Worth Dying For, by Lee Child

With the cliffhanger ending of 61 Hours, a rarity for Lee Child's Jack Reacher novels, I was eager to pick up the next book in the series, Worth Dying For.  Clearly Reacher survived the catastrophic explosion at the end of 61 Hours.  (Was there ever a doubt?)  As Worth Dying For unfolds, Reacher reveals what happened, solidifying what we already know: Reacher is equal parts super human and super lucky.

In Worth Dying For, Reacher has hitchhiked toward Virginia but doesn't get very far.  He ends up in another tiny town, this time in Nebraska, which, of course, is full of corruption, crime, and hidden secrets.  The town is so small it doesn't have police of its own.  The Duncan family, three brothers and one son, rule the town with an iron fist.  No one dares to offend them or their henchmen, a bunch of former Nebraska football players.  Of course it doesn't take Reacher long to see the Duncan's power.  On his first night in town, he drives the drunk town doctor to assist the younger Duncan's wife, who has a broken nose.  He then tracks down her husband, breaks his nose in revenge, and the war is on.

The Duncans are more than a local family who forces all the farmers in the area to do business with them or suffer the consequences.  They are part of an international smuggling scheme.  They have kept their highly profitable business a secret from the townspeople, but when a shipment is late, one of their customers gets impatient and sends his muscle to help.  Then a couple other criminal gangs in the pipeline come to town to assist.  Between their internecine fighting and Reacher's overpowering wit, brains, and muscle, all the bad guys end up dead.  (Sorry about the spoiler.  But if you ever read a Reacher book, you would probably have guessed that.)

The set up of Worth Dying For seems artificial and contrived.  It's hard to conceive that the conditions of this town and the power the Duncans hold over it could actually occur.  But once you hurdle that barrier, the story is quite enjoyable.  Reacher is in fine form as a one-man army and bringer of justice.  He's one bad dude who's fun to root for.