Book Review: Jack Carr’s “The Devil’s Hand” is an Infectious Thriller

By Jon Brooks 

“Luck is the residue of preparation...” 

The one thing I’ll say about Jack Carr is that the man doesn’t write the same book twice. 

A couple of weeks ago I reviewed Don Bentley’s new Mitch Rapp thriller “Capture or Kill” (read my review). In that novel, Bentley dives into the hunt for Osama bin Laden in 2011. 

When I was deciding on my next book to read, I thought that reading/reviewing Jack Carr’s “The Devil’s Hand” would serve as an interesting companion piece to Bentley’s thriller.

“The Devil’s Hand” finds former Navy SEAL James Reece training to officially join the ranks for the Central Intelligence Agency’s Ground Branch. 

“Bureaucracy was, after all, bureaucracy.” 

The opening pages of the novel have a not-too-terribly-amused Reece taking a lie detector test — a preamble to his training. The entire sequence also serves as an opportunity for Carr to get uninitiated readers up to speed on his protagonist.  

Reece dealt with a considerable amount during Carr’s first three novels (“The Terminal List,” “True Believer,” and “Savage Son”). In those books, much of the heroics came from a more personal place as readers gained insight into Reece’s life. 

This time out, the stakes are considerably higher. 

Reece and his compatriots are battling a mysterious virus that threatens peace, prosperity, and the American way. 

The leader of the free world is President Alec Christensen, a former “techpreneur” whose fiancé died in New York City during the tragic events of Sept. 11, 2001. The president knows tragedy firsthand, and tasks Reece with a secret mission during the early chapters of “The Devil’s Hand” that are designed to avenge his fiancé. 

This novel was written in anticipation of the 20th anniversary of 9/11, so the events of that fateful day in 2001 tint the undertones of the plot in this novel. 

Still reeling from the events in “Savage Son” (read my review), Reece wants to find the sniper (Nizzar Kattan) who killed Senior Chief Freddy Strain (who aided Reece in “Savage Son”). 

Reece is also trying to figure out how his relationship with journalist Katie Buranek will mesh with his life operating in the shadows (there is no shortage of evildoers who want Reece dead). 

The CEO of a shady private security contracting company (Masada Security Solutions) also figures into things, along with an irascible senator named Thwaite (who has an axe to grind with the president). 

All of these threads mix together to form the basis of the narrative in “The Devil’s Hand.” It is a taut and detailed thriller that feels like it could be pulled from today’s headlines. 

A considerable amount of Carr’s exposition in the first part of the novel focuses on various antagonists maneuvering behind the scenes. Each of those characters serves as a vessel for Carr to explore a number of historical events that laid the foundation for the War on Terror. 

Many of those sequences are reminiscent of author Tom Clancy’s 1996 novel “Executive Orders.” In fact, the notion of a viral threat to the United States is something explored with similar aplomb in “The Devil’s Hand.”  

And, in Clancy fashion, Carr provides copious amounts of research as he methodically lays the framework that guides the overall story. 

So be patient. I promise you that the payoff in the second and third parts of “The Devil’s Hand” makes the build up worth it. 

“The Devil’s Hand” was published in 2021 — a time that saw the world still reeling from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Carr states that he was “well into the research for this novel before the COVID-19 pandemic gripped the world.” The author integrates the events of 2020 and 2021 into this novel. 

There was some debate in 2020 regarding whether thriller writers should infuse the pandemic into their novels. Some suggested that it might unnecessarily “date” novels. That said, I am glad Carr decided to tackle this topic. 

Questions about the power of social media — as it regards the stability of society — also comes into play as events unfold in “The Devil’s Hand”: 

“Theories without a foundation in facts or basis in reality could take flight and go viral. No barriers to entry. No editors. No fact checking, or if there was, it couldn’t be trusted; ‘fact checkers’ had biases and agendas, too, after all. The loudest voices dominated the chaos that was social media hysteria, and all of it contributed to the chaos. Suppression and censorship only fueled the flames.” 

At the novel’s core is the notion that our enemies have learned things about us the past 20 years — things that potentially put the free world in peril.

Once again, Carr’s love of Toyota Land Cruisers is on display. The FJ62 featured in “Savage Son” figures prominently into “The Devil’s Hand.” Carr mentions ICON’s restoration of the Land Cruiser (a job Carr actually had done to his vehicle in real life), along with a few upgrades. 

