Explosive Geopolitical Thrillers and Spy Novels in the Dan Brown Tradition

Some truths are buried for a reason. I keep digging into the kind of spy stories you wish weren’t true. I’m Joe Nathan Paul, author of The Horsemen’s Shadow and Before the Shadows Rise, and creator of The Septem Cycle—a series of high-stakes thriller books where political conspiracies, global secrets, and military realism collide. If you enjoy the intelligence intrigue of John le Carre, the puzzle-driven tension of Dan Brown, or the action-fueled suspense of James Rollins, you’ll feel right at home in my worlds.

My fiction blends historical fact, hidden science, and covert operations into spy books that span continents and eras. These are stories for readers who see the cracks, ask dangerous questions, and know the world isn’t always what we’re told.

Before becoming a full-time writer, I spent decades in high-pressure commercial leadership—boardrooms by day, writing lyrics and performing on stages across the UK by night. Along the way, I listened to former soldiers, intelligence insiders, and people who served in places no one admits exist. I’ve been vetted, I’ve had doors shut, and I’ve learned which questions not to ask twice.

Most nights you’ll find me with a battered Moleskine, cold black coffee, and a playlist that would give a Cold War signals officer flashbacks. Every novel starts with the same thought: What if the conspiracy isn’t a theory, but a warning?