Ward Larsen Books in Order
Ward Larsen is an American thriller author best known for the David Slaton spy novel series, which follows a former Mossad assassin who keeps getting pulled into assignments around the world. The author is a former U.S. Air Force fighter pilot who flew twenty-two combat missions in Operation Desert Storm, a trained aircraft accident investigator, a federal law enforcement officer, and an airline captain. His background shows most clearly in the Jammer Davis books, but it also runs through the Slaton novels, the standalones, and his later books in the Jack Ryan universe, especially when it comes to the technical side: aircraft, pilots, crashes, intelligence logistics, and missions that feel planned by someone who knows how systems fail. An eight-time winner of the Florida Book Award, Ward Larsen has also been nominated for the Macavity and Silver Falchion Awards.
This page lists all Ward Larsen books in order, including the David Slaton series, the Jammer Davis series, the David Slaton and Tru Miller spin-off, standalone novels, and his collaborations with Brad Thor and Tom Clancy.
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Latest Ward Larsen Book
Where to Start with Ward Larsen
→ New to Ward Larsen? Start with The Perfect Assassin. It introduces David Slaton and gives the easiest way into the main series.
→ Want the aviation side first? Start with Fly By Wire, the first Jammer Davis book, which is built around aircraft crashes and their investigations, and the question of whether the official explanation might be wrong.
→ Prefer the newer Slaton novels? Dark Vector starts the David Slaton and Tru Miller spin-off. It can be read on its own, but it works better if you already know who Slaton is.
→ Curious about the 2026 books? Cold Zero is a standalone novel co-written with Brad Thor. Rules of Engagement is part of the Jack Ryan Universe created by Tom Clancy and does not connect to Larsen’s own series.
How Ward Larsen’s Series Connect
David Slaton is the main series, beginning with The Perfect Assassin. Assassin’s Dawn is a prequel novella showing Slaton earlier in his Mossad career.
The David Slaton and Tru Miller series begins with Dark Vector, which is a direct spin-off. Slaton is older and has moved into a more senior CIA role, while Tru Miller becomes the younger field operator sent into danger, with Slaton watching over him from afar.
The Jammer Davis books separate from David Slaton, but there is a slight overlap. Jammer is an aviation accident investigator, who appears in Assassin’s Silence, and Anna Sorensen from the Jammer Davis side later becomes more important in the Slaton books. However, the series doesn’t need to be read before David Slaton.
The Jack Ryan Universe book is separate. Rules of Engagement uses characters created by Tom Clancy and should be treated as part of the wider Jack Ryan reading order.
David Slaton Series (Books in Order)
The David Slaton series follows former Mossad Kidon David Slaton, a highly trained assassin who has to come out of hiding again and again despite him trying to build a quiet life with his wife and son. hat does not last. Again and again, old enemies, Mossad pressure, CIA problems, and international threats bring him back into the work he knows too well. Slaton is written as a very careful character who plans, watches, and waits for the right moment to move. The series itself has a strong technical feel due to the author’s background in the military and aviation.
- Assassin’s Dawn, 2021
- The Perfect Assassin, 2008
- Assassin’s Game, 2014
- Assassin’s Silence, 2016
- Assassin’s Code, 2017
- Assassin’s Run, 2018
- Assassin’s Revenge, 2019
- Assassin’s Strike, 2020
- Assassin’s Edge, 2022
- Assassin’s Mark, 2023
David Slaton and Tru Miller Series (Books in Order)
The David Slaton and Tru Miller series is a David Slaton spin-off, starting with Dark Vector. It follows Tru Miller, a rookie CIA operator and Slaton’s protégé working with Slaton, who now has a more senior role as chief of CIA clandestine operations. In the first book, Dark Vector, Miller travels to Siberia to retrieve a Russian test pilot who is trying to defect with an advanced fighter jet. Slaton pulls the strings from a distance, but the story is a full collaboration between both main characters.
- Dark Vector, 2025
Jammer Davis Series
The Jammer Davis series follows Frank “Jammer” Davis, a former U.S. Air Force fighter pilot turned NTSB accident investigator. His job is to find out why planes go down, and who learns that they are not always due mechanical failure. Davis is big, blunt, and relentless, a simple guy who can figure out fast what went wrong, and is very hard to stop once he has a lead. This series also has the author’s aviation background as inspiration. It deals with evidences from crashes, drones, missing planes, and the details of accident investigation and intelligence work.
