on the assistance of the indomitable Toad Tarkington, and CIA burglar Tommy Carmellini, he raids the prisons to assemble his team while the clock ticks toward Armageddon. Peopled with the rich, vivid characters that have made Stephen Coonts famous worldwide, Liberty is all action and suspense from the very first page. And it poses the unanswerable question: How far should civilization go to defend itself from its mortal enemies?

The hero of the New York Times–bestselling Flight of the Intruder is back in action—“Stephen Coonts, like Jake Grafton, just keeps getting better” (Tom Clancy). Navy pilot Jake Grafton took the fight to the enemy in the Vietnam War, winning the Congressional Medal of Honor and becoming a legend in the military community. But now he must navigate life both in the cockpit and in the halls of power as he finds himself on the front lines of a new kind of war . . . The Intruders: In this sequel to Flight of the Intruder, Grafton is stationed in the South Pacific on the USS Columbia, where his new mission is to educate an unruly group of Marines in the art of flying from an aircraft carrier. They better be fast learners, because they’ll have to work together to survive against an enemy unlike any they’ve ever faced. “In the realm of today’s military fiction, Mr. Coonts’s The Intruders is as good as they come.” —The Dallas Morning News The Minotaur: Grafton is heading up a top-secret stealth bomber program at the Pentagon when a series of mysterious deaths occurs, leading him on a manhunt within the US government for a Soviet mole code-named the “Minotaur.” If he can’t find the traitor, Grafton could lose far more than just his career . . . “Wildly inventive.” —Ocala Star-Banner Under Siege: In this New York Times bestseller, when a vicious drug lord is captured and brought to Washington, DC, for trial, his fanatically loyal private army prepares to launch an attack on the United States—and its president. The only man who can stop the bloodshed and take down the assassins is Jake Grafton. “Will keep you glued to your seat on a roller-coaster ride of adventure.” —USA Today The Red Horseman: As the USSR falls, newly appointed intelligence chief Jake Grafton knows that even as one threat falls, several more are waiting to get their hands on the former Soviet nuclear arsenal. And as he tries to stop a possible Armageddon, someone who is supposed to be on Grafton’s side is working to make sure he fails. “Quick-firing excitement, plot, and action . . . Coonts at his best.” —The Dallas Morning News

Mogadishu, Somalia. A luxury cruise liner has been captured by Somali pirates, with 860 lives at the mercy of the ruthless hijackers. Jake Grafton, head of Middle Eastern covert Ops for the CIA, has contacted his uniquely talented operative Tommy Carmellini, requesting his presence. Grafton''s veins of ice and nerves of steel make him Washington''s go-to man in a crisis, while Carmellini has the skillset Grafton needs when he knows he won''t be playing by the book. With the pirates holding firm to their demands, together they must launch an offensive explosive enough to blow their enemy firmly out of the water...

Presents twenty-six real-life accounts of aerial warfare, including "The Hero''s Life" by Captain Eddie V. Rickenbacker and "The Flight of Enola Gay" by Gordon Thomas and Max Morgan Witts.

Rip and Charlie must steal the saucer back from the museum in order to save his uncle from kidnappers who have taken him to the moon.

Bestselling author Coonts has collected some of the finest fiction about flying in one volume. "On Glorious Wings" contains stories and excerpts from world-renowned authors.

A beautiful woman is being blackmailed, an illegal break-in occurs, and a massacre at a government safe house puts CIA agent Tommy Carmellini on the trail of a dark conspiracy.