This was the best book I have read by Baldacci since Absolute Power and Total Control. It sizzled almost from the first chapter and there were times I had a hard time putting it down. I don't get that too much anymore, so it is always a welcome pleasure when I do come across a book that captures my attention to that degree.

In Zero Day, John Puller, a no-nonsense, tough-as-nails military investigator for the Army's Criminal Investigation Department (CID), is called in to investigate the murder of an officer of the Defense Intelligence Agency along with his entire family. The murders take place in the small West Virginia town of Drake, deep in the heart of coal country. There he teams up with Samantha Cole of the Sheriff's Office to try and unravel the motive behind the murders. Nothing is as it seems in Drake, and the more digging Puller and Cole do, the deeper the mystery intensifies concerning the deaths of the DIA officer and his family. The closer Puller and Cole get to the truth, the higher the body count rises as more people are silenced in an attempt to derail the investigation.

Normally, I can sniff out the ending to a novel long before I get to it, but I can say that with Zero Day, this was not the case. I was kept guessing to the very end...and what an ending it was! What a pleasure it was to read a Baldacci book that sizzled like his earliest novels used to do! Unfortunately, Baldacci succumbed (as many successful authors do) to a formulaic approach to his novels. Rather than move on to new characters, new settings, and new plots he has chosen to follow up each successful novel and spin off sequel after sequel. The Camel Club is an ad nauseam example. We had book after book based on the same characters, with each book less interesting than the previous one. This works for some authors. Clive Cussler with his Dirk Pitt character, or Lee Child with Jack Reacher (which some have said John Puller's character resembles) come to mind. But then, you know that going in and buy those novels for that very reason. Such is not the case with Baldacci as you are wanting some degree of originality. Otherwise, his novels have become...stale. That's what I liked best about Zero Day. It was original and it was fresh!

The one part of Zero Day that was puzzling to me was Puller's older brother who was serving a life sentence for treason. This act of treason was never explained, and I suspect it will form the basis of, yes, a sequel to Zero Day with the John Puller character once again front and center. If that is indeed the case, one can only hope it comes close to matching Zero Day as a thoroughly riveting read. Four stars out of five!