Book Review Past Tense by Lee Child

Book Review Past Tense by Lee Child

The 23rd Jack Reacher book starts with Reacher wandering aimlessly through new hampshire when he spots a road sign for the town his father grew up in. Being reacher he has nowhere to go and plenty of time to get there , so he decides to take a detour an have a look around. Except when he starts asking questions , it transpires that no one called Reacher has ever lived there….   

Meanwhile a short while away a young couple named Patty and Shorty are trying to get their knackered old honda civic from canada to new york to sell a chest full of ‘treasure’ but when they break down outside a motel in the middle of nowhere it quickly becomes clear that something isn't right. And the motel owner isn't exactly keen to help them as he has something truly barbaric in mind for his ‘guests’  after they make several botched attempts to escape from trying to mend their junker of a car to stealing a quad bike to good old fashioned making a run for it.

As the two seemingly unconnected storylines come together ,Past Tense goes from Reacher’s episode of who do you think you are? To one of the darkest novels Child has ever written , its not quite as dark as the horrific events in Make Me but it gets close.

In amongst all the darkness though past tense is shot through with all the bar fights and dry humour and plain eccentricity that Reacher has become famous for and there's even a tip of the hat to the #metoo movement . 

Overall Past Tense is a classic Reacher novel and serves as a reminder of why even after 23 books and counting Lee Child is the finest crime writer working today  and when he inevitably ends the series it will be a very sad day.  That's for damn sure.

Verdict. Cracker