I just finished Patrick Lee’s second book, Ghost Country. It’s a sequel to his first novel featuring both Travis Chase and Paige Campbell. As those of you who read my review of Lee’s previous novel, The Breach, I really enjoyed how Lee ended the story and so I had high hopes for Ghost Country. As I read Ghost Country I was pleasantly surprised to note that, although it is a sequel to The Breach, it is not just a re-warmed version of the same story. Lee worked hard to ensure that the new book is fresh, and it is. In Ghost Country, Paige is captured by some nameless bad guys in Washington D.C., but before they can cuff her and carry her away she sends out one last desperate phone call to her assistant, who recruits Travis Chase (who is retired from awesomeness) to rescue her. From there the plot of Ghost Country expands from saving Paige to saving the whole world. The story gets started because another Breach technology is discovered that allows people to open a window into the future. Paige looked and saw a world where everyone is dead and gone. She goes to ask the president if he knows what is going to happen, he plays dumb, but it turns out he really knows…and the goons (remember, the ones who kidnapped her at the beginning of the book) are his!!! The plot only gets crazier from there and involves crazy megalomaniacs, radio waves that drive people crazy, and crazy plans to wipe out the world as we know it.
The thing I most enjoyed about Ghost Country is its original plot and story line. The Breach and all the little trinkets it throws out add more variety to Lee’s books that one generally sees in the thriller genre. Additionally, Lee’s novels (so far) aren’t about terrorists who want to blow up New York (yawn, yawn), they’re about the destruction of the entire world!!! That’s got to make things a little more interesting. And not only is the whole world at stake, but Lee has an uncanny ability to make it all plausible. There was never really a point in Ghost Country where I was totally incredulous.
Unlike The Breach when the climactic ending caught me breathless and left me wanting more, Ghost Country started the wind-up about halfway through the book, which means that by the time I was finished reading the book I had already moved on mentally. I’m the kind of guy who likes to be kept guessing all the way to the end of the book and Ghost Country didn’t do that for me. Although Lee has definitely honed his writing style in lots of good ways, the decision to spell out the ending way before it happened was a bit disappointing. All in all a good way to spend an afternoon. Again, probably not a great choice if you get queasy around Star Trekkie gadgetry, but otherwise a refreshing break from the average thriller.
To learn more about Patrick Lee and the Travis Chase series check out his website here... http://www.patrickleefiction.com/. We're giving away a copy of The Breach and Ghost Country to one lucky commenter. Just leave a comment using the word incredulous and you'll be entered into the drawing. Winner will be announced Monday.
This review was written by The Senator.
