Status-6: An NCIS Special Ops Thriller

Readers’ Favorite Honorable Mention Award for Best Military Fiction Book of the Year

What’s the next nightmare after the coronavirus? An NCIS agent and British scientist must stop an AI-controlled Russian submarine from exposing hundreds of millions to a deadly fallout far worse than any virus.

Deep beneath the Arctic Ocean, a covert team of Chinese operatives uses stolen U.S. technology to capture Russia’s newest attack submarine. Loaded with massive torpedoes carrying city-destroying payloads, the sub is headed west. The Americans want to sink her, the Russians want her back, and the Chinese claim they’re not responsible.

NCIS Special Ops agent Jon Shay is a former SEAL Team Two operator. Activated for a mission in the Arctic, he pairs with British scientist Kate Barrett to battle a ticking clock, trained operatives, and three naval armadas. Together, they must find and stop the world’s most lethal submarine. The stakes are raised when they learn that the Russian sub is controlled by an infected AI system bent on completing its mission to annihilate hundreds of millions.

“W. Craig Reed’s Status-6 is my vote for ‘Thriller of the Year.’ The protagonist is Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan meets Lee Child’s Jack Reacher.” —Grant Blackwood, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Tom Clancy Under Fire

“W. Craig Reed’s latest novel, Status-6, is the best book I’ve read this year—a ripped-from-the-headlines military technothriller that literally left me awake at night, fearful of where we’re headed as a nation and a species. If you thought the coronavirus was terrifying, wait until you read about this potential nightmare. Don’t miss this first book in the NCIS Special Ops series that promises to shatter the thriller genre.” —James Rollins, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Demon Crown (Sigma Force)

“W. Craig Reed’s Status-6 grabs you from page one and doesn’t let you go. The global crisis revealed in this book is all-too-real and could well be tomorrow’s headlines. The characters are well nuanced and provide a powerful urge to root for or against them. Don’t read this thriller before going to bed—you’ll be awake all night!” —George Galdorisi, New York Times bestselling author of the Tom Clancy Op Center series

W. Craig Reed is the New York Times bestselling author of the award-winning Red November, The 7 Secrets of Neuron Leadership, and Tarzan, My Father, co-written with the late Johnny Weissmuller, Jr. Reed served as a U.S. Navy submariner and diver during the Cold War and earned commendations for completing secret missions, some in concert with SEAL Team One. Reed’s military experience and inside contacts help infuse his writing with intrigue and realism and inspired his latest novel, Status-6. Reed holds an MBA in Marketing and is the cofounder of Us4Warriors, an award-winning Veterans nonprofit. Reed serves on the Board of Aretanium, an employee productivity firm that leverages the neuroscience research in The 7 Secrets of Neuron Leadership.