The Ben Hope Series by Scott Mariani: A Thrilling Adventure from Start to Finish!
- Alis Page
- Mar 14
- 23 min read
I love a book series and I first came across the book series Ben Hope by Scott Mariani in about 2015. I then could not stop reading them, every time one came out I had to continue the journey. Ben Hope is such a gripping character, I fell in love with the stories and plot lines one by one. If you love fast-paced thrillers packed with action, mystery, and a dash of history, then you can do no wrong by immersing yourself in the Ben Hope series by Scott Mariani! With 3 prequels and 30 gripping books, so far, this bestselling series follows ex-SAS soldier turned relentless hero, Ben Hope, as he takes on dangerous missions across the globe. Think Dan Brown meets Lee Child, with high-stakes adventures, secret conspiracies, and a protagonist who never backs down. Once I picked up the first book, I was hooked—Ben Hope is the kind of character who keeps you turning pages well into the night!
Prequel 1
Title: Passenger 13
Published Date: 2011
Pages: 123
About Book: A novella by Scott Mariani Five years before the events of The Alchemist's Secret...June 2003: the world is still on fire in the aftermath of 9/11. Fresh from the bloody conflict of the Second Gulf War, SAS soldier Ben Hope returns to Britain for some R&R leave, only to find himself embroiled in an intrigue deadlier than anything he's encountered on the battlefields of Iraq. When a passenger aircraft piloted by Ben's former army comrade Nick Chapman crashed off the Cayman Islands killing everyone on board, the official line was that Chapman committed suicide. But things don't add up, and Ben's old friend is barely in his grave before unfolding events point to something far bigger and more sinister going on. What did Chapman witness that powerful forces would do anything to suppress? Who was the mysterious thirteenth passenger on board the doomed flight? Following the trail of clues from the rugged Welsh borders to the Caribbean paradise that Chapman had made his home, Ben quickly discovers that some kinds of knowledge will get you killed - fast. Knowledge that threatens to unmask a global conspiracy of shocking proportions and change the way we view the world... and its masterminds have just made Ben Hope their principal target.
Prequel 2
Title: Bring Him Back
Published Date: 2013
Pages: 162
About Book: BRING HIM BACK A novella by Scott Mariani A MISSING BOY It's 2004. Twelve-year-old Carl Hunter has been snatched at gunpoint from his home on Jersey. He and his kidnapper have vanished without a trace .A DISTRAUGHT MOTHER After weeks, the cops have found nothing. Jessica Hunter realises that if she ever wants to see her boy again, she'll need someone with some very special skills to find him. Enter Ben Hope, recently retired from the SAS and now working freelance to rescue kidnapped children. A DEADLY SECRET But as Ben begins his search for Carl, he soon discovers that nothing about this case is as it seems. Behind the mystery of the boy's disappearance is a sinister secret that threatens to destroy anyone who comes into contact with it...
Prequel 3
Title: The Tunnel
Published Date: 2015
Pages: 51
About Book: ONE MAN Christmas Eve, 2004. Ben Hope has quit the SAS, but now he's back in full swing and embarking on a deadly one-man operation in the remote winter wilderness of the Scottish Highlands.ONE MISSION His target: a man he once respected and served under. His purpose: to seek out the hidden truth about a black-ops mission so covert that not even the SAS knew about it . . . and a secret so shocking that it could never be revealed to the world.ONE CHANCE When you're up against the best in the business, there's no surrender, no room for compromise. If Ben's suspicions are proved right, he will have no option but to kill. That's if his enemies don't get him first.
Book 1
Title: The Alchemists Secret
Published Date: 2009
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 480
About Book: Ben Hope lives on the edge. A former elite member of the SAS, Ben is tortured by a tragedy from his past and now devotes his life to finding kidnapped children.
When Ben is recruited to locate an ancient manuscript which could save a dying child, he embarks on the deadliest quest of his life.
