Deep Cover Jack: Hunt For Jack Reacher Series

Deep Cover Jack picks up FBI Special Agents Kim Otto and Carlos Gaspar’ assignment on the Special Personnel Task Force of vetting Jack Reacher for an unknown government mission. This is the 6th novel in the series, which spans real time, about at this point about four weeks. When I have discussed these novels with friends, concerns regarding the ability of each novel to stand on its own AND the necessity of being even somewhat familiar with the parallel Reacher novel are expressed. Capri, who does have what seems to be a carte blanc from Childs to use his characters, is quite skillful in splicing sufficient details of her own Search for Reacher back story and the Reacher novel settings portrayed in the current Kim and Carlos episode that one does not NEED to have read either one. I think you will find, however, you will WANT to read both. In Deep Cover Jack, Otto and Gaspar become involved with a crew of former and current ATF/DEA agents, cops and assorted others with whom Reacher cooperated in an off-the books sting at an isolated Maine estate nearly a decade prior to the current action. One of the players then had gone over the edge in a private vendetta busting human traffickers and had been captured. One of the…well…good guys…had much information on Reacher; Otto and Gaspar, hungry for information, traded their help to the very off-the-books operation to retrieve their former comrade-in-arms from the estate. What, you thought I was going to give away the plot? Not likely. And here is why you should get this book…and all the Search for Reacher books RIGHT NOW! Diane Capri has several crime series out right now and is winning awards. She knows her craft…and she knows her art. The writing is crisp and she has a knack with dialogue…I am guessing she has been permitted to listen to cops, state and federal agents and members of the military (primarily Army) and has the short-hand language down; the conversations between equals has verisimilitude; the approaches used with civilians varies between gentle for information-gathering and pungent with suspects. Characters are well-formed. Kim Otto is a CPA and a lawyer, working out of the Detroit office, who thinks she WILL be Director of the FBI, drinks coffee like Reacher but has acid production like a pickle factory; she has been through her grandmother’s final illness. We know she is deadly with her Glock. Carlos, senior to Otto, is second agent on this assignment—we haven’t yet been told. Ex-military (hints have been dropped he was an MP, same as Reacher), he was badly injured in in a shoot-out and for the most part had be riding a desk in the Miami office until this assignment. He’s married with a very pregnant wife, four daughters and pretty much lives in pain. Their boss has a name and their loyalty. One of the characters from the inaugural Reacher novel has risen to rather lofty heights and is called for help sometimes. The plot is solid and, in my opinion, piggy-backs on the Reacher arc in “Persuader” set in the same locale. Capri has the two FBI agents working with the prior crew with the essentially the same traction Reacher did…keep in mind that both Reacher worked with and the FBI team are working with essentially the same people for completely different objectives—perfect example of ends justifies the means.

Good follow up to the Reacher books and well worth a read.