Extraordinary Retribution

The George W. Bush-era anti-terror renditions provide the backdrop for this amateurish spy revenge thriller from Stebbins (The Ragnarok Conspiracy). The deadly assassin known as the wraith is on a mission to kill everyone who took part in the CIA program that mistakenly captured him when he was a boy. One of the CIA agents, Miguel Lopez, puts up a good fight, but after the wraith kills him, Lopez's Catholic priest brother, Fr. Francisco Lopez, takes up the hunt for his brother's killer, assisted by Sara Houston, Miguel's CIA agent girlfriend. Stebbins's plot angle is that the CIA renditions were aimed at American citizens rather than foreigners on foreign soil, and when this explosive information is made public, it will "destabilize the entire political structure," which could "lead to a damn revolt." The ultimate evildoer behind the illegal renditions is none other than former vice-president Dick Cheney. When the wraith catches up to him, readers of a certain political bent will have a good and satisfying chuckle. Clunky prose and a significantly less than white-hot premise add up to a tepid and sometimes unintentionally amusing read. (Dec.)