“Brad Thor and Ward Larsen have crafted the perfect thriller, one that feels both terrifyingly plausible and utterly unputdownable. Think Red Storm Rising colliding with The Day After Tomorrow—then cranked to eleven.” — Ryan Steck, The Real Book Spy and Author of Gone Dark
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#1 New York Times bestselling author Brad Thor has always been the master of high-octane, headline-beating thrillers, but in Cold Zero—written with Ward Larsen—he’s delivered something bigger, bolder, and more daring than anything he’s ever done before.
After quick chapters set in Hong Kong and Beijing, introducing a couple of the central players (and teasing what and who they’re after), Thor and Larsen waste no time putting readers on board Hemisphere Airlines—a new, “unique, fresh entrant in global aviation” specializing in “ultra” first-class aviation—Flight 777.
Aside from the amenities, to which there are plenty, it’s the fact that Hemisphere Airlines operates out of Macau International Airport, a secondary airfield seated across the Pearl River Estuary from Hong Kong, that makes the airline such an attractive operation for the CIA, which is well aware that the airliner has become a favorite among the Chinese Communist Party elite, specifically, because of their “relaxed” security screening. So, when the agency needed to extract a high-priority target named Dr. Chen Li, Flight 777 became their ticket out, until the unthinkable happens.
Six hours after takeoff, just above the North Pole, Flight 777 suffers total engine failure in both engines. What follows is a riveting, firsthand peek into the cockpit, as Thor and Larsen (a pilot, in addition to being a bestselling author) show in real-time the actions, discussions, and decisions made by Captain Bill Fowler, First Officer Brett Sharpe, and relief pilot Captain Scott Burns. Seeing the trio work the problem out loud is a treat, offering the sort of insight that only an airline captain (Larsen) can provide, though it may not do anything to quell fears of flying for readers who prefer not to take a trip in a pressurized pop can at 35,000 feet.
Ultimately, the trio of decorated pilots comes to the same conclusion—Flight 777 is going down. With the closest land more than 300 miles away, their only option is to land the aircraft on frozen waters, which Fowler notes will be his “Sully Sullenberger moment,” except that instead of landing on the Hudson River, he’ll be landing on a sheet of ice.
Written with what can only be described as terrifying realism, readers will feel every moment of desperation in that cockpit, every lurch and drop, every ounce of fear permeating from the cabin, but what makes Cold Zero unforgettable isn’t just the crash itself—it’s what comes after.
Charged with protecting Dr. Chen—and more importantly, the cutting-edge AI technology capable of changing the world as we know it today, code-named “Sky Fire,” that he’s in possession of—CIA operative Kasey Sheridan and ex-fighter pilot Brett Sharpe must do the impossible: outwit Washington, Moscow, and Beijing, all while crossing an unforgiving landscape that becomes as much an enemy as the soldiers hunting them.
Though the story is set outside of Thor’s Scot Harvath universe, the author’s trademark pacing is here in full force, relentless and addictive. Fans worried about missing Harvath will love Kasey and Sharpe, each bringing a fresh edge and a new voice to a book that’s bigger in scope than anything Thor has ever done. Add all those ingredients together, and you get the kind of epic, brutally intense story that you don’t just sit and read; you strap in and hang on for dear life.
Brad Thor and Ward Larsen have crafted the perfect thriller, one that feels both terrifyingly plausible and utterly unputdownable. Think Red Storm Rising colliding with The Day After Tomorrow—then cranked to eleven. Cold Zero doesn’t just raise the stakes, it detonates them, launching readers into a cinematic adrenaline rush where the Arctic becomes ground zero for World War III.
By the final page, you’ll be exhausted in the best possible way.
Book Details
Author: Brad Thor and Ward Larsen
Series: New Hercule Poirot #6
Pages: 352 (Hardcover)
ISBN: 1668066378
Publisher: Atria/Emily Bestler Books
Release Date: February 10, 2026
Praised as “One of the hardest working, most thoughtful, and fairest reviewers out there” by New York Times bestselling author Lisa Scottoline, Ryan Steck has “quickly established himself as the authority on mysteries and thrillers” (Author A.J. Tata). Steck also works full-time as a freelance editor in addition to running TRBS. He is the author of FIELDS OF FIRE, which #1 New York Times bestselling author Jack Carr says “will leave you speechless and begging for more,” LETHAL RANGE, OUT FOR BLOOD, GONE DARK, and TED BELL’S MONARCH. For more information, follow him on Twitter, Facebook, and BookBub. For even more content and book news, subscribe to The Real Book Spy Substack!