Presidential Agent Books In Order

Publication Order of Presidential Agent Books

Presidential Agent or, better still, The Presidential Agent series, is the name of a series of books written by octogenarian American author William Edmund Butterworth III. The initials W. E. B. is a truncation of his birth name. W. E. B. Griffin, the name which he adopted while writing the Presidential Agent is among the numerous pen names used by the author. The said series has an autobiographical element because it has been either inspired by his military service or is based on, albeit loosely, his time in the military.

The first edition of the first book in The Presidential Agent series was published in December 2004, titled By Order of the President. This series, which is mostly about or related to military operations, is all about contemporary counter-terrorism. The category in which it is shelved encompasses the contemporary crime, (adult) military and detective fiction genres.

Carlos Guillermo Castillo, who is also endearingly called Charley by his close friends, is the featured protagonist in the Presidential Agent series of novels penned by W. E. B. Griffin. A notable aspect of this series is that it is based on and also expounds on an historic event. The background of the story can be traced to an incident which took place in Quatro de Fevereiro Airport, located in Luanda, the capital city of Angola, Africa. Sometime in May 2003, an American engineer and a Congolese mechanic –though there are contrasting reports– allegedly boarded and, after murdering the pilot, hijacked midair a Boeing 727-223 aircraft in the Angolan airspace. The FBI and CIA were called in, in a vain attempt to trace the aircraft; it has never been traced since then, though the official reports are controversial.

These are the facts, plus the juicy rumors and the conspiracy theories, which kick start the Presidential Agent series. But the official investigation in author Griffin’s fictitious account, which is done overtly, is fraught with problems and ill-fated right from the beginning. First, there is in-fighting and power wrangles among the relevant authorities working on the case, ranging from CIA and FBI to the Federal Aviation Administration. The aforementioned bodies are angling for spearheading the investigation solely; each of them implying that it falls on their respective jurisdiction. Worse still, the presumed hijacked aircraft has been flown to an unidentified destination.

Disgruntled by the power wrangles and unenthusiastic to be pulled into the vortex of the supremacy conflicts, the president of the United States of America bypasses the bureaucracy and tackles the incident his own way. In his presidential wisdom, he appoints an independent detective who is off-duty and commands a covert investigation. Protagonist Carlos Guillermo Castillo comes in this context.

Detective Castillo is not just a run-off-the-mill sleuth; he has been a Special Forces member, is a war veteran, and is currently holding the rank of a major in the army. Closer home, he is an intelligence officer attached to the Department of Homeland Security. Major Castillo is a detail-oriented military man, something which serves him in good stead when he travels secretly to the African nation to unravel the Boeing disappearance incident. When he starts sleuthing, he is amazed by unanticipated assistance and stupefied by unbelievable enemies hell-bent on scuttling his efforts.

Presidential Agent: Awards, Accolades, and Honors
Author W. E. B. Griffin has won awards, accolades, and honors by virtue of his impressive books (and for his real-life military service too). For instance, in 1982, the Alabama Library Association awarded him the Alabama Authors Award by virtue of his 1980 book titled LeRoy and the Old Man. In 1999, he clinched the News Media Award proffered by Veterans of Foreign Wars. Both the Troy and Norwich universities awarded doctorate degrees (honoris causa). In 1980, the American Library Association chose his work for the best fiction for young adults listing. He is an Alabama Academy of Distinguished Authors inductee (1982).

Presidential Agent: TV Shows and Movies
Author Griffin is credited with co-writing (writing alone, literally) the M.A.S.H. series of books. In fact, he edited the first book in the series which had been first written by Robert Hooker. The film adaptation of the said series was a box-office success. The movie was released in January 1970 titled MASH and the starring actors are Donald Sutherland, playing Captain Hawkeye Pierce, and Tom Skerritt, appearing as Duke Forest.

Furthermore, there is a TV series which premiered in September 1974, and the starring in the first three seasons is Wayne Rogers, appearing as Captain MacIntyre, and co-star Alan Alda, appearing as Captain Hawkeye.

Best Presidential Agent Books
Ordinarily, the first three books in the Presidential Agent series are the best in the pack. The first one has been discussed previously. The second one was published in January 2006, titled The Hostage; Major Castillo is sleuthing a diplomat’s killing and spouse’s kidnapping plus a scandalous United Nations. The third book, also published in 2006, is titled The Hunters; hereby, a lot of cash is misappropriated and two people are killed cruelly in a gross misconduct involving the UN in Iraq. Major Castillo embarks on a sleuthing mission yet again which, while looking for a person of interest, takes him to a far-flung locale in Uruguay where another murder occurs while he is watching.

Other Books You May Like
Readers who read the Presidential Agent series also enjoyed reading the following series of books. The first one is called the Jake Grafton series and is written by Stephen Coonts; initially published in 1986, it is set in the Vietnam War era and features a military pilot whose prowess, or lack thereof, of flying a bomber in the wake of many odds, maybe a matter of life and death. The second series is titled Kyle Swanson Sniper and has been authored by Jack Coughlin; it revolves around Sergeant Kyle Swanson, who is a gunner and a sniper, in the face deception, treachery, and constantly risky war zones. Another notable series is the Patrick McLanahan written by Dale Brown; it revolves around protagonist Patrick Shane McLanahan, a possible equivalent to Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, who is an officer and bomber navigator with the US Air Force.

3 Responses to “Presidential Agent”

1. JOHN BAILEY STOHLTON: 5 months ago

   first rate series. I love the characters

   Reply
2. mary durbin: 2 years ago

   please keep writing the presidents agent books keep charlie and the gang busy

   Reply
3. Anthony Krzywiec: 2 years ago

   Love these books, please keep Charley busy.

   Reply