The document is alleged to contain the formula for the elixir of life, discovered by the brilliant alchemist Fulcanelli decades before. But it soon becomes apparent that others are hunting this most precious of treasures – for far more evil ends.
When the secrets of alchemy hidden within the pages remain impenetrable, Ben teams up with beautiful American scientist Dr Roberta Ryder to crack the code.
It seems that everyone – from the Nazis during WW2 and powerful Catholic organisation Gladius Domini – wants to unearth the secrets of immortality.
The trail leads Ben and Roberta from Paris to the ancient Cathar strongholds of the Languedoc, where an astonishing secret has lain hidden for centuries…
Book 2
Title: The Mozart Conspiracy
Published Date: 2009
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 466
About Book: Former SAS operative Ben Hope is running for his life.
Enlisted by the beautiful Leigh Llewellyn – world famous opera star and Ben's first love – to investigate her brother's mysterious death, Ben finds himself caught up in a centuries-old puzzle.
The official line states that Oliver died whilst investigating Mozart's death, but the facts don't add up. Oliver's research reveals that Mozart, a notable freemason, may have been killed by a shadowy and powerful splinter group of the cult. The only clues lie in an ancient letter, believed to have been written by Mozart himself.
When Leigh and Ben receive video evidence of a ritual sacrifice being performed by hooded men, they realise that the sect is still in existence today…and will stop at nothing to remain a secret.
Book 3
Title: The Doomsday Prophecy
Published Date: 2009
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 480
About Book: When ex-SAS operative Ben Hope decided to give up rescuing kidnap victims in favour of the Theology studies, he abandoned years before, he should have known that fate would decide differently.
Searching for missing biblical archaeologist Zoë Bradbury, Ben finds himself embroiled in his riskiest mission yet. What is the ancient secret that Zoë uncovered? And just who is willing to do anything to protect it?
The investigation leads Ben from Greece to the American Deep South and the holy city of Jerusalem, and he soon discovers that it's not just his and Zoë's lives on the line, but those of millions, threatened by a fundamentalist plot to gain ultimate power. The stakes are terrifyingly high as Ben races to prevent a disaster that could kick-start apocalyptic events as foretold by the Book of Revelation…
Book 4
Title: The Heretics Treasure
Published Date: 2009
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 499
About Book: An ancient fortune has lain hidden for thousands of years, one so powerful that men will kill to protect it. And only one man can unearth it…
Ex-SAS operative Ben Hope is living a peaceful life in rural France – until a phone call from an old army comrade turns his world upside down. Eminent Egyptologist Morgan Paxton has been brutally murdered while working on the mysterious 'Akhenaten Project' in Cairo, and Colonel Harry Paxton wants Ben to find his son's killer.
Ben is unable to refuse the request from the man who once saved his life – but when Harry asks him to avenge his son's death, he's in dangerous territory. Made worse by the fact that he finds himself attracted to Zara Paxton, Harry's new bride.
Carving through the seedy Cairo underworld, Ben soon realises that there was more to Paxton's research than meets the eye as he is plunged into one double-cross after another. His mission leads him from Italy and Paris via the coast of Scotland to the banks of the Nile, climaxing in a tense showdown in the war-torn Sudanese desert.
At the end of the trail lies the ultimate treasure, hidden away by three rebel High Priests during the reign of the 'Heretic' Pharoah Akhenaten – a collection so valuable that some will stop at nothing to possess it…
Book 5
Title: The Shadow Project
Published Date: 2010
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 464
About Book: Only one man can foil a plot set to change the course of history…
Ex-SAS soldier Ben Hope is enjoying life at Le Val, the facility in Northern France where he trains others in the dangerous art of hostage rescue, until a chance incident forces him to take on the role of bodyguard to the Swiss billionaire Maximilian Steiner.
The victim of a recent abduction attempt, Steiner believes that a neo-Nazi terror group are bent on seizing a prized document from his personal collection – one that could support claims that the Holocaust never happened.
