LONG ROAD TO MERCY

This is the first in a new series by Baldacci featuring FBI Special Agent Atlee Pine. At the age of five she was left seriously assaulted when her twin sister, Mercy, was abducted from their bedroom.

Mercy was never found but ever since her disappearance her sister has been on a mission to hunt down those who hurt others.

Stationed near the Grand Canyon in the western US, she’s called in to investigate the mutilated carcass of a mule and the disappearance of its rider.

It may seem trivial but behind it lays a dastardly plot that could plunge the world into a war in which millions could die.

Baldacci weaves a wonderfully tense narrative that makes it sound almost believable.

And then there’s Atlee herself, a worthy hero. She’s just a shade under six feet tall, almost made the US Olympic team as a weightlifter, likes her beer, drives a restored 1967 Ford Mustang and can kick ass with the best of them. A female version of Lee Child’s Jack Reacher.

I’m sure this series is going to prove popular.