Zero Day by David Baldacci

Zero Day by David Baldacci introduces us to a new hero, John Puller. Puller is an experienced and highly accomplished soldier, now with the army Criminal Investigative Unit. He has repeatedly chosen field work over military rank and has proven himself a competent and tireless investigator.  His dedication to justice over politics immediately endears him to the reader. He is assigned to investigate a murder case in rural West Virginia that quickly unravels into a conspiracy that threatens the security of the nation.

A Lieutenant Colonel, his wife and two kids are killed in a small West Virginia coal town while visiting family. Puller is solely assigned to the case with no back up and is told to report his activity only through secure channels.  Puller makes contact with the local county detective, Samantha Cole and finds her relieved to have the assistance.  They soon discover four other related murders in the area.  Puller and Cole follow leads to the rich coal company owners, a local motorcycle club with drug dealing connections, and an ancient but abandoned federal nuclear research center with a mysterious past.  Attempts on Puller’s life convince him that someone has secrets to keep and are desperate to do so.  He finds out from a retired army officer that corners were cut when the nuclear research facility was closed and that dangerous nuclear fuel could potentially be still inside.  In terrorist hands this powerful fuel could do far more damage than 9/11.  Homeland Security intercepts chatter from this small West Virginia town that leads them to believe an attack is imminent, only three days away.  Yet they continue to rely solely on Puller to foil the attack.  They fear that sending in the troops would tip off the terrorists who would advance the operation.

Baldacci’s Zero Day is riveting and fast paced with enough twists and turns to keep you guessing to the very end. John Puller is an intriguing powerful lead character with likable human qualities.  But here’s the rub…you can’t read this book without constantly comparing it to Lee Child’s The Affair.  The characters are too similar and the story lines too parallel.  That really detracts from an otherwise good read.  But I hope we see more of John Puller.