Chameleon A black box thriller

DEBUT Former Navy SEAL Adeleke carves out a spot in the crowded thriller genre with this electrifying debut. Elite and clandestine CIA Black Box units consist of "Chameleons," tactical operatives trained to create mission-defined characters; "Ghosts," skilled at surveillance and burglary; and "Wind," pilots and drivers who can operate and repair any vehicle that moves. When ruthless South African ex-commando Lucas DeGroot begins kidnapping high-profile hostages around the world, personally tormented Nigerian-born Chameleon Kali Kent and his close-knit unit are ordered to track down DeGroot, neutralize his mercenary army, and free the hostages. Clean and well-plotted with smoothly paced chapters, the story is sharp and fast-moving, but readers may balk initially at the continual barrage of gun-brand names and munition details. There is little character development, but the focused action more than compensates as the tale reaches a satisfying and unexpected ending. VERDICT A good beach or vacation read that will have readers rooting for another book in the "Black Box" series. Perfect for Jack Carr, Mark Greaney, and Tom Clancy's Jack Ryan fans.--James Woods Marshall

Kali Kent, a master of disguise working for Black Box--an ultrasecret CIA special ops program--pursues a superrich baddie out to help the Russians destroy the free world. Kent, like the author, a Nigeria native raised in the Bronx, has a crack team of agents backing him up. Among them is Thane, a theater actor and director who learned how to get into character as an operative while studying Method acting in New York. But ultimately, it will be up to Kent to nab Lucas van Groot, an ex-commando from South Africa whose game has been to take rich people hostage, collect ransoms, and manipulate stock markets. Now, having rebuilt an air squadron inside Afghanistan, equipping the planes with state-of-the-art stealth technology, van Groot hopes to hook up with Russia, which, having taken over Ukraine, is looking to wipe out Poland and Hungary and "decimate NATO." The U.S. president laughs at the idea. "The big bad Russkies are gonna take over the world? Like Dr. Evil?" Inside their mobile SCIF unit, the spies know better. The first novel in a projected trilogy by Adeleke, a former Navy SEAL who's also a film actor, is packed with action scenes, strategizing, and tech talk. The story tends to bog down in details, and Kent's struggles with demons from his childhood seem added on. But the book's cool efficiency and straightforward style work in its favor, and its protagonist is worth a second look in the sequel. A solid, if not gripping, fiction debut. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.