A MINUTE TO MIDNIGHT by David Baldacci
In 2019 novelists hit an inconsistent streak. Their new offerings just didn’t measure up to the heights of past productions. Their plots appeared to be a rehash of something they, or others, had written in the past. Also in many instances the ability to create new, full bodied characters went out the window. How often did we put aside one of our favorite writers newest books and think to ourselves that it just didn’t measure up.
Having had these feelings and still hoping for something original, I opened the pages of A MINUTE TO MIDNIGHT by David Baldacci. This is the second in a series of stories featuring FBI Agent Atlee Pine. Now unlike Michael Connelly, who is trying to force his Harry Bosch fans to accept Police Detective Renee Ballard as Harry’s co-star in every story, Baldacci is giving Pine a full story all her own and it is a good one.
The basic plot has Atlee, and her co-worker Carol Blum, taking some vacation time and heading to Andersonville, Georgia where Pine lived as a child. She lived there with her mother and father plus her twin sister Mercy. At age six there was a home invasion which resulted in Atlee being bludgeoned to a point of near death and her sister being kidnapped. Mercy’s body has never been found so Pine has hopes of finding her alive.
There are three aspects of this book that made it so intensely enjoyable for me. First is the locale of the story. I live in Georgia and I am totally familiar with the town of Andersonville. Other cites included in the narrative are Americus, Macon and Savannah. Atlee and Carol roam through these places I have visited many times. That gives me a familiarity with the locale that is most enjoyable.
Then there is the development of Atlee’s character. Baldacci gives us an entire book which builds up our knowledge of who and what this person is. We get to know her professional capabilities as well as her personal habits. By the end of the story she is a fully recognizable character and we look forward to her next adventure.
The last aspect of this book that increased my enjoyment was the plot itself. There are basically two cases Atlee is working. She is looking for her sister’s abductor and she is chasing a serial killer. She goes to Andersonville looking for the solution to the first case, and the second one is thrust upon her by occurring after she gets there. The two are independent but also seemingly linked together.
Baldacci has been writing books like these for years and his skills are not flagging. He adheres to the rules of “keep it simple stupid.” He gives us an intriguing plot; he gives us an interesting locale; he gives us an inclusive cast of characters. That is all we need and he knows how to put this all together with a deft hand.
I repeat, in a time when the best novelists are letting us down in more ways than one, Baldacci is keeping the faith by turning out one readable, enjoyable, likable book after another. And I for one appreciate it.
A MINUTE TO MIDNIGHT is published by Grand Central Publishing. It contains 432 pages and sells for $29.00.
Jackie K Cooper
www.jackiekcooper.com
