Shadow Strike: A Pike Logan Novel

Taylor’s formulaic latest Pike Logan thriller (after Into the Gray Zone) sees the return of a long-dormant series villain. Abdul Rahman—better known as “the Ghost”—has been incarcerated in a secret U.S. prison for 10 years. While being transferred to a new facility, he’s liberated by a motorcycle gang and delivered to Sardar Bagheri, commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard’s assassination cell. Sardar has planned a three-pronged attack to devastate Iran’s enemies: Ghost will assassinate both the prime minister of Israel and the U.S. secretary of state at a meeting in Buenos Aires, then a dirty bomb will be detonated in the occupied West Bank and a chemical weapons attack will cripple Washington, D.C. Joined by familiar faces Aaron and Shoshana—contract assassins working for the Israeli Mossad—Taskforce leader Pike Logan and his team track the elusive Ghost from his escape through Mexico to Argentina and eventually to the Antarctic. Unfortunately, the exotic locations are underdescribed, and the terrorist missions feel rote. The physically unassuming but deadly Ghost makes a great villain, but Taylor disappoints by plopping him into a paint-by-numbers plot. This one’s strictly for diehard fans. Agent: John Talbot, Talbot Fortune. (Apr.)