High above the California desert a man is thrown 3,000 feet to a horrific death. In Portland, Jack Reacher is enjoying time with a lovely attorney. Then he receives a call for help, a distress signal from his military days. What follows is another great Jack Reacher book. Child achieves a perfect balance of the cerebral mystery and action adventure novel in BAD LUCK AND TROUBLE. This tale of a band of brothers (and sisters) in arms trying to save themselves and avenge their brethren offers the reader another look into Reacher’s past while paying the series forward. What got Calvin Franz dead? Where are the soldiers who haven’t answered the call? Who is the international terrorist making his way to the same destination as Reacher and his former team? Child spends a good part of the book in plot setup with a slow reveal into Reacher’s military past. The dénouement is adrenaline reading with a race to the finish one can only find in a Jack Reacher book. I could not turn the pages fast enough.

Ruth Jordan