With each novel that David Baldacci writes, he continues to impress me more and more. In the past, I have lauded his ability to be such a prolific writer while never once sacrificing quality in any of his books. With the release of THE EDGE, the second entry in his 6:20 Man thriller series, he has reached new heights. The result may be one of the most satisfying and intense stories he has ever produced.

The moniker “6:20 Man” refers to the Metro North train that Travis Devine would take to his job in New York City as a stock market analyst and all-around whiz. However, it isn’t long before Devine’s past life taps him on the shoulder and calls him back to duty. He is to rely not only on his smarts but also on his time spent as an Army Ranger to do work for a clandestine government agency that can directly utilize his many skills on missions for which he is built. He also recognizes that if anything goes wrong while out in the field, they would deny all knowledge of his existence.

"THE EDGE is an appropriate title as readers literally will be on the edge of their seats from beginning to end.... Baldacci uses every card up his sleeve to keep THE EDGE consistently pumping with life and brilliant plot tricks that surprise and stun."

THE EDGE kicks off with a blast as we get to witness Devine going all out on some dangerous assailants aboard a bullet train traveling between Geneva and Milan in Europe. He is then brought back to his native soil to be given a very different assignment that requires immediate attention. His handler, Emerson Campbell, informs him that CIA operative Jenny Silkwell was found shot to death in rural Maine. Not only are the circumstances highly suspicious and none of the town’s 250 residents are talking, Jenny just happened to be Campbell’s goddaughter.

All Campbell knows is that Jenny returned to Putnam, Maine, to settle something. Whatever that something was got her killed. He now wants Devine to pose as an investigator from Homeland Security to break through the secrets of this tight-knit, tight-lipped town and find out what really happened. Devine has to determine if the homicide is in any way related to Jenny’s CIA work or the result of something sinister going on in Putnam.

Upon arriving there, Devine is met with instant hostility, beginning with the old woman who runs the only inn in town. She immediately shuts him down when he starts asking general exploratory questions about the murder. But this resistance is nothing compared to what he receives from the local police department. The only person who comes across as somewhat reasonable is the medical examiner and local mortician, who seems to have some semblance of honesty.

Devine must meet with Jenny’s siblings: her brother Dak, an other-than-honorable discharge from the military who is now a tattoo artist, and sister Alex, a highly talented painter with a dark and troubled past of her own. He is instantly drawn to Alex as someone who needs protecting and finds that her personal brand of PTSD stems from being brutally attacked and raped by an unknown assailant when she was a teenager. Might this have something to do with Jenny’s need to return to Putnam and settle old scores?

THE EDGE is an appropriate title as readers literally will be on the edge of their seats from beginning to end. Devine nearly ends up becoming a victim himself on more than one occasion, and he starts to wonder if he is being set up in some way or if there could be a mole within his own agency. Living on the edge like this might be an adrenaline rush, but it does not make solving this case any easier.

Like a classic whodunit, possible suspects are introduced and then eliminated in various ways, showing that someone really does not want the truth to be found. Baldacci uses every card up his sleeve to keep THE EDGE consistently pumping with life and brilliant plot tricks that surprise and stun. Once again, he shows that he is more than just a bestselling author. A writer who is always relevant and never phones anything in, Baldacci pushes himself to churn out top-notch thrillers that not only entertain but remain eminently readable.