Carr is a well-read author. He infuses various works of fiction and non-fiction into his novels. Two books in particular play into the events of “The Devil’s Own”: T.E. Lawrence’s “Revolt in the Desert” and Peter Hopkirk’s “The Great Game.” 

I also enjoyed how Carr got a mention of thriller writer Brad Thor in there, as well as a nod to Richard Marcinko’s novel “Red Cell.” 

Even though “The Devil’s Hand” might slide on the more “wonky” side of the geopolitical thriller scale (especially in the first half), you can rest assured that there are still plenty of the visceral, action-packed moments Carr’s loyal fans have come to love — I promise you, the character does all sorts of creative things with his Winkler RnD axe! 

Jack Carr once again places himself at the forefront of today’s thriller writers. “The Devil’s Hand” proves that Carr can traverse today’s geopolitical sphere with the best of them!

If you’d like to learn more about Jack Carr and his James Reece thrillers, visit his website at officialjackcarr.com. 

NOTE: I should also mention that Carr’s first thriller “The Terminal List” is the basis of an Amazon Prime television series starring Chris Pratt (read my review). It was recently announced that a prequel series titled “The Terminal List: Dark Wolf” (starring Pratt and Taylor Kitsch) is currently in production. 

>> If you enjoyed my review of Jack Carr’s “The Devil’s Hand,” be sure to follow me on Twitter/X — @TheJonCrunch 

Related blog posts on Jack Carr: 

> TV Review: Pratt’s Performance Elevates Visceral “The Terminal List” 

> Book Review: Jack Carr’s “Savage Son” is a Modern Thriller With Retro Flair 

> Book Review: “True Believer” By Jack Carr 

> Book Review: “The Terminal List” By Jack Carr 

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TV Review: Pratt’s Performance Elevates Visceral “The Terminal List”

By Jon Brooks

“This is Antoine Fuqua meets Alfred Hitchcock...” — Jack Carr recounting showrunner David DiGilio’s description of Amazon Prime Video’s “The Terminal List” 

In early 2018, I started seeing mention on Twitter of a new thriller novel titled “The Terminal List” by an author named Jack Carr (a former Navy SEAL). 

Many of the people I interact with on Twitter were looking forward to Carr’s debut novel. It sounded like something I would be interested in reading. I’ve long been a fan of the thriller genre, and the premise seemed intriguing. 

So I pre-ordered a copy and set my sights on reviewing it. 

When you start a blog — or any sort of creative pursuit — your main hope is that people will enjoy it. Throughout 363 posts (as of this writing), I'm primarily fueled by feedback and interest from readers. 

When I reviewed Carr's “The Terminal List,” I never imagined it would become my most viewed blog post. But as the years have progressed — and as Carr has built a legion of loyal followers — the review steadily rose and has become the top performing post on my blog (read my review). 

In my review, I described the novel as “a story that stings the throat and clears the sinuses — bold, brutal, and unwavering.” 

Carr does a terrific job marketing his books — and his love of pop culture is evident. I am the same age as the author, and grew up with many of the same influences.

My mom and dad took me to the theater to see most of the macho military action movies of that era. I fondly remember seeing movies like “Rambo: First Blood Part II,” “Commando,” “The Delta Force,” and “Invasion U.S.A.,” with my parents at our local multiplexes. 

I was also a fan of the TV series “Magnum, P.I.” as a kid, and remember watching it with my parents on Thursday nights (keen-eyed readers will find several references to the show in Carr’s work). 

My love of mystery and thriller novels began at a young age. I remember loving “The Hardy Boys” series during elementary school, reading WWII-related children’s books like Bernard Glemser’s “Radar Commandos,” and later developed a passion for "grown up thrillers" when a high school literature teacher gave our class the assignment of reading a Tom Clancy or Robert Ludlum novel (I chose Clancy’s “Patriot Games”). 

When news started percolating about a filmed adaptation of “The Terminal List,” I was curious to see how Hollywood would interpret Carr's well-drawn thriller. 

And, when it was announced that Chris Pratt would star in a series adaptation of the novel on Amazon Prime, my initial curiosity transformed into pure excitement. A multi-episode series would allow the filmmakers to dive into the story and explore the characters in a more significant manner. 

“The Terminal List” chronicles the exploits of Lieutenant Commander James Reece (Pratt) here on the home front in Coronando, California, after his SEAL team (operating out of Incirlik Air Base in Turkey) conducts an ill-fated mission in Syria (Operation Odin’s Sword) to eliminate a chemical weapons specialist known as “Chemical Kahani.”  

