One True Patriot opens with a terrific chapter: Eric Steele, an Alpha in the so-super-secret-it-doesn’t-exist Program has done a HAHO (high altitude, high opening) parachute into Syria to off some terrorist baddies.

This is the third book in a series, and in this one, someone is killing off Alphas, and taking an ear off the corpse as some kind of souvenir. There are things I have questions about in this book.

First, this Program of alpha killers is headquartered in the White House. Although they have to move in this book, situating this at the White House seems rather odd, especially when it appears they are near the West Wing. I’m not sue I’m buying this.

Like any other book in this genre, they apparently have access to passports, credit cars, documents, and cash, plus someone on the other end of wherever they go (like Paris) to provide them with weapons. This is fine – I expect it in the genre.

What I don’t expect is when SpecOps people get themselves killed because they forget, for some reason, that they are SpecOps with enemies everywhere. The first Alpha killed, sure. They didn’t know anyone was specifically hunting them, or even that they existed, after all. But the second kill – and the lone female Alpha -has let her guard down because she received a text message that the assassin was dead. I’d think it would have been a good idea to confirm it with HQ, but alas for her, she did not. It also takes them a tad too long to figure out that there’s no way the assassin could know how many Alphas there are without some inside information.

The Program, having been hit by Russian hackers and this mysterious assassin, pulls everyone in and basically closes up shop. Steele, of course, charges off to investigate and make things right.

There’s a ton of action and killing in the book, no worries about that. From the US to France, Germany, and Russia itself (in a prison, no less) and back again to the US to thwart an attack on political leaders, this book has it all.

If you’re a fan of the genre, definitely read it. Even if you’re not a big fan of the genre and you’re casting about for something to read, you could do a lot worse.

Three stars out of five.

Thanks to HarperCollins/William Morrow and NetGalley for the review copy.