Book Review: The Lightning Rod

Archie Mint has a secret. He’s led a charmed life—he’s got a beautiful wife, two impressive kids, and a successful military career. But when he’s killed while trying to stop a robbery in his own home, his family is shattered—and then shocked when the other shoe drops. Mint’s been hiding criminal secrets none of them could have imagined.

While working on Mint’s body before his funeral, mortician “Zig” Zigarowski discovers something he was never meant to see. That telling detail leads him to Mint’s former top secret military unit and his connection to artist Nola Brown. Two years ago, Nola saved Zig’s life—so he knows better than most that she’s as volatile and dangerous as a bolt of lightning.

Following Nola’s trail, he uncovers one of the U.S. government’s most intensely guarded secrets—an undisclosed military facility that dates back to the Cold War and holds the key to something far more sinister: a hidden group willing to compromise the very safety and security of America itself. Trouble always finds her… She’s the lightning rod.

The Lightning Rod by Brad Meltzer was published March 2022 by William Morrow Publishing.

I am a longtime fan of Brad's work and have had the pleasure to meet him at book talks on several occasions. I've had this one, a sequel to 2018's The Escape Artist, in my to-read pile for about a year now. Time to finally get back into the adventures of Zig and Nola.

The author wastes no time diving right into the action. As always, we start with a lot of questions. Once we start to get some answers, they are usually accompanied by more questions as the scope of the story spreads and the cast expands. It keeps the reader engaged. Most of the chapters are just three to five pages apiece, which keeps the story moving at a quick pace and allows him to often end that part of a scene on a cliffhanging moment. The smaller chunks encourage the reader to keep turning the pages.

As always, Brad has done his homework. I learn a lot of things from reading his stories - whether it is how government organizations operate or little technology tricks. He delivers the details in a way that fit the flow of the story and don't bog the reader down in too much minutiae.