But what initially seemed like a straightforward VIP protection job is turned upside-down by the appearance of a mystery woman from Ben's past. Could he be right about her, or is he losing his edge?
On a quest across Europe, Ben finds himself embroiled in a deadly kidnap intrigue and a sinister project that has lain dormant since 1944. The stakes are global – and this time Ben is also fighting to protect the people closest to him…
Book 6
Title: The Lost Relic
Published Date: 2011
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 448
About Book: A WEB OF DECEIT.AND BEN HOPE IS CAUGHT UP IN THE MAYHEM…
Whilst visiting a former SAS comrade in Italy, a distracted Ben nearly runs over a young boy – and unwittingly walks into his deadliest mission yet.
Ben’s involvement with the boy’s family runs deeper as he witnesses their brutal murder at a gallery robbery. A seemingly worthless Goya sketch was the principal target in the bloodbath heist. Now it’s up to Ben to find out the truth behind the elusive painting.
Wrongly accused of murder and forced to go on the run, he must get to the heart of the conspiracy while he still has the chance…
Book 7
Title: The Sacred Sword
Published Date: 2012
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 449
About Book: AN ANCIENT SWORD. A LONG-BURIED SECRET. ONE MAN WILL UNCOVER THE MYSTERY.
It’s Christmas, and on a trip back to the UK to try to sort out his stormy personal life, ex-SAS soldier Ben Hope runs into two old friends. Simeon and Michaela were once his fellow students at Oxford – now they are the Reverend and Mrs Arundel.
Ben senses that Simeon is deeply troubled and frightened, but before the truth can emerge about his secretive research project concerning a mysterious, ancient ‘sacred sword,’ both he and Michael are wiped out in a devastating road crash. Convinced that his friends’ deaths were no accident, Ben is propelled on a global quest to unlock the enigma of the sacred sword. At every step, he is pursued by ruthless agents of the sinister organisation that will stop at nothing to acquire it.
In the course of his investigations, Ben will discover an incredible secret, not just about the history of Christianity but about his own past.
Book 8
Title: The Armada Legacy
Published Date: 2013
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 416
About Book: A SUNKEN SECRET. A MISSING WOMAN. A RACE AGAINST TIME. Former SAS major Ben Hope is relaxing at his home in Normandy when he hears the worst news of his life. His ex-girlfriend Dr Brooke Marcel has been kidnapped. Racing against the clock, Ben’s frantic search for Brooke leads him from Ireland to the Spanish mountains and the rainforests of Peru. What is the mysterious link between the kidnapping, the salvage of a sunken 16th-century Spanish warship and the secret activities of its wealthy discoverer? As the trail of wreckage and mayhem intensifies, Ben soon uncovers a web of intrigue, corruption and brutal murder. But will he be too late to find Brooke alive? BEN HOPE is one of the most celebrated action adventure heroes in British fiction and Scott Mariani is the author of numerous bestsellers. Join the ever-growing legion of readers who get breathless with anticipation when the countdown to the new Ben Hope thriller begins…
Book 9
Title: The Nemesis Program
Published Date: 2014
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 444
About Book: A BRUTAL MURDER. A SCIENTIST ON THE RUN.A PLOT TO KILL MILLIONS.
While secretly researching the bizarre discoveries of Serbian scientist Nikola Tesla many years earlier, physicist Claudine Pommier becomes the victim of a remorseless and cruel murderer who breaks into her Parisian apartment. Is he just a serial killer, or is there more to her death than the Paris cops believe?
Maverick American biologist Dr Roberta Ryder receives a mysterious letter from her friend Claudine and travels to Paris to see her, only to learn of her shocking death. Before she knows it, Roberta becomes the target of ruthless men with a deadly agenda that only the letter can unmask. She’s alone and vulnerable. But she knows someone – the only someone – who can help her.