In the aftermath, Reece questions his recollection of the particulars that transpired during the covert mission, and starts to question his own judgment as the leader of Alpha Team. 

Moreover, when a surviving team member mysteriously dies stateside (of a suspected suicide), Reece believes the cause of death isn’t a cut-and-dry case. 

Is Reece paranoid, or is he on the right track? 

He worries that Kahani is targeting his men, but soon learns there is a greater conspiracy afoot — a conspiracy that puts our protagonist, his wife Lauren (Riley Keough), and daughter Lucy (Arlo Mertz) in extreme danger. 

With the help of intrepid reporter Katie Buranek (Constance Wu), Reece starts to put the pieces together. 

Things are not as they seem, and Reece soon finds himself in the center of a maelstrom that reaches the highest corridors of power. 

Somewhere, somehow, someone is going to pay. 

The eight-episode series manages to imbue the spirit of Carr’s novel, and Pratt (a surprisingly versatile actor) becomes the embodiment of Carr’s protagonist. 

As is the case with many page-to-screen adaptations, there are a number of differences between the book and the movie — far too many to highlight in this review. 

In general, I was fine with the changes made to the story and its various settings. Producer/director Antoine Fuqua (“Olympus Has Fallen,” “The Equalizer”) and showrunner David DiGilio (along with his writing team, who worked on much of the production via Zoom due to the pandemic) do a yeoman’s job navigating these intricacies, and create a compelling narrative for the screen. 

One interesting stylistic choice was the show’s moody production design. 

“The Terminal List” is a dark revenge tale. The production employed a dim, dreary, and desaturated color palette (and lighting scheme) to hammer that point home. 

Characters are often lit in shadow, giving things a “noirish” feel. Some viewers might question the aesthetic. Taken in total, I think the effect largely worked. 

There are also moments in the story where Reece questions his sanity — stylized flashback/hallucination/dream sequences are utilized and allow for additional nuggets in Reece’s backstory, giving the character more texture in the process. 

For me, the highlight episode of the season was the sixth, titled “Transience.” 

I won’t go into any specifics, but I found it to be an entertaining chapter. I’ll simply say that it had sequences that reminded me of the 1982 film “First Blood.”  

(By the way, if you haven’t listened to Jack Carr's podcast interview with “First Blood” scribe David Morrell, it is well worth your time!) 

There are also various “easter eggs” from the novels strewn throughout the eight episodes of “The Terminal List.”  

For example, @Marc_Harris3 on Twitter pointed out a shot in the series where a bottle of honey and a small box of half-and-half sits in front of Reece and his coffee mug: 

Small @TerminalListPV detail I haven't seen anybody talk about yet but is that Honey is see with his Coffee. 👀👀

What do you think @ThrillerPodcast pic.twitter.com/8PFyVJ3uTf

— Marc Harris (@Marc_Harris3) July 6, 2022

For those who haven’t read the books, Reece (and Jack Carr) prefers coffee with a little honey and half-and-half milk. 

Another detail from this book is the inclusion of Reece’s 1988 Toyota FJ62 Land Cruiser. In this video, Carr (a Land Cruiser aficionado) gives us a tour of the actual vehicle used in the series: 

Small details like that illustrate the care the filmmakers put into the series. 

In addition to Pratt — who gives his most nuanced performance to date — there are a number of notable performances in “The Terminal List.”  

In particular, some of the smaller roles stood out to me. 

I really enjoyed Tyner Rushing as pilot and former Army Aviation Branch Warrant Officer Liz Riley. While there wasn’t much meat to the role, the filmmakers did a solid job giving the character some nice morsels as they outlined her background and friendship with Reece. 

Former Navy SEAL Jared Shaw plays Special Warfare Operator First Class Ernest “Boozer” Vickers, a member of Reece’s team. Again, it wasn’t a big role, but the character is memorable. 

Shaw (who also serves as a technical advisor on the show) received a pre-release copy of “The Terminal List” back in 2017, and gave it to Chris Pratt (who optioned it soon thereafter). 

I also enjoyed seeing Jai Courtney in action as antagonist Steve Horn, head of Captstone Industries. He’s familiar with this territory, and I’ve enjoyed the actor’s work since his roles in “Jack Reacher” and “A Good Day to Die Hard.”  

There are also some small cameos of note in the series (including an entertaining appearance by Carr himself in the third episode). I enjoyed seeing former Navy SEAL Remi Adeleke make a brief appearance in “The Terminal List” as well.  