- Fly By Wire, 2010
- Fly by Night, 2011
- Passenger 19, 2016
Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan Universe
In Rules of Engagement, President Jack Ryan begins to suspect sabotage after a cabinet member dies in a plane crash in Turkey. The book also brings in Katie Ryan and her team as they realizes that the simple investigation of an aviation disaster turns into into a major international threat.
This novel was written by Ward Larsen as part of the Jack Ryan Universe created by Tom Clancy.
- Rules of Engagement, 2026
Standalone Novels
- Stealing Trinity, 2008
- Cutting Edge, 2018
- Deep Fake, 2023
- Cold Zero, 2026 (with Brad Thor)
Anthologies
- Back in Black, 2024
Ward Larsen Biography
Ward Larsen is an American thriller author whose work includes the David Slaton series, the Jammer Davis aviation thrillers, several standalone thrillers, and a book in the Jack Ryan Universe. He has published more than twenty books since his debut in 2004.
Official website: wardlarsen.com
Born on March 14, 1961 in South Florida, Ward Larsen grew up near the water and around aircraft. He studied at the University of Central Florida before joining the U.S. Air Force, where he trained as a fighter pilot and eventually flew the A-10 Warthog and served in the 95th and 75th Fighter Squadrons. During Operation Desert Storm in the early 1990s he flew twenty-two combat missions.
After leaving active duty, he started working in civilian aviation which began a complex career that not only included being an airline captain on domestic and international routes, but also working in federal law enforcement, and aircraft accident investigation. All these jobs directly influenced his later work, giving a lot of background materials for his thrillers. That’s why his novels often involve aircraft, flight crews, crash sites and their investigations, and plenty of technical details that are part of the plot.
He began writing during layovers and long trips, and his debut novel, The Perfect Assassin, introduced Israeli assassin David Slaton in 2004. The book won several awards, including the Florida Book Award Silver Medal for Popular Fiction and the Military Writers Society of America Gold Medal for Fiction, and was optioned for film. He then wrote books beyond David Slaton with the Jammer Davis series, the World War II thriller Stealing Trinity, the techno-political standalone Deep Fake, and the David Slaton and Tru Miller spin-off beginning with Dark Vector. In 2026, he co-authored Cold Zero with Brad Thor, which was optioned for Netflix, and published Rules of Engagement, a book in the Jack Ryan Universe.
Ward Larsen lives in Florida, still flies, and continues to write books.
Ward Larsen Book Adaptations
- The Perfect Assassin – optioned for film adaptation by Amber Entertainment
- Cold Zero – optioned for film by Netflix
Ward Larsen Awards and Honors
Awards
- The Perfect Assassin – Florida Book Award, Silver Medal, Popular Fiction (2007)
- The Perfect Assassin – Royal Palm Literary Award, First Place, Mystery/Suspense (2007)
- The Perfect Assassin – Military Writers Society of America Gold Medal, Fiction (2007)
- The Perfect Assassin – ForeWord Book of the Year, Silver Medal, Mystery (2006)
- Stealing Trinity – ForeWord Book of the Year, Gold Medal, Mystery (2009)
- Fly By Night – Florida Book Award, Gold Medal, Popular Fiction (2011)
- Assassin’s Game – Florida Book Award, Silver Medal, Popular Fiction (2014)
- Passenger 19 – Florida Book Award, Silver Medal, Popular Fiction (2016)
- Assassin’s Code – Florida Book Award, Bronze Medal, Popular Fiction (2017)
- Assassin’s Revenge – Florida Book Award, Silver Medal, Popular Fiction (2019)
- Assassin’s Strike – Florida Book Award, Gold Medal, Popular Fiction (2020)
- Deep Fake – Florida Book Award, Silver Medal, Popular Fiction (2023)
- Florida Book Award (multiple additional wins, eight total as of 2026)
Nominations and Shortlists
- The Perfect Assassin – National Best Books Awards (2006)
- The Perfect Assassin – Indie Excellence Awards (2006)
- Stealing Trinity – Macavity Award, Historical Mystery (2009)