Ben Hope, ex-SAS soldier and Roberta’s old flame, now trying to retire to a life of peace with his fiancée Brooke, suddenly finds his life turned upside down by Roberta’s sudden arrival in England. She needs his help; he can’t turn her down. In a frantic race to Paris and halfway around the world, Ben, and Roberta battle to uncover the mystery of Claudine’s research, with the killers just half a step behind. In the process they uncover a global conspiracy that will claim the lives of millions of people . . . unless Ben can stop it.
Book 10
Title: The Forgotten Holocaust
Published Date: 2015
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 432
About Book: A BRUTAL MURDER. A HORRIFYING SECRET.ONLY BEN CAN EXPOSE THE TRUTH.
A lost, aimless, and hard-drinking Ben Hope has wandered back to his old haunt in Ireland. The ex-SAS soldier is searching for peace, but trouble soon appears when Kirsten Hall, a young journalist, is brutally murdered right in front of him. Unable to prevent it, Ben is driven by guilt to hunt down the killers. All he has to go on is a handful of clues from Kirsten’s research – but how can the journals of Lady Stamford, the wife of an English lord during the time of the Irish Great Famine, have put Kirsten in mortal danger?
Ben’s quest for the truth leads him across the world and finally to Oklahoma, USA, where a deadly secret awaits. What connects the journals, a wealthy American politician and an intrigue surrounding the Irish famine?
What Ben uncovers is a shocking historical conspiracy linked to the deaths of some two million people: a veritable holocaust that time has all but forgotten. Those who are still profiting from the lies and corruption of the time, and who are ready to kill anyone to protect their secret, are about to pay…
Book 11
Title: The Martyr’s Curse
Published Date: 2015
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 450
About Book: AN ANCIENT CURSE. A SHOCKING MASSACRE.A THREAT TO UNLEASH THE ULTIMATE DISASTER.
Could Ben Hope have found peace at last?
That’s the question he’s asking himself after his wanderings through Europe have led him to a remote medieval monastery in the French Alps. A haven of serenity, a place he wants to remain.
But wherever Ben goes, trouble is never too far behind.
When a team of merciless killers invade his newfound sanctuary and slaughter the innocent monks, Ben’s revenge quest quickly draws him into a bewildering mystery of stolen treasure, deception, and murder.
What is the truth behind the cache of gold bullion apparently hidden for centuries under the monastery? What is the significance of an ancient curse dating back to a cruel heretic burning in medieval times? What are the real ambitions of the enigmatic leader of an organisation of doomsday ‘preppers’ calling themselves Exercitus Paratorum: the Army of the Prepared?
As he works to unravel the clues, Ben is confronted with a terrifying reality that threatens to devastate the world and reshape the whole of our future. The race is on to prevent the ultimate disaster, and there’s only one man who can do it.
Book 12
Title: The Cassandra Sanction
Published Date: 2016
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 433
About Book: A TRAGIC DEATH. A GRIEVING BROTHER.A PLOT TO DECEIVE THE ENTIRE WORLD…
All Ben Hope wanted was a quiet drink in a peaceful Spanish bar. What he got instead was the kind of trouble that only a man like him can handle.
Raul Fuentes can’t accept that his sister, Catalina, took her own life. Ben isn’t convinced, but ghosts from his own past compel him to help Raul discover the truth.
What connects Catalina’s apparent suicide to the suspicious fate of three of her fellow scientists? And why do a gang of professional killers follow Ben and Raul wherever they go?
Ben will soon discover the terrible truth, a fraudulent conspiracy to dupe all of humankind. And those responsible will soon find out they’ve met their match.
Book 13
Title: Star of Africa
Published Date: 2016
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 347
About Book: TO POSSESS IT HE WILL PAY IN BLOOD
Where ex-SAS major Ben Hope goes, trouble always follows…
Ben Hope is trained to identify danger. So, when he finds out that someone very important to him is working on a US container ship in the treacherous seas off the East African coast, he fears the worst.
