Die Trying

Product Information

Reacher ends up in South Dakota after a bus crash in a snowstorm which leads him to helping her out. It’s a good thing too because there is a proficient assassin making his way to the small town, a killer who never misses. The enemies he faces will be stronger than he imagined, but so is the woman he is risking it all to keep alive. I did like this one a lot more than Killing Floor. It helped that Reacher is thrown into a scenario more fitting of an action hero rather than splitting time trying to play detective. Switching from the first person narrative to third person here is also a big improvement s because rather than the main character telling us how awesome he is we get to either see it or have it relayed from an outsider’s perspective. Forget about solving all these crimes; the signal triumph here is (spoiler) the heroine’s survival. All Reacher was looking for was a ride, but he now finds himself into something much bigger: a massive conspiracy that will make him a threat to both sides. What they don’t know is just how big of a threat he is. How many girls will he meet over his lifetime, and he is already late thirties, so being the impatient person that I am, I am unable to stay in the moment and am fast forwarding quite rapidly. Reacher will always save the day, if he stuffs up he realises straight away and will always know how to right the wrong. The author knows a lot about weapons and military, I find this is interesting. I know nothing about this stuff but I feel I am in safe hands.

He thinks it won’t be a tough job, but soon finds himself racing through LA, Chicago, Phoenix, and San Francisco, going against thugs and assassins at every stop. The search will ultimately force Reacher to confront one of the worst nightmares that he could possibly imagine. The evidence points to a soldier from a local military base who has someone powerful friends that could help to cover up something like this. Reacher meets with the local sheriff who is looking for justice in this case, but the two are uncertain if they can trust each other. As Reacher looks to uncover the truth, there are others trying to bury it forever. He’ll end up uncovering a conspiracy that threatens his faith in his mission and turns him into the scary man that readers know well. While held captive by the kidnappers Reacher impresses Holly with his calm, brains, physical fitness. He even tries psychological games on the kidnappers to gain some upper hand. My library has got some books in the series and I shall try out a few more. In fact I am in the waiting list, for the next book in the series- Tripwire, from my library. What she has to tell him is a story of a man they served with’s brutal death and the killer isn’t finished. Reacher gets together with the other survivors of his elite team as they try to put together the pieces of this puzzle. Their trail leads them to more missing comrades, the city of Las Vegas, and the dark world of international terrorism.Gone Tomorrow: It’s 2AM in New York City when Reacher is riding a subway car uptown. There are five other passengers on the subway and one of them isn’t okay. If you think Reacher isn’t going to do something about that, you haven’t been paying attention.

Somewhere in the U.S. Army, someone is trying to set up Reacher as the fall guy in this case. Some men may go down without a fight, but Reacher is not that man. He’ll fight against an enemy he didn’t know he had and a conspiracy darker than he ever could’ve imagined. After Reacher fails to takes advantage of an opportunity to escape during the night, Holly insists that he let her handle things. However, she ends up owing him when, during another stay, one of the kidnappers, Peter Bell, tries to rape her. Reacher breaks free of his restraints, kills Bell, hides his body, and re-restrains himself before the others become suspicious. Holly finally and reluctantly accepts his help after this. While Reacher and Holly spend a restless night in an old barn, Holly's fellow FBI agents are searching for clues to her disappearance. The director of the FBI is notified and placed in charge of the case. The Chicago office where Holly was assigned takes lead on the local aspects of the case, paring those in the know to just the agent in charge and two trusted agents. The investigation begins slowly.The series has been highly praised by Stephen King and Jeffery Deaver – the best endorsements a thriller writer can get Lee Child writes entertaining novels – the very nature of action thrillers makes the stories unrealistic. I get that. I really do. But, what I would have preferred was a more believable plot. The execution could have been a bit better. Deep Down: Reacher is called in by Military Intelligence and sent undercover on a mission. Classified talks about a state-of-the-art sniper rifle are being infiltrated and it’s up to Reacher to sniff off the mole. It’s meant to be a zero-danger mission with no weapons involved, but if there’s one thing Reacher knows it’s that things rarely turn out that way. Whoever the enemy is, Reacher knows that the only way to stop him is to match his ruthlessness and cunning, and beat him at his own dangerous game.

Sort of reminded me of John D. MacDonald’s 1979 Travis McGee novel The Green Ripper, and there are similarities between Reacher and McGee, but obliquely and MacDonald is the more thoughtful writer. While Child has Reacher making some astute social and cultural observations, this is nowhere near the level of subtly intellectual commentary MacDonald was able to pull off. What I like most about the Reacher storyline is that (and stay with me here) is it reminds me of one of my all-time favorite TV shows: Kung Fu.A suspenseful, professional-grade north country procedural whose heroine, a deft mix of compassion and attitude, would be welcome to return and tie up the gaping loose end Box leaves. The unrelenting cold makes this the perfect beach read.