From Publishers Weekly
The solid 15th entry in Higgins's Sean Dillon thriller series (after The Killing Ground) finds aging, arthritic ex-gangster Harry Salter retired from active operations, leaving Dillon, once the IRA's most feared enforcer, as the real leader of the loose gang of stalwart lads who covertly battle the foes of Western civilization. A newcomer to the team, Maj. Harry Miller, on the surface a mild-mannered MP who's in reality the British prime minister's secret hit man, hooks up with series regular Blake Johnson in Kosovo, where the Russians, intent on reclaiming old glory, are stirring up trouble. Meanwhile, Islamic fundamentalists are intent on bringing Britain to its knees. The action moves swiftly amid a variety of foreign locales, including Moscow, London and Beirut, to a climax that will leave readers asking themselves, evidence to the contrary, whether the great game is really over. (Aug.)
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From Booklist
Member of Parliament Harry Miller is also a troubleshooter for the prime minister. When the PM sends Miller to Kosovo, he discovers uniformed Russian soldiers about to set fire to a village mosque, and he shoots their young commanding officer in the head. This rough justice reverberates through the Kremlin, and acts of revenge begin across Europe and the Middle East. Higgins posits a neocon nightmare to buttress his plot: the Evil Empire is using its oil reserves to Π²ΠΡaddictΠ²ΠΡ Western Europe and succoring terrorists of every stripe to create widespread chaos. Countering the Russians and all the terrorists are a number of characters that have appeared in earlier Higgins novels, including onetime IRA member Sean Dillon. Dillon and Miller are hard guys who elude death and seem to never miss a head shot. The action is nonstop, but the characters are paper-thin, and the dialogue is often leaden. Higgins is clearly off his game here, but he still has many loyal fans, who will be excited at the prospect of something new from one of their favorites. --Thomas Gaughan