Within days the ship is hijacked by pirates. Taking matters into his own hands, Ben embarks upon the most daring rescue mission of his career … because this is no ordinary hostage situation.
There is something on board the ship that’s more precious than life itself – and a bloodthirsty tyrant will kill to possess it.
As events spiral out of control, Ben Hope’s skill and resourcefulness will be tested like never before. Ben would die to protect those close to him, but in a hostile environment, against ruthless warriors, even the ultimate sacrifice might not be enough…
Book 14
Title: The Devil’s Kingdom
Published Date: 2016
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 496
About Book: HAS BEN HOPE FINALLY MET HIS MATCH?
The adventure began in STAR OF AFRICA, now ex-SAS major Ben Hope is in the most desperate situation of his life…
Held hostage by a despicable tyrant in the heart of Africa, it’s not looking good for Ben Hope.
General Khosa’s lust for blood is matched only by his lust for power – and he wants to use Ben’s superior military skills to turn his rabble of inexperienced boys into an army of lethal soldiers.
If Ben refuses, Khosa will kill the person he loves most. If he cooperates, he’ll bring more death and devastation to the world’s most violent, war-torn nation.
Either way, Ben will have blood on his hands – unless he can defeat Khosa. It seems an impossible task. But for Ben Hope, anything is possible…
Book 15
Title: The Babylon Idol
Published Date: 2017
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 448
About Book: HE HUNT IS ON
When a sniper leaves Ben Hope’s friend fighting for his life, the former SAS major declares war on the men responsible. But what begins as a straightforward revenge mission gets complicated when a mysterious letter reveals Ben to be the real target.
And his isn’t the only name on a crazed killer’s list.
Professor Anna Manzini has no idea she’s in grave danger from a man she’d thought dead. She’s on the cusp of a major discovery: the location of the lost Babylon idol, a golden statue of immeasurable value.
But when word of Anna’s work reaches her enemies, it sets off a cat-and-mouse chase that will lead Ben and Anna halfway across Europe and into the heart of war-torn Syria.
To reach the precious idol first, Ben must keep one step ahead of a powerful maniac. If he fails, it won’t just be Ben and Anna’s lives in danger, but the world.
Book 16
Title: The Bach Manuscript
Published Date: 2017
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 416
About Book: A LOST MANUSCRIPT. A SAVAGE MURDER. A DEADLY SECRET.
While on a business trip to the UK, Ben Hope makes an impulse decision to attend a college reunion at his former university, Oxford. There he meets an old friend, Nick, now an internationally renowned classical musician.
But storm clouds are soon once again brewing on Ben’s horizon. After Nick’s brutal murder in an apparent home invasion robbery, Ben is drawn into the mystery of a missing music manuscript that may be a lost work by the legendary composer Johann Sebastian Bach.
The hunt for his friend’s killers leads Ben across Europe, and into bloody conflict with even more dangerous people than he’d bargained for. As his quest unfolds, so does the shocking truth about the lost Bach manuscript, a secret dating back to the very darkest historical chapter of Man’s inhumanity to Man.
Book 17
Title: The Moscow Cipher
Published Date: 2018
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 432
About Book: When twelve-year-old Valentina fails to return from a visit to her father in Moscow, alarm bells start ringing. Her rich and powerful family know there’s one man they can depend on to bring her back safe: former SAS major Ben Hope.
But what starts off as an apparently straightforward case of parental child abduction quickly takes on more sinister dimensions as Ben travels to Moscow and starts to investigate the whereabouts of Valentina and her father, Yuri – a man with a hidden past not even his ex-wife knows about.
Now that past has caught up with him, it’s not only Yuri’s life that is in danger, but Valentina’s too. If Ben Hope can’t save them, nobody can.
