Blue Moon

I've read most of the Reacher books. There are varying degrees of good. This is towards the bottom group of the series. The book starts slow and never really hits its stride. Reacher isn't doing superhuman things, but there are just too many plot holes and improbabilities to be really enjoying. I like the series, but the further along it goes, the more hit and miss these books become.

I have been reading the Reacher novels for quite a few years now and have read most of them (still missing a few of the earlier ones) and always enjoy them, including this latest.

However, it does have a bit of a different feel. It still focuses on Reacher against the bad guys but, at times, Reacher feels like one of the bad guys himself. The violence seems a bit more escalated, colder, on his part. While someone ultimately benefits from his deeds, his killing shows little - if any - sign of morality. Other characters assisting along the way similarly don't seem to mind the ever-increasing body count.

Reacher also seems a bit, dare we say it, less smart than in previous books. He doesn't always read the clues or predict outcomes as accurately as before. Perhaps he's just getting older. Perhaps he's distracted by the woman assisting him. He was luckier than usual to make it all the way to the end of the book....

Blue Moon has a relevancy to today's headlines that make the reader wonder if some of the ideas presented are plausible.

All of this is cloaked in a classic rival gang scenario: Albanians versus Ukrainians on opposing sides of an unnamed city. This could be set anywhere; my guess in this particular case is an inspiration in Ohio or Iowa. It doesn't matter. It could be Anywhere, U.S.A. In fact, at times there is almost a Spaghetti Western element that drives the action, waiting for the big Shootout at the O.K. Corral.

This is a very good addition to the Reacher canon, but not a great one. There is a lack of detailed characterization for one thing, the level of senseless violence is another distractor. At the same time, Lee Child's descriptive abilities are at the top of his game. I would give this novel four stars out of five....