Hijack

by Ben Coes

When Interpol uncovers a secret meeting in Yemen, it fears the worst. Iran's new Hezbollah chief, Khan Kojol, is expected, but the other man is not - the notorious international terrorist, Nebuchar Fortuna. Fortuna's father, Aswan, and his brother, Alexander, were the most ruthless terrorists in the world. But both are dead - gunned down by the man they called the American: Dewey Andreas. Fortuna had been lost for two years; inactive, invisible, and, many thought, dead.

As red flags spread the western intelligence complex, the United States initiates the operation. Hector Calibrisi, the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, sits in the back of an onyx Sikorsky S-76 as it slashes across Washington, D.C. His top-secret folder: order Dewey to eliminate Fortuna. But before Calibrisi orders Dewey, he has to first find him.

Now, Dewey and Fortuna meet in the same Emirates Paris-to-Dubai. Dewey is here to assassinate Fortuna when he arrives in Dubai, after the flight. But Fortuna strikes first, about to poisoning Dewey on the plane. When Iranian suicide bombers take the cockpit, both men are betrayed. Hundreds of innocent passengers are about to die - and with them Dewey, Fortuna, and three Iranian suicide bombers.

The jumbo jet is aimed directly into the Burj Khalifa, the largest tower in the world. The plane's fiery death is minutes away. Only one thing can save them: Hijack.

Genres: Thriller, Mystery Thriller

ebook

Published May 1, 2026

About the author

Hi and thanks for visiting my Goodreads profile!

I'm a New York Times, USA Today, and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of international political and espionage thrillers. Nine of these books are part of a series featuring Dewey Andreas, including:

Power Down #1
Coup D'Etat #2
The Last Refuge #3
Eye for an Eye #4
Independence Day #5
Trap the Devil #6
First Strike #7
Bloody Sunday #8
The Russian #9
The Island #10
Hijack #11

Hijack is the next Dewey Andreas novel, a gut wrench thriller about Dewey caught in a jumbo jet suicide bombing filled with passengers en route to the Burj Khalifa.

All of my books are based on current events and are strongly influenced by friends who are or were in the military, law enforcement, and intelligence circles.

I went to Columbia College and was awarded the university's highest writing award, the Bennett Cerf Memorial Prize for Fiction. I was a White House Intern under Ronald Reagan and served as a White House-appointed speechwriter to the U.S. Secretary of Energy during the Gulf War. I was a Fellow at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.

I lives in Florida.

I hope you'll visit my website and sign-up for my newsletter: https://bencoes.com

Thanks for being a reader!!

Reviews

[Cyndy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was ridiculously excited when I heard Dewey Andreas was back, and Hijack did not disappoint.

I’ve read just about every major thriller series out there, and Dewey remains at the top of my list. Ben Coes writes action as well as anyone, but it’s Dewey himself who keeps me coming back. He’s the rare thriller hero who is both larger than life and completely believable.

What stood out most in Hijack was the emotion beneath the action. Dewey still carries the scars of everything he has endured, especially the loss of people he loved. In fact, years ago I stopped reading the series for a time because one of those losses hit me that hard. Coes never treats grief as a plot device. It stays with Dewey and shapes who he is, making him one of the most human and compelling characters in the genre.

The pacing is fantastic, the action is intense, and once I started reading, I didn’t want to put it down. But the heart of this book isn’t just the action. It’s watching a character I’ve followed for years continue to fight despite everything he’s lost.

If you’re a Dewey fan, you’re going to love this one. Ben Coes has created one of the best thriller protagonists out there, and Hijack is a terrific reminder of why I was so excited to see Dewey return.

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dewey Is Back More “Superheroish” Than Ever But, Sadly, Without His Old Publisher/Editor!

Well, I just returned (thankfully in one piece) from my tenth exciting reading adventure with Dewey Andreas. Now that I’ve settled down, this review will provide why I enjoyed this reading experience… but not as much as the other books in the series.

On the positive side, Hijack by Ben Coes is an engaging, high-octane thriller that delivers the kind of fast pacing and global stakes fans of the genre -and, particularly of this series - look for. The plot moves quickly, with short chapters filled with an abundance of action sequences that make it an easy, compelling read. Further, in typical Coes fashion, he excels at building tension-packed scenarios that unfold with a strong sense of urgency and scale.

That said, Hijack was not as enjoyable for me as the other books in the series. In my opinion, this is due in part to his leaving his former publisher, St. Martin’s Press, and its very professional editing staff in order to self-publish Hijack in his own company, Canyon Press. This resulted in several editing issues that distracted from my reading enjoyment. For example, there are instances of repetition in both dialogue and internal narration, grammatical and spelling errors, some transitions that feel abrupt; and I THINK he might have killed off an important secondary character TWICE (though I’m still not sure about this). All of these editing problems contribute to Hijack’s diminished overall polish and flow.

More importantly, Dewey Andreas—while undeniably capable and heroic—often comes across as too invincible, bordering on an action figure that defies credibility rather than a fully human character. Adding more vulnerability, nuance, or internal conflict would make him feel more credible and emotionally engaging; and more similar to how Dewey comes across on his other adventures.

Overall, despite my perceived limitations, Hijack is a solid, entertainingr thriller - worthy of a 3.5 to 4 star rating; but with tighter editing and a more humanized protagonist, I’d have considered it worthy of a 4 1/2 to 5 star rating.

[Sherry E · Rating 4 out of 5]

great book . . . but

I have always enjoyed Ben’s books. I was looking forward to reading this one as it has been a few years since he has released a Dewey book. While I thoroughly enjoyed it there were quite a few grammatical errors that I found distracting.

[Jb · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've been a fan of the Dewey Andreas series for years, and I was excited when I saw there was a new book being released. I started reading today and I have to wonder if anyone ever bothered to proofread this. What a mess. I'm ~45 pages in and the errors are making the book nearly unreadable.

In addition to some grammatical/spelling things (when describing two men, "One had short-cropped hair and a round, ugly face; this was the one with tattoos covering his face. The second men had longish black hair..."), there are sentences that just stop mid-way through ("He surveyed the crowds, the women, the bar, and, the darkness in the.") and there are some that are either just clunky or include incorrect conjugation ("Nebuchar seemed fixated on the jet's wing, but it wasn't the physical accouterments that he interested.")

I keep hoping it will get better, but the errors seem to be picking up pace as I get deeper into the book. Not sure I'm going to be able to finish this one. Really disappointing for a book I was excited about.

[Alan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I downloaded this book before the author withdrew it. I had waited such a long time for the author to release another book, and it is not perfect, but it is good enough for a five star rating. I have read all his books, and would not miss the opportunity to read another one. I hope the author can begin to release books on a regular basis.

[Kenneth Hollins · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve really enjoyed all the Dewey Andreas stories, including this one. However, I found that the errors in Hijack were quite distracting and made it hard for me to maintain the flow of the story.

[Mark Goldsborough · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great fun. Read it

[Guy Hamilton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very Tom Clancy Ryan series, thoroughly enjoyable, have not read any others, but this was a really enjoyable fast paced political thriller .
Fun read.

[Ben Coes]

I enjoyed it!