Book 18
Title: The Rebel’s Revenge
Published Date: 2018
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 432
About Book: Deadly conspiracies, bone-crunching action, and a tormented hero with a heart . . . packs a real punch Andy McDermott
Even when ex-SAS major Ben Hope is taking a holiday, trouble seems to find him. What started as a relaxing trip to the Deep South spirals into a nightmare when he s wrongly accused of a vicious murder and forced to go on the run.
Target of a state-wide manhunt, the only way Ben can prove his innocence is to unearth a long-forgotten secret and track down the killers who slaughtered an innocent woman in a vendetta dating back generations. His quest takes him into the wild heart of Louisiana s swampland, where all hell’s about to break loose. The bad guys will soon discover they made a big mistake
Book 19
Title: Valley of Death
Published Date: 2019
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 480
About Book: This time it’s personal…
People going missing in the remote wilds of India is not unusual. But when the son of a wealthy Delhi businessman is kidnapped just weeks after his brother fell victim to an alleged bandit attack in the mountains of Haryana, it raises eyebrows.
With the local police doing close to nothing, there’s only one man for the job: ex-SAS major Ben Hope. But for Ben, this is no ordinary rescue case. Because this plea for help is coming from a special person from his past, who now has nobody else to turn to.
Ben’s mission will take him into the heart of the arid Indian wilderness, pitting him against ruthless gangs and desperate men. But Ben is determined to save the day. Whatever it takes.
Book 20
Title: House of War
Published Date: 2019
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 432
About Book: A DEADLY TERROR PLOT. A RACE AGAINST THE CLOCK. WILL EVIL PREVAIL?
Following a chance encounter with a terrified young woman in the streets of Paris, former SAS soldier Ben Hope finds himself hurled into a violent new mission involving murder, international terrorism, and stolen historic artifacts. A mission made even more perilous by the reappearance of an old enemy from Ben’s military past. A man he knew and fought years ago. A man he thought was dead.
Teaming up with the enigmatic ex-Delta Force warrior Tyler Roth, Ben travels from the seedy underworld of Paris to the islands of the Caribbean in his quest to piece together the puzzle.
As the death toll quickly mounts, he unmasks a vicious terror plot that could bring about the slaughter of millions of innocent people. Mass destruction seems just a hair’s breadth away … and only Ben Hope can prevent the unthinkable.
Book 21
Title: The Pretenders Gold
Published Date: 2020
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 406
About Book: Retired army sergeant Boonzie McCulloch travels to the wintry Highlands of Scotland to help a relative in danger but is soon deeper in it himself than he’d bargained for. Ruthless, controlling thugs are running amok across the region and will kill anybody to get their hands on a historic hoard of lost gold treasure.
But the villains haven’t reckoned on what’s coming their way. Because when you mess with an old comrade of ex-SAS major Ben Hope, you’re bringing a whole world of trouble down on yourself. Once he gets started, he won’t stop until he gets the job done. With Hope on the war path, the snowy Highland wilderness is about to warm up considerably…
Book 22
Title: The Demon Club
Published Date: 2020
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 416
About Book: Life is good for ex-SAS soldier and rescue specialist Ben Hope. He’s found love, peace, and happiness at last… That is, until a man he’s never seen before sits beside him on a plane and makes him a proposal that turns his whole world upside down.
Now Ben must embark on a deadly mission to eliminate a former SAS comrade, the enigmatic, elusive, and highly capable Jaden Wolf. If Ben fails, the people he cares about will die as punishment.
In a high-speed chase across Europe, Ben gradually learns the terrifying and disturbing truth about the men who have ensnared him in their clutches. A dark Satanic cult exists within the halls of power, and the only way for Ben to save himself and his loved ones is to declare war on the forces of evil. But who will win?
