Gone Tomorrow by Lee Child

Jack Reacher, the giant former military policeman, doesn't go looking for trouble but it always finds him. Sitting on a New York subway train at two in the morning, he notices that one of the other five passengers is, according to a list compiled by Israeli counter-intelligence, showing all the signs of being a suicide bomber. Thus begins, even for battle-scarred Reacher, a rollercoaster ride that in terms of bodycount and breathlessness is unlikely ever to be surpassed.

The serpentine story — narrated, for once, by Reacher himself — stretches all the way back to Afghanistan in 1983 where the Russians were defeated by the mujahideen. The moral, if that is not too strong a word for such a bloody, brutal tale, is that: "Sometimes our friends become our enemies, and sometimes our enemies become our friends." Reacher does not reveal much about himself, apart from a liking for rats and guns, yet this simply enhances his status as a mythic avenger. Gone Tomorrow will be appreciated by those who consume thrillers for the same reason that our hero drinks coffee: "It's about the caffeine & not the taste." You'll be left with a thumping heart and a racing pulse but, be warned, Chapter 63 will give you nightmares.

Synposis by Foyles.co.uk

Suicide bombers are easy to spot. They give out all kinds of tell-tale signs. Mostly because they're nervous. By definition they're all first-timers. Riding the subway in New York at two o'clock in the morning, Reacher knows the twelve giveaway signs to look out for. Watching one of his fellow-passengers, he becomes sharply aware: one by one, she ticks off every bulletpoint on his list. So begins the new heartstopping new thriller starring today's most admired action hero, the gallant and enigmatic loner Jack Reacher.