Jack Reacher fans: New book alert! My husband brought me a special gift late last week: I had put the new Lee Child book on reserve, and thought I would have a much longer wait. However, once it was in the house, I couldn't wait to start reading it!
This book picks up where the previous book left off (61 Hours), when Jack was stranded in a small town in South Dakota after a bus crash. After his adventures there, he hitches a ride and gets let out in the middle of nowhere in Nebraska. At first, he figures he will get some sleep at the little motel and then hitch a ride in the morning; however, he gets caught up in some local drama when he drives an intoxicated doctor to treat a patient and figures out why the whole small town seems so afraid of the powerful Duncan family. The Duncan family consists of three brothers in their 50s or 60s who own a trucking business and seem to run the whole area. They employ a crew of big, corn fed young men who act as enforcers, and are dubbed the cornhuskers by the locals.
Their handiwork is evident in the bruised faces of the motel owner and doctor, but Jack senses that there is more going on than anyone wants to admit. The Duncans are involved in something dangerous and illegal, but what--drugs? weapons? He isn't sure, but keeps asking questions and discovers that there is also a cold case at the heart of the bullying. A local child went missing 25 yeasrs earlier, and the mother accused the Duncans of kidnapping her, but no evidence was found. The Duncans have targeted her, and anyone who supported her cause.
One of the Duncan brothers has a grown son, Seth, who is married: Seth's hobby seems to be drinking and beating his wife, which Jack doesn't like. So after helping the doctor tend to the young wife's wounds, Jack decides to pay Seth a visit. Naturally, this stirs things up: the Duncans aren't used to having anyone stand up to them.
Jack has to decide if he is going to ride out of town and let the people fend for themselves or stay and help them fight the Duncans. It's a great read, but not one you can put down easily. Lee Child has created such a compelling character in Jack Reacher: he is a former military cop who is tough, solitary, and hypervigilant. His experience serves him well, and he manages to walk away, battered but not beaten.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, even if I did wince a time or two at the description of some of the action. The characters, dialogue, and plot twists are excellent, and I recommend it to current and prospective fans of Lee Child alike.
You can find Worth Dying For on the New Fiction Shelf; I had Mike return it tonight, so if you put it on reserve, it could be your turn to read it.
c Waterloo Public Library 2010
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