#Review - Long Road to Mercy by David Baldacci #Thriller #Suspense

Series: An Atlee Pine Thriller (#1)
Format: Hardcover, 416 pages
Release Date: November 13, 2018
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Source: Library
Genre: Thrillers / Suspense

Introducing a remarkable new character from #1 New York Times bestselling writer David Baldacci: Atlee Pine, an FBI agent with special skills assigned to the remote wilds of the southwestern United States who must confront a new threat . . . and an old nightmare.

Eeny, meeny, miny, moe. Catch a tiger by its toe.

It's seared into Atlee Pine's memory: the kidnapper's chilling rhyme as he chose between six-year-old Atlee and her twin sister, Mercy. Mercy was taken. Atlee was spared.

She never saw Mercy again.

Three decades after that terrifying night, Atlee Pine works for the FBI. She's the lone agent assigned to the Shattered Rock, Arizona resident agency, which is responsible for protecting the Grand Canyon.

So when one of the Grand Canyon's mules is found stabbed to death at the bottom of the canyon-and its rider missing-Pine is called in to investigate. It soon seems clear the lost tourist had something more clandestine than sightseeing in mind. But just as Pine begins to put together clues pointing to a terrifying plot, she's abruptly called off the case.

If she disobeys direct orders by continuing to search for the missing man, it will mean the end of her career. But unless Pine keeps working the case and discovers the truth, it could spell the very end of democracy in America as we know it...

 

Long Road to Mercy, by author David Baldacci, is the first installment in the author's Atlee Pine series. Atlee Pine is a Special Agent with the FBI assigned to the remote and isolated wilds of the western U.S. She's a criminal profiler specializing in serial killers--a field she became interested in after her twin sister was abducted by a notorious serial killer at age five. When Atlee was (5) years old, her twin sister Mercy was taken and disappeared. Eeny, meeny, miny, moe. Catch a tiger by its toe was seared into Atlee's memory forever.

It's one of the last things she remembers before the kidnapper took Mercy and disappeared leaving a badly injured Atlee behind to pick up the pieces. Tattoos on her body serve as constant reminders of Mercy. Since she became an FBI agent, Atlee has been doing a bit of her own research as to who may have been in the area on the night of June 7, 1989. She's tracked down people like Daniel James Tor who is a sadistic, prolific serial killer who is now spending the rest of his life in a Federal Supermax Prison in Utah. But, of course, this is just a minor part of this story and one that will be addressed again later in the book.

The major part of this story really begins when a man goes missing in the Grand Canyon National Park and a donkey is found killed which leads to all sorts of twists and surprises.  As she starts to ask questions she notices that people high up the chain are taking an interest in this case. Her boss even tells her to make sure you have eyes in the back of your head.  What makes this case even more curiouser, is that she's warned by her superiors in the FBI to walk away or face suspension. Atlee is not a woman to give up, no matter what the cost to her career. 

 

After delving a little too far into the case, Atlee is ordered to take time off which leads Atlee and her secretary, Carol Blum to go rogue. Please don't ignore Carol. Carol has 40 years experience with the FBI and she is pretty fearless when it comes to guiding her charges like Atlee so that she doesn't make a career ending mistake while trying to put the pieces together which leads to trying to stop an international incident from unleashing nuclear war. Carol doesn't leave her side the entire way and even remark that they should rehash Thelma and Louise since they will probably be fired anyway.

Atlee is an interesting character in that while she might be considered a lone wolf, she's gone out of her way to ensure that she has the cooperation of the local law enforcement including those who protect the local Indian reservation. Atlee is a physically strong woman who just missed out in being on the US Olympic weightlifting team. She doesn't take anything from anyone, and is often the victor when confronted by larger individuals wishing her harm. You really have to suspend belief a bit to actually believe that one person is capable of doing what Atlee does in this story.

Even though the story itself was fast paced and kept my attention, I have come to believe that Baldacci has joined the ranks of conspiracy theorists. He seems to walk down this path quite often lately. I think he truly believes that someone in the US government wants to go to war with North Korea. Hell, the warmongers in both parties have thought about it for years but we've never once crossed that red line. He writes about the US army kidnapping US citizens and making them disappear and then shutting down any investigation by the local authorities.

Once almost 20 years ago, Colin Powell went to the UN and falsely accused Iraq of having weapons of mass destruction. Powell is still considered a hero to some today. How many Americans have died in an unnecessary wars? I think that some of these people have been watching Wag the Dog one too many times. Sound unrealistic? Remember then in 1998 when Bill Clinton was literally caught with his pants down in the Oral office. Clinton ordered a military airstrike on what turned out to be an aspirin factory in Sudan!

 

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