What Must Be Stopped

Readers who want a twisty, fast-paced thriller they can't put down. Beyond that, early reviews have also highlighted characters who are likable and warm, with real diversity in age, gender, and ethnicity — a wide range of readers have said they see themselves in the cast of What Must Be Stopped.

Readers who want to be entertained while also reading a book that carries a larger message — a thriller with something more underneath the pace.

Yes — but more. Freida McFadden's books are full of surprising twists, and so is What Must Be Stopped. Reviewers have also commented on how well-developed the characters are, and how the book's three interwoven storylines keep it moving fast.

Readers who enjoyed Flash Point by Catherine Coulter, Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke, or The Invisible Woman by James Patterson will find a similar mix of pace, plotting, and character in What Must Be Stopped.

What Must Be Stopped is a present-day FBI and crime thriller — three converging storylines that follow a domestic terrorism investigation, a Pentagon strategist confronting a nuclear crisis, and a disillusioned civilian pulled into an environmental emergency.

Uber-successful yet detested FBI agent Heather McLaughlin has 48 hours to catch a domestic terrorist before an attack on the United States begins. A Pentagon strategist navigating discrimination strives to contain escalating tension in the Middle East after Iran succeeds in developing a nuclear bomb. A disillusioned millennial receives a mysterious call for help that pulls him away from his tranquil life on his sailboat into a race to prevent an environmental catastrophe.

Yes — reviewers have commented that it feels ripped straight from the headlines. Unlike most fiction, many of the political and military figures referenced in What Must Be Stopped are real people, portrayed in a fictionalized way.

Yes. What Must Be Stopped follows FBI Agent Heather McLaughlin and Pentagon strategist Kenneth Robinson as they race — separately, and sometimes against each other — to stop evil.

Mild profanity and violence. There is no mature content.

A cliffhanger, for sure. As one reviewer put it: "I loved and hated the ending. The author better have written book two, I need it now!"

Yes — it's Book One of a five-book series, the AMERICA Series, which together asks what really matters about America, and whether we should change history if given the chance. Like The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown, the series brings historical truths that have been overlooked by history to light.

Yes — reading Book Two first will spoil Book One. What Must Be Stopped is fast-paced and short, so it's easy to read first, and well worth reading before moving on to Book Two.

Five books are planned. What Must Be Stopped, Book One, publishes in October 2026; Book Two follows in March 2027, and Book Three in October 2027.

What Must Be Stopped is about 300 pages — shorter than average, and fast-paced. Book Two, Into the Unknown, is longer, at over 600 pages, and takes a deep look at a period of history most readers have heard of but know little about.

What Must Be Stopped is available as an ebook, paperback, and hardcover. An audiobook is coming soon.

Yes — though author Graham Balch spent ten years writing and revising it before publishing.

Yes. OnlineBookClub.org reviewed What Must Be Stopped and awarded it 5 stars, writing: "The editing in this book is perfect. The characters are well-rounded. In fact, I cannot think of anything that Graham Balch should have done differently."

The most common reader comment is "When is book two available?" — alongside praise for the characters, the fast pace, and the twists.

Graham Balch lives in Northern California. Life experiences ranging from serving in the Peace Corps in Guatemala to sailing across the Atlantic Ocean directly inform his writing.

What Must Be Stopped is available on Amazon.

Yes — What Must Be Stopped is available for preorder on Amazon.

The ISBN-13 for What Must Be Stopped is 979-8996882113.