FOREIGN INFLUENCE

Brad Thor's ninth political thriller opens with the screeching sounds of a terrorist bomb blast in Rome that kills a busload of American tourists. Simultaneously, Chicago police search for a Middle Eastern cab driver involved in a hit-and-run accident and uncover related U.S. targets. The Carlton Group, a new black-ops antiterrorist program, accountable only to a secret military panel, sends their best black-ops agent, Scott Horvath, to Europe to kill their prime suspect, the Troll. Armand Schultz's masterful narration sets an adrenaline-laced tone in a chase that never lets up, but it requires close attention. His gritty, descriptive portrayal of torture, even without sound effects, is not for the squeamish in this over-the-top thriller. G.D.W. © AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine [Published: OCTOBER 2010]