Slash and Burn

Near the outset of Hilton’s action-packed third thriller featuring former counterterrorist operative Joe Hunter (after 2010’s Judgment and Wrath), Kate Piers, the sister of a late colleague of Hunter’s, persuades him to accompany her to Kentucky to track down her missing sister, Imogen. On their arrival at Imogen’s burglarized house in a remote part of Appalachia, the pair encounter some gunmen, kicking off a body count that reaches Die Hard proportions. The roster of bad guys would do a James Bond film proud, including murderous twins and their psychotic boss, who’s known as Quicksilver for his fast knife work. Early on, Hunter lets a violent sociopath escape, reasoning that he could always kill the guy “another time,” a nonsensical decision that unsurprisingly comes back to haunt him. Those who don’t mind repeated contrivances that sacrifice logic to prolong the plot will be most rewarded. (Nov.)