Echo Burning by Lee Child is a multi-layered novel of intrigue and suspense, right and wrong. Jack Reacher is a loner. An ex-military policeman who served in the army for most of his adult life, he is now free and traveling the country he protected for so long. He is a man who likes his privacy, and doesn't like to be in one place for any length of time, a strong man, and though he can be patient, he doesn't like to take much garbage from anyone. He is also a fan of justice, both legally and morally, and when he sees an injustice he is inclined to put himself at risk to aid those on the side of truth and what is right. When Carmen picks him up hitchhiking, he becomes entwined in a plot that includes greed, murder, and kidnapping. All of this is to keep the truth from surfacing, and reveal the not so pure nature of the man who would be judge.

Jack Reacher prefers to be anonymous. He uses no credit cards and leaves no trail behind him. He carries no identification, and has no plans past where he will spend the next meal. While hitchhiking his next ride, Reacher meets Carmen Greer, who after analyzing him decides he is just the kind of man she needs to help her. She confesses the truth. She wants Reacher to help her kill her husband. Soon, Reacher finds himself involved in an ever growing conspiracy in which the Sheriff, Hack Walker, who wants to be a judge, is willing to kill his friends, frame their family, and eliminate anyone else in his path, all in an effort to climb another rung up the legal ladder of success. Unfortunately, the list of people who can stand in his way keeps growing, and when Reacher involves himself, he is added to the list of people the assassins are to eliminate. Hack Walker underestimates Jack Reacher and his level of intelligence and determination to uncover the truth. With the help of lawyer, Alice Aaron, he pursues the truth behind the events that led to the deaths of Al Eugene and Sloop Greer. Reacher's past has taught him to look at things from all angles and he doesn't believe the evidence that lands Sloop's wife Carmen in jail for his murder, especially after their daughter Ellie disappears. Eventually, after a confrontation that ends with the deaths of two of the three assassins, the third is headed for jail, having given a full confession, and Reacher has rescued the kidnapped child and freed her framed mother. Now it's time for him to move on again. He accepts the first ride that stops for him on the highway and leaves without so much as saying goodbye.