The Midnight Line

By Lee Child Bantam Press, £20

Jack Reacher, righteous avenger, seeker of the truth, reaches book number 22, and Lee Child shows no sign of flagging. Here, curiosity sends him on a quest involving stolen prescription drugs, a West Point class ring, seven middle-aged bikers and a corpse found in the wilds of Wyoming, half-eaten by a bear. Too many details would spoil the plot, but the writing is typically strong, the scenarios swiftly executed and the pyrotechnics subdued. ■