The Forgotten, by David Baldacci

This is the second novel in Mr. Baldacci's series featuring Army investigator John Puller.   As I noted in writing about the first, "Zero Day," this is an unabashed rip-off of Lee Child's Jack Reacher character. It is forgivable largely because Mr. Baldacci does it so well.

Mr. Baldacci's success as an author is attributable to good writing, interesting plots, engaging character development, and following a template.  In the case of his John Puller novels, that template is pretty clear:   There's a mystery.  There's an attractive woman interest (or two).  There are the eccentric decisions of a hero not overly subservient to the rules.  And there are the plot twists.

I'm eager to read the next in the series, because this template works really well.


The Forgotten (John Puller)