I read a lot of books…possibly even more book reviews. Over the last decade or so, it has seemed like a new David Baldacci book appears every month or so…and  I pretty much have avoided all of them. Not sure why, but I needed something to read as I watched the world going crazy, and it felt like a nice escape into a book where the protagonists uncover ”…a breathtaking scheme that strikes at the very heart of global democracy” was just the ticket. No, seriously! 

Baldacci writes several different series, each with its own particular protagonist. Atlee Pine is a young FBI Agent whose search for her sister Mercy is her personal obsession, and has been covered in the first two books in this series, Long Road to Mercy and A Minute to Midnight. In Daylight, #3 in this series, we have sort of a crossover, as Atlee finds her work leading to a  clash with military investigator John Puller, a combat veteran (with his own Baldacci series) in a wild ride. (Maybe all the Baldacci books feature a “wild ride”?) 

Atlee’s twin sister, Mercy, was abducted when they were six. Now, a few decades later, Atlee is being pressured to end her investigation into Mercy’s disappearance, and (interesting timing) she finally learns the kidnapper was a man named  Ito Vincenzo. Atlee’s home turf is the Southwest (specifically around the Grand Canyon) but she and her assistant Carol Blum race to Vincenzo’s last known location in Trenton, New Jersey, where their work conflicts with John Puller’s case involving a drug ring on a military base, to and things take off from there — for both Atlee and John. 

They work together, discovering  a connection between Vincenzo’s family and a scheme that finally gives Atlee the truth about what really happened to Mercy. It’s a fun read, a good solid escapist thriller. I appreciate getting a copy of Daylight from Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley, and will likely read more Baldacci (particularly the Atlee Pine series). Four stars.