Both are comedic thrillers concerning Army lawyer Sam Devereaux, who gets caught up in the schemes of General MacKenzie "The Hawk" Hawkins.

The Hawk is seeking revenge after being unfairly drummed out of the United States Army at the start of the first book.

While the earlier novel was originally published under the pseudonym Michael Shepherd, The Road to Omaha was released under Ludlum's name.

Several years after the events of The Road to Gandolfo, the Hawk has discovered a long-forgotten treaty between the US government and a tribe of Native Americans.

To further this goal, he ropes Devereaux (now retired from the military) into representing the tribe in court.