The Secret by Lee Child and Andrew Child

 

It's 1992 and newly demoted Captain Jack Reacher, a military police officer, is sent to join a task force investigating the mysterious deaths of a group of scientists linked to a top secret project in the 1960s.

I've been a fan of Jack Reacher from almost the beginning of the series. Anyone who's read my review of the previous book in the series, No Plan B, will have read about how I stumbled across the series and became hooked. My review of that book also raises the question of whether it's time for Reacher to settle down. Thankfully, book 28 in the series, The Secret, seems to be a return to form.

Set thirty years ago we meet a newly demoted Reacher. Having been raised as an army brat before joining the military himself, Reacher is aware that actions have consequences so has no animosity towards the army for his demotion, he just keeps on doing his job. Reacher is also aware that sometimes force needs to be used to get answers.

When a small group of scientists start dying under unusual circumstances the Secretary of Defense realises that there is a link to a top-secret chemical warfare project back in 1969 which involved the army and the CIA. A task force is hastily assembled with Reacher being joined by people from the CIA, FBI and treasury department. The group is tasked with finding the remaining scientists before anything happens to them, along with finding out who is responsible for the deaths.

We see a familiar writing style now that  Lee Child and Andrew Child are writing together. The storyline rotates between Reacher and other characters in the book, fleshing out each aspect of the storyline. There is plenty of suspense, along with some blurred lines as to who the villains are.

Since the book features a much younger Reacher I had hoped for a little more action. I wasn't disappointed by the scenes which are featured in the book, particularly the one in the bar, I just wanted more. Overall, I was happy with a Jack Reacher story that had me gripped from the start and wondering where it was leading.