I first became familiar with Adeleke when Bridget ordered me one of his KEJO Wear t-shirts — a design we saw Neil Brown Jr. wearing on an episode of the CBS series “SEAL Team”: 

Overall, I had a good time watching Amazon’s adaptation of “The Terminal List.” The episodes move at a brisk pace, and Pratt’s performance elevates the narrative. 

As a longtime fan of this brand of thriller, I was heartened to see the care and craftsmanship that was put into the eight-episode season. 

There are so many wonderful print properties waiting to be developed. I hope the success of “The Terminal List” paves the way for more of these stories to make it to the screen. 

“The Terminal List” sets a new standard for thriller adaptations. Even if you haven't yet read Carr’s novels, I think you’ll find a lot to like in this series. 

If you want to learn more about “The Terminal List” on Amazon Prime Video, visit the show’s official website here. 

To learn more about author Jack Carr and his novels, visit his website at www.officialjackcarr.com. 

>> If you enjoyed my review of Chris Pratt’s “The Terminal List” series, please follow me on Twitter/X – @TheJonCrunch 

Related posts on Jack Carr: 

> Book Review: Jack Carr’s “The Devil’s Hand” is an Infectious Thriller 

> Book Review: “The Terminal List” By Jack Carr 

> Book Review: “True Believer” By Jack Carr 

> Book Review: Jack Carr’s “Savage Son” is a Modern Thriller With Retro Flair 

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Book Review: Jack Carr’s “Savage Son” is a Modern Thriller With Retro Flair

By Jon Brooks 

“I’m going hunting…” 

Many moons ago, I started reading the brand of high-concept espionage thriller that would become a lifelong interest of mine. 

Readers of my generation typically cite stalwarts who came to fore in the 1970s and 80s — like Tom Clancy and Robert Ludlum — as being among their favorites. There’s little doubt that reading Clancy’s novel “Patriot Games” in 1989 had an impact on my literary habits as I entered adulthood. 

But it was the books I read during my elementary school years that planted the seeds of interest in the genre. 

A book I read in third grade called “Radar Commandos” by Bernard Glemser was the first thriller I remember consuming. I found a tattered copy in my school’s library and absolutely loved it. 

The World War II story tells the tale of a 15-year-old boy whose family farm is occupied by the Germans. The British contact the boy because reconnaissance photos have discovered technology on the farm that will make it difficult for Allied aircraft to maneuver over the area. As a result, the boy aids in planning a commando raid to infiltrate the property. 

The book is uses a classic “men on a mission” structure — a narrative technique that has epitomized numerous thrillers over the years. 

Having followed author Jack Carr on Twitter the past few years, you can see he also shares a passion for that brand of story. It’s no secret that the books he enjoyed growing up influence his writing, and he often shares selections from his youth with his followers. 

Those sturdy underpinnings provide the foundation his latest novel “Savage Son.” 

Carr has quickly become a favorite in the world of high-tech espionage thrillers. 

It isn’t a plethora of technical anecdotes that sets his writing apart from his contemporaries. Carr's watermark is an “analog sensibility” that imbues the visceral action sequences in his stories. 

“Savage Son” finds former Navy SEAL James Reece in scenic Montana environs recovering from brain surgery (to remove a tumor that was diagnosed in Carr’s first novel “The Terminal List” — read my review). 

Reece is recuperating at Kumba Ranch in Flathead Valley, Montana. The ranch is the homestead of former college classmate and SEAL teammate Raife Hastings and his family (who emigrated from southern Africa in the 1980s). 

The Hastings clan has quickly become an integral part of Carr’s novels. In his second novel “True Believer” (read my review), Reece spends quite a bit of time with Raife’s uncle at his safari operation on the Niassa Game Reserve in Mozambique.

I’m someone who grew up in an era when sweeping family sagas were a staple of primetime television. As a kid, I remember my family watching the epic 1983 miniseries “The Winds of War” on ABC. In some respects, the Hastings family is something akin to Victor “Pug” Henry’s brood in Herman Wouk’s story. 

(Jack Carr — if you’re reading this — I wouldn’t mind at all if you decided to write a family saga centered around the Hastings family during the Rhodesian Bush War.) 

Reece’s interactions with the Hastingses add depth to the character. The early sequences in “Savage Son” find our hero bowhunting with Raife, attending cozy family dinners, grilling elk tenderloin, and serving love interest Kate Buranek stylish pinot noirs from the Sonoma coast named “Semper.” 

