Code of Honor Summary

The novel Code of Honor by Alan Gratz opens by showing the astonished family when they learn that their kin has been involved in bombing the United States Embassy in Turkey. The story's protagonist is Kamran Smith, half Iranian and half American. Kamran is a high achiever because he is a popular figure on the college's football team. Kamran is also dating a famous girl who is about to graduate from the military academy. Kamran's brother, Darius, is the main suspect in bombing the American Embassy in Turkey.

Darius is a United States Army Ranger who is serving in Afghanistan. In recent days, Darius has been posting violent videos on his social media accounts showing how he has been radicalized to help Al-Qaida to achieve its ill motives against the United States of America. According to Al-Qaida operatives, their number one enemy is the United States of America, and their primary goal is to destroy US embassies globally. Consequently, Darius was secretly lured into joining the Islamic group, and he became radicalized to the extent he does not fear podcasting videos showing extremist activities.

When the US embassy in Turkey is bombed, Darius claims responsibility, and he happily posts the videos to confirm that unfortunate incident. Darius' family is shocked to receive the news that their son is claiming responsibility for the terrorist attack. A few minutes later, the Department of Homeland Security invades Kamran's home and arrests the three family members present; Kamran, his mother, and his father. They are taken into custody to be interrogated by the CIA. The family is put behind bars for several months as they are interrogated to give hints that can help the authorities to capture the terrorist.

Initially, Kamran does not accept that his brother is a terrorist until he agrees to watch Darius' videos with the CIA agents. The videos use coded language understood only by Kamran and his young brother. The primary message in the videos is to kill bad people. The bad people in this context are the Americans. Therefore, Kamran and his younger brother play a critical role in helping the police investigators uncover the plot of the terrorist attack. They also promise to rescue Darius from the terrorist group and help him reform. Kamran agrees to help the police by decoding the language used in the videos to clear his brother's name.