Better Off Dead: (Jack Reacher 26)

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The light had been easy to find, just like he’d been told it would be. It was the only one in the compound that was still working, all the way at the far end, six feet shy of the jagged metal fence that separated the United States from Mexico. The stranger didn’t move. He didn’t relax his grip. The woman hesitated. The other guy was between her and the stranger. Not an ideal position. But he was six inches shorter. And slightly to the side. That did leave her a target. An area on the stranger’s chest. A rectangle. It was maybe six inches by ten. That was big enough, she figured. And it was more or less in the right position. She took a breath. Exhaled gently. And pulled the trigger. No one local knew why those towns had been chosen. Some said it was a mistake. A bureaucrat misreading a file note and dispatching the resources to the wrong place. Others figured that someone in D.C. must have owed the mayor a favour. But whatever the reason, no one objected. Not with all the new roads that were being laid. New bridges being constructed. And all kinds of buildings rising up. The project went on for years. And it left a permanent mark. The towns’ traditional adobe arches became a little more square. The stucco exteriors, a little more uniform. The layout of the streets, a little more regimented. And the amenities, a lot more generous. The area gained schools. Municipal offices. Fire houses. A police station. A courthouse. A museum. And a medical centre.

Better Off Dead by Lee Child - Penguin Books Australia Better Off Dead by Lee Child - Penguin Books Australia

Smart writing, vivid action scenes, and dramatic twists mark this seamless effort. Even those for whom this is their first Reacher novel will be clamoring for more.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)Though billed as a crime compendium, this wildly uneven anthology includes tales of love in a Paris bookshop (R.J. Ellory’s “Borrowed Time”) and revenge for breaching dating etiquette (Jason Starr’s Continue reading » The stranger saw no need to give them another warning. He’d been clear with them from the start. And they were the ones who’d chosen to up the ante. Reacher goes where he wants, when he wants. That morning he was heading west, walking under the merciless desert sun—until he comes upon a curious scene. A Jeep has crashed into the only tree for miles around. A woman is slumped over the wheel. I don’t know who did the lion’s share of writing this time around, but since he is taking over the series, we must hope it was Andrew and that he has now found his stride. This twenty-sixth installment is the best Reacher novel since Make Me and every bit as good as many of the early books in the series. The writing is tight, and the action is as non-stop and explosive as ever. The plot is fresh and imaginative, and there is plenty of suspense.

Extract: Better Off Dead by Lee Child and Andrew Child Extract: Better Off Dead by Lee Child and Andrew Child

Reacher is the stuff of myth. . . . One of this century’s most original, tantalizing pop-fiction heroes.” — The Washington Post A tasty, if not always tasteful, tale of supernatural mayhem that fans of King and Crichton alike will enjoy.To get answers will be even harder. There are people in this hostile, empty place who would rather die than reveal their secrets.