Fans of Lee Child’s intimidating, rangy and wildly-popular protagonist, Jack Reacher, were waiting with bated breath for Blue Moon, the latest installment in the Reacher suspense series after 23 near-hopeless missions that all turned into unthinkable victories. They will not be disappointed; unlike the underwhelming Past Tense, published in 2018, Blue Moon constitutes a triumphant return to form, making the most of Reacher’s remarkable penchant for walking straight into trouble.
The set-up is familiar — Reacher alights from a bus in an anonymous small town in the middle of nowhere, this time to save an old man from being mugged. This simple act of kindness must, of course, have far-reaching consequences — it lands Reacher right in the middle of a turf war between Ukrainian and Albanian crime gangs who have carved up the town’s territory and intimidated its population into silent obedience, all in a bid to see which side can defeat the other to take over permanently before a new police commissioner is appointed. After rescuing the old man, Reacher finds out that he and his wife are mired in debt. They had been borrowing money through dubious businessmen and pawn-shop owners to pay their sick, middle-aged daughter’s medical bills. Now, the loan shark behind it all has caught up with them and wants his money back — with a great deal of interest.
Reacher, naturally, resolves to come to the couple’s aid — how else is he to find out that this is yet another small town with rather big problems? — and shows up at the watering hole where the loan shark is supposed to be waiting to take his money. Reacher’s plan is to pretend to be the old man and pay off the couple’s debt. Unfortunately, he finds himself face-to-face with the Ukrainian crime boss’s henchman.
Blue Moon: A Jack Reacher Novel by Lee Child, Bantam, Rs 599 Amazon
What follows is largely faithful to the Reacher formula — the former military cop roughs up the villains, only to discover a deeper, darker problem festering underneath the immediate one. This problem is the aforementioned gang war, setting the stage for Reacher to turn into a human wrecking ball in a bid to save the hapless residents of the town. As in every Reacher book, the body count goes up rapidly and the kingpins of crime soon realize that they have met their match.
Child’s success with the Reacher chronicles lies in his ability to reinvent the same formula again and again. The faithful reader can identify the patterns, but Child is sure to weave a narrative that keeps them engrossed. This book is packed with more action than anything the author has produced in the past 10 years. In the previous Reacher books, the slower sections have usually focused on establishing the central conflict and creating well-rounded characters. In Blue Moon, however, there is hardly a moment to breathe; Child creates a relentless pace and plot. There is certainly a lot of violence; more than one expects from a Child novel. But the execution remains skilful, so much so that in the transient moments of peace, the tenderness of growing friendships and even a romance shines through.
If there is anything the reader will miss in this book, it is the fun of observing a thoroughly-cornered Reacher manoeuvre his way out of an impossible situation. Here, even though he is taking on two gangs, he emerges victorious a bit too easily. Having said that, the revenge awaiting the faithful fan at the end is suitably gratifying. Reacher and Child have achieved their 24th victory.