Format: Hardcover, 416 pages
Release Date: November 14, 2023
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Source: Publisher
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense
The 6:20 Man is back, dropped by his handlers into a small coastal
town in Maine to solve the murder of a CIA agent who knew America’s
dirtiest secrets—can Travis Devine uncover the truth before his time
runs out?
When CIA operative Jenny Silkwell is murdered in
rural Maine, government officials have immediate concerns over national
security. Her laptop and phone were full of state secrets that, in the
wrong hands, endanger the lives of countless operatives. In need of
someone who can solve the murder quickly and retrieve the missing
information, the U.S. government knows just the chameleon they can call
on.
Ex-Army Ranger Travis Devine spent his time in the
military preparing to take on any scenario, followed by his short-lived
business career chasing shadows in the deepest halls of power, so his
analytical mind makes him particularly well-suited for complex,
high-stakes tasks. Taking down the world’s largest financial conspiracy
proved his value, and in comparison, this case looks straightforward.
Except small towns hold secrets and Devine finds himself an outsider
again.
Devine must ingratiate himself with locals who have
trusted each other their whole lives, and who distrust outsiders just as
much. Dak, Jenny’s brother, who’s working to revitalize the town. Earl,
the retired lobsterman who found Jenny’s body. And Alex, Jenny’s sister
with a dark past of her own. As Devine gets to know the residents of
Putnam, Maine, answers seem to appear and then transform into more
questions. There’s a long history of secrets and those who will stop at
nothing to keep them from being exposed. Leaving Devine with no idea who
he can trust... and who wants him dead.
The Edge, by David Baldacci, is the second installment in the authors 6:20 Man. Former Ranger Captain Travis Devine spent his time in the military preparing to take on any scenario, followed by his short-lived business career chasing shadows in the deepest halls of power, so his analytical mind makes him particularly well-suited for complex, high-stakes tasks. Taking down the world’s largest financial conspiracy in the previous installment proved his value, and in comparison, this case looks straightforward. Except small towns hold secrets and Devine finds himself an outsider again.
It has been six months since Travis Devine, former Army Ranger Captain, was given an ultimatum to work for the US government or face the consequences of his actions in Afghanistan. 6 months in, and it seems as though Travis as been successful. So successful, that adversaries who likely work for the company that Devine took down in Geneva, are now sending mercenaries to try and kill him. It won't be the first time, nor the last that these people try to kill Devine who has all the necessary skills to survive.
When CIA operative Jenny Silkwell is murdered in rural Maine, government officials have immediate concerns over national security. Her laptop and phone were full of state secrets that, in the wrong hands, endanger the lives of countless operatives. In need of someone who can solve the murder quickly and retrieve the missing information, the U.S. government, by way of Retired two-star General Emerson Campbell who is now Travis boss, sends Devine to Putnam, Maine to look into Jenny's murder.
So, playing the part of a special investigator for Homeland Security, Devine tries to sift through the small town politics, and a small town that is steep in mystery, and people dying mysteriously. Devine's only road to solve the mystery starts with Jenny's brother Dak Silkwell, and her sister Alexandra (Alex) Silkwell. Alex is a brilliant artist who suffered a traumatic experience 15 years ago that has left her without important memories. Dak, meanwhile, is chasing capitalism by diving into a strange market hoping to draw investors and their money to town.
Devine's job becomes much harder when he mercs arrive in town and try to kill him. To make matters worse, it seems as though what happened to Alex 15 years ago, might have lead to a serious of strange and unsolved deaths from people of one particular family. Could it be that Jenny's coming back home to Putnam was the result of her own off book investigation? Could it be that Jenny found out what really happened 15 years ago, and the person who left Alex for dead, has now added yet another body to their resume?
*Thoughts* This is one of those books where you really don't have to suspend reality in order to enjoy the book. The action from the first page was done really well. The mystery into what happened to Alex, as well as Jenny, was sussed out so that you weren't sure if the local Sheriff was involved, or a half dozen other people who could have played a part in numerous innocent people being dead. Devine also has to protect his own butt from possible moles in the organization he now works for.
Devine gets drawn to Alex and the reason is understandable. They are both trying to find peace after traumatic events. I think it is fair to say that the open hostility that Travis first faces upon arrival in Putnam is realistic. There are few people in this country who actually trust agents of the government for doing the right thing, and not burying the truth before the mystery can be solved. The book does end on a cliffhanger ending which gives hope that we get another adventure out of Travis.
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