Vince Flynn

New York Times best-selling author Vince Flynn went from working a nine-to-five office job to being the creator of "Mitch Rapp," the CIA's top counterterrorism operative.

Flynn's first book, Term Limits, hit The New York Times Bestseller list in paperback and started a trend for all of Flynn's novels. Seven books later, he has become a perennial bestseller and is lauded for his research and prescient warnings about the rise of Islamic Radical Fundamentalism and terrorism. Read by current and former presidents, foreign heads of state, and intelligence professionals around the world, Flynn's novels are taken so seriously one high ranking CIA official told his people, "I want you to read Flynn's books and start thinking about how we can more effectively wage this war on terror." Among his books following the missions of "Mitch Rapp" are Transfer of Power, The Third Option, Separation of Power, Executive Power, Memorial Day, Consent to Kill, Act of Treason, Protect and Defend, and his latest, a prequel titled Retribution Rules.

The high level of success and attention Flynn has garnered from his novels eventually brought him to Hollywood. In 2005 he was approached by the creators of the hit Fox show 24 and asked if he would join the writing staff. Flynn became a story consultant for the show's fifth season. In the fall of 2006 Flynn signed a deal with Fox to create a new series with Joel Surnow, Bob Cochran, and Howard Gordon, the brain trust behind 24.