Pashtun: A Military Thriller

Frank Morgan, cynical, bitter, and patriotic, stars in this tale of greed, atrocities, and heroism. The best CIA assassin in Afghanistan, the pseudonymous Morgan takes his name from famed Vietnam assassin Frank Morgan, the hero of Lealos’s earlier adult novels (Don’t Mean Nuthin’ and No Merci). Operating out of Jalalabad, Morgan goes on missions that often include hard-drinking Irishman Finnen or huge black Ranger Washington, or both. The three men often use torture to get intel before dispatching their targets, who include American soldiers. Morgan feels increasingly guilty about his actions, but he does his job. Lealos writes about Afghanistan as if he’s been there, and Morgan and his comrades operate with ruthlessness and cunning in a war in which almost no one can be trusted and death is not the worst fate that can be befall you. Lealos overdoes the Irish antics of Finnen and the jive talk of Washington, but the sordidness of this ugly war shines through it all. (July)