These are moments where the protagonist — who has lost so much during his journey — finds a sense of place and belonging. 

Unfortunately, Reece’s idyllic respite is tossed asunder when hitmen hired by the Bratva (an umbrella term for the Russian mafia) are sent to murder our hero for his handiwork in events that took place during “True Believer.” The hit is orchestrated by a former CIA analyst named Oliver Grey who is working for mob boss Ivan Zharkov. 

This sets into motion a series of events that shape the remainder of “Savage Son.” 

Carr has mentioned that Richard Connell’s 1924 short story “The Most Dangerous Game” served as one of his inspirations for this novel. 

I first read “The Most Dangerous Game” in eighth grade English class. I then revisited it in a literature course called “Short Story” I took as an undergrad at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. I read it again a few years ago when my niece was studying it in her high school English class (she asked for assistance filling in a worksheet on the story). 

The short story’s inspiration is first seen in “Savage Son’s” prologue — a foreshadowing sequence that takes place in the frigid climate of Russia’s Medny Island. 

The intriguing aspect of “The Most Dangerous Game” is its raw illustration of the “man vs. man” struggle between protagonist and antagonist — a big-game hunter named Sanger Rainsford finds himself the prey of a fellow hunter named Zaroff. 

In Carr’s “Savage Son” prologue, we see Aleksandr Zarkhov (son of the aforementioned Ivan) hunting a human target on Medny Island. 

(It is interesting to note the similarities between the name “Zarkhov” in Carr’s novel and “Zaroff” in Connell’s short story.) 

Carr has also Tweeted that Louis L’Amour’s Cold War adventure “Last of the Breed” influenced the narrative in “Savage Son.”  

Astute readers will notice an homage to “Last of the Breed” in the third act of “Savage Son.” 

I read “Last of the Breed” in the summer of 1996 (right after I graduated from college). I’d been a fan of L’Amour’s “horse operas,” and decided to try out one of his “non-western” stories. If you haven’t had a chance read it, I’d definitely recommend it. 

In “Savage Son,” Carr writes: “The Teams had a saying: ‘Don’t rush your death.’” 

By the same token, Carr doesn’t rush his plotting in “Savage Son.” There is a richness to his battle-scarred prose that recalls masters of the past.

I know Carr’s fans love the author’s descriptions of tactical gear and ballistics (the man exquisitely describes Jonathan Hastings’s battered FN FAL rifle). That said, the conflict in “Savage Son” excels when the author deals with the more primitive elements of combat — and the motivations behind those who mete them out. 

Speaking of weaponry, Carr posted a video of Reece’s compound bow (made by John Dudley at NockOn Archery) on his YouTube channel:

Carr’s loyal cadre of followers will also recognize many of the Easter eggs strewn throughout the novel (some of the author’s favorite brands are mentioned, along with references to classic movies he enjoys, like “Young Guns”). 

Carr is Toyota Land Cruiser aficionado, and the author’s recently restored 1988 FJ62 Land Cruiser makes an appearance in the novel (it kind of reminds me of when Clive Cussler featured cars from his vintage collection in his Dirk Pitt novels). 

The Land Cruiser was restored by ICON 4x4 and the results can be seen in this YouTube video:  

Considering everything going on the the world right now, it might be time for you to escape into Jack Carr’s James Reece series.

The first six chapters of “Savage Son” are available on the author’s website. If you haven’t read a James Reece thriller before, I’d recommend starting with “The Terminal List” and working your way forward. Each book builds on its predecessor. 

(It was recently announced that actor Chris Pratt is set to star in — and executive produce — a TV series based on “The Terminal List,” so it is a good time to jump in.)

“Savage Son” epitomizes the modern thriller and infuses it with retro flair. 

The CREW Reviews podcast (a weekly show you should subscribe to if you are interested in mysteries and thrillers) has a terrific interview with Jack Carr where he talks about his influences, inspirations, and writing process:

If you’d like to learn more about Jack Carr and his series of James Reece thrillers, visit his website at www.officialjackcarr.com. 

>> If you enjoyed my review of Jack Carr’s “Savage Son,” be sure to follow me on Twitter/X – @TheJonCrunch  

Related blog posts on Jack Carr:

> Book Review: Jack Carr’s “The Devil’s Hand” is an Infectious Thriller 

> TV Review: Pratt’s Performance Elevates Visceral “The Terminal List” 

> Book Review: “True Believer” By Jack Carr 

> Book Review: “The Terminal List” By Jack Carr 

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