| Another
Review at MyShelf.Com | |||||||||||
|
by Lee Child I t all began innocently enough. Jack Reacher, ex-Army MP, was sitting in a tavern drinking his espresso as he watched a man cross the street and get into a car. The next day Jack found himself sitting in the Manhattan apartment in the Dakota building (once occupied by John Lennon) of Edward Lane. Lane's wife, Kate, and her daughter, Jade, have been kidnapped. The ransom (one million dollars) was in that car Jack had seen. Lane wants Jack to track down Kate and Jade; there is to be no contact with the police or FBI. It seems that five years ago Lane's wife, Anne, was killed in a kidnapping gone wrong so he doesn't want the same thing to happen now. Lane is surrounded by a group of hardened veterans of Special Forces and Green Berets. Lane supplies the Pentagon (among others) with mercenaries to perform services the government cannot overtly perform. In tracing Kate's activities Reacher finds a young woman who is almost a double for Lane's first wife, Anne. She is Anne's sister, Patti Joseph, who has been stalking Lane and his group since Anne's death. Patti is convinced that Lane had Anne killed because she wanted a divorce and Lane couldn't cope with the challenge to his superiority. Reacher is convinced but must continue with Lane if only to save, if possible, Kate and her daughter, Jade. His search for the two takes him on a torturous journey from Greenwich Village and Soho to London and the English countryside. He is helped by Lauren Pauling, FBI veteran, who hasn't been able to come to terms with Anne's death. She feels responsible for what she believes was a kidnapping gone wrong. Reacher finds that all is not what is seems with the kidnapping. The final confrontation between Reacher and Lane and his group is a most thrilling and spectacular finale to a non-stop exciting book. A word of warning: Do not plan any activities before you begin to read this. You won't be able to put the book down after the first chapter. It is an engrossing adventure pitting an intrepid hero against a ruthless mercenary. The action is fast paced. The plot is complex with enough twists and turns to keep the reader alert. The suspense is constant. The descriptions of the atmosphere of Manhattan and England are most vivid. The characterizations are excellent: Lauren with her feeling of guilt; Patti with her determination to avenge her sister's murder; Lane with his ruthlessness; and always Jack with his ability to cope with any and all circumstances. Add this to the long list of adventures of Jack Reacher. Each one is better than the previous one; I didn't think it possible. Lee Child seems to improve with age. Let's hope there is more Reacher to come. Reviews of other titles in this series Without
Fail #6 |
|
||||||||||
©
2006 MyShelf.com |
|||||||||||
The
Hard Way