Headhunter: A Steve Flynn Thriller

British author Oldham’s vigorous, violent third Steve Flynn thriller (after 2016’s Ambush) finds the former Marine and ex-cop turned vigilante in the back of an unattended police van in Blackpool. There Flynn delivers his own brand of rough justice to Brian Tasker, who tortured and intended to kill him, by breaking Tasker’s neck. Flynn, who’s got a gunshot wound in his thigh, steals the van and stops at a pharmacy, where he coerces a clerk into giving him a strong painkiller. Just as he’s leaving, a policewoman arrives and tases him. Newcomers thrust into the mayhem will wonder what’s going on, but series fans will know that Flynn’s actions relate to his conflict with an Armenian crime family, whose members are trying to kill him and who beheaded his girlfriend in his last outing. After escaping from police custody, Flynn becomes involved in various beatings, gunfights, knifings, car crashes, and bombings, not to mention committing arson and breaking and entering. Readers may wonder how Flynn avoids doing serious jail time. Anyone interested enough can race through this book to find out. (Nov.)