Book 23
Title: The Pandemic Plot
Published Date: 2021
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 400
About Book: When ex-SAS major Ben Hope is urgently recalled to the UK from his base in France to assist with a family crisis, little does he know that he’s about to be drawn into one of the most dangerous missions of his career: his son Jude has been accused of a brutal murder, and all the evidence points to his guilt.
To prove Jude’s innocence Ben embarks on a wild chase, facing up against mysterious killers and piecing together a fragile web of clues. What connects an all-female criminal gang from the early 1900s called the Forty Elephants, a century-old vendetta and a shadowy government conspiracy that claimed millions of innocent lives?
Along the way Ben teams up with his former acquaintance, rugged Detective Tom McAllister. They’re heading for a showdown in the wilds of Cornwall, and the villains have no intention of letting Ben come out of it alive
Book 24
Title: The Crusader’s Cross
Published Date: 2022
Publisher: Avon
Pages: 400
About Book: It’s a snowy, peaceful Christmas at Le Val, the rural haven that is home to ex-SAS soldier Ben Hope and his associates. With most of the team away for the festive holiday, Ben, recovering from an accident, is one of the skeleton crew guarding the compound. That’s when a ruthless Corsican crime gang, knowing that Ben is injured and out of action, target the location for a violent raid.
With help from his faithful canine companion, Storm, Ben thwarts the attack – but not before the raiders claim several victims among his best friends. Now he must embark on a personal revenge mission to catch the sole remaining killer, the psychopathic Petru Navarro.
Ben’s quest takes him across France into the lawless gangland of Corsica, his only real lead a priceless historic gold cross that is now in Navarro’s hands. If Ben can find it, he’ll find his enemy. But taking down this murderous psycho is another matter . . .
Book 25
Title: The Silver Serpent
Published Date: 2022
Publisher: HarperNorth
Pages: 400
About Book: Some legends lie buried for a reason…
To fight extraordinary odds, you need an extraordinary man.
Under the fierce heat of the Australian outback, the laws of nature serve a rough justice. When a man vanishes deep in the Northern Territory, local police write it off. But his family suspect otherwise – and when the call for help goes out, Ben Hope and Jeff Decker are there to hear it.
Ben’s instincts, honed by years of Special Forces missions, soon see the story told by a trail of bullet casings, rumours of a missing map and a lethal cocktail of greed, power, and money.
This savagely beautiful land holds a secret it won’t give up easily – and for Ben, discovering the truth will mean not only going up against a small army of hired guns and their twisted paymaster, but also surviving a place where the wilderness is as powerful as the weapons his enemies have trained on him.
Book 26
Title: Graveyard of Empires
Published Date: 2023
Publisher: HarperNorth
Pages: 416
About Book: Some wars are destined to be fought forever…
They call it ‘The Graveyard of Empires’ for good reason. For thousands of years, Afghanistan has been the rock that generations of would-be conquerors have perished on. What chance does one man stand in this place?
So, when ex-SAS major Ben Hope hears former bounty-hunter, Madison Cahill, needs his help he knows it will test him to his limits – and beyond. As the borders slam shut, he must trace his friend before the new regime does. His only lead? An ancient lost city founded by Alexander the Great and rediscovered by Madison’s archaeologist father.
The mission will take Ben back to a place he thought was firmly in his past, back to someone he can never leave behind – and back to some old comrades. Among these is SAS man turned assassin, Jaden Wolf. Wolf has come to Afghanistan with his own agenda and knows as well as Ben that the conditions they face may prove as lethal as their enemies.
As they uncover old secrets, they find modern ones are just as dangerous. Who is the mysterious ‘Spartan’ that the British officials are so desperate to extract from behind enemy lines? And outnumbered and outgunned at every turn, is the pressure of being the last hope of the innocent too much to bear when surviving past sundown seems impossible?
Book 27
Title: The White Knight
Published Date: 2023
Publisher: HarperNorth
Pages: 400
About Book: IN THE GAME OF KINGS, THERE CAN ONLY BE ONE VICTOR.
When a devastating attack on billionaire Auguste Kaprisky leaves the old man clinging to life, a trail of bodies and no clues, his last surviving relative calls the only person she can trust to step up.
With precious few leads, ex-SAS soldier Ben Hope must first switch from action hero to detective in order to unravel the mystery. His international quest soon attracts the attention of the faceless plotters, who swiftly make Ben their target.
As Ben moves between Miami and the Bahamas, Rome to Berlin, his investigation seems only to bring him ever closer to death. And as he fights the odds, all questions lead back to one thing: the historic chess set, stolen by Auguste’s attackers, which once belonged to Napoleon.
What is the secret this chess set holds, and who are the all-powerful people who will seemingly stop at nothing to silence anyone who threatens to uncover their terrifying plan? Your move, Ben Hope…
Book 28
Title: The Tudor Deception
Published Date: 2023
Publisher: HarperNorth
Pages: 415
About Book: An unsolved historical mystery. A brutal bomb attack.
Only one man can track down the killers that link them both.
It’s 2005: Ben Hope, recently retired from the military, is living in Ireland, and using his SAS skills to find and rescue missing children.
But when asked to take on the case of two boys who disappeared centuries ago, he walks away, little realising he’s lit a fuse that will not only destroy the life of someone he cares about but also lead him on a journey that proves old secrets come with a very modern price.
Ben must follow the trail across Europe, unravelling the mystery and dodging bullets as only he can. As the death toll ramps up, what is the connection between a murdered history professor, an English lord, and a pretender to the Tudor throne – and can Ben find out the truth before the killers make him their next victim?
Book 29
Title: The Golden Library
Published Date: 2024
Publisher: HarperNorth
Pages: 416
About Book: Learn the secret – or die trying
Has ex-SAS soldier Ben Hope finally got out of his depth?
That’s the question Ben faces when the hunt for a missing girl takes him to China. He’s a stranger in a strange land – but he’s also the victim’s only hope. To make things worse, she’s almost family.
As the pressure mounts, so does the gruesome death toll. With ruthless enemies in pursuit and an unlikely alliance with an enigmatic detective his only lifeline, Ben realises that this situation is far more explosive than even he’d bargained for. Suddenly it’s no longer just the missing girl’s fate depending on him.
At the heart of the mystery lies an ancient secret dating back to China’s first emperor and the legendary Terracotta Army – a secret that people will still kill for, millennia later. Ben Hope has never turned his back on those in need, and he’s no stranger to tough odds. But can he survive long enough to discover the truth – and is he ready for the consequences?
Book 30
Title: The Templar Secret
Published Date: 2024
Publisher: HarperNorth
Pages: 432
About Book: A set of symbols scratched on the wall of a crypt in southern France.
A flag bearing a red cross on a castle fortress high on a stone ledge.
And deep in the heart of the Vatican, a team of agents charged with making sure no one discovers what connects them all.
Ben Hope is a magnet for trouble. Years since leaving the SAS, he can still feel when danger is stalking him. But stumbling across someone researching the Knights Templar seems like a problem for historians rather than his military skills.
It’s only when a terrible twist of fate puts not just Ben but the people, he loves in the firing line that he realises the battles of the past will soon wreak carnage in the present.
Faced with uncovering a mystery that strikes at the heart of Western civilisation, Ben might finally have unearthed the one secret that could take him down.
So, is the Ben Hope series by Scott Mariani worth reading? Absolutely! Whether you're a longtime fan of action-packed thrillers or just discovering the genre, this series has something for everyone—mystery, history, non-stop action, and a hero you can’t help but root for. With 30 books (and counting!), there’s plenty to keep you entertained. If you haven’t started yet, now’s the perfect time to start reading—just be warned, once you step into Ben Hope’s world, there’s no turning back!
Let me know—have you read any of the Ben Hope books? Which one is your favourite? Drop a comment below!
Love Alis x
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