I would have to rank this as one of my favourite Lee Child books, even if I thoughs the start was dubious. For the first chapter or two, I worried this might even be a Reacher novel of a standard to rival the disaster that was Nothing to Lose. Then, of course, we got a little farther into the book and I was able to reassure myself that no book could be as bad as Nothing to Lose. I think if Lee Child were to write another book as bad as Nothing to Lose, I'd have to give up on him. Anyway, Persuader was a terrific novel, definitely up there with the best of Reacher.The book begins with Reacher witnessing and intervening in a kidnapping. Immediately, we know something about the situation is not quite right. Reacher is acting in ways that we know are not congruent with his character. For instance, Reacher doesn't stroll around with two huge revolvers in his pants on any normal day, and (this was the most alarming) he most definitely does not drive a van. Also, without giving anything away, his reactions to certain events do not fit with what we know of the character.For these reasons, I feared that Child may have, for some unknown reason, decided to disregard everything we know about the character, just so events would fit the story. But I should have known better than to doubt Child. Soon enough, we were back to the Reacher we know and love.Soon after the chaotic events of the first two chapters, Reacher is working undercover, infiltrating a heavily guarded mansion in an attempt to rescue a DEA agent held hostage by a ruthless criminal. Reacher's motives in taking part in this operation are slowly revealed throughout the book, as we learn that he is trying to settle an old score with an old enemy figure from his past, one long thought dead.One of the main reasons I found this book to be one of my favourite in the series was that this role had good deal of character building for Reacher. His desire for justice and the lengths he will go to achieve it play a huge part of the story, particularly in the final chapters.The other reason I like it is that Reacher comes up against a situation we very rarely (if ever) see. In most instances, Reacher is the biggest and strongest guy in the room. He's able to knock down enemies with only one or two blows, easily defeating those who get in his way. However, in Persuader, there is (get ready for it) someone bigger than Reacher! Our hero comes up against a huge mountain of a man, a four-hundred-pound, seven foot tall, steroid using thug with arms that look as though they've had basketballs stuffed inside of them. This is a guy who makes Reacher feel as Reacher makes most other people feel. This scenario reveals a completely new side of the character. Not many people could take one of Reacher's kicks and stay standing.However much I enjoyed this book, there is one or two little problems I had with it. First of all, the romance seemed rather pointless. I didn't like the character Duffy in the first place (she seemed rather dim witted) and it appeared to me that the romance between her and Reacher was placed only so Child could have a sex scene in the book. It didn't really seem to mean anything, and both characters acted as though it had never happened afterwards. Saying this, I did, however, enjoy the scenes between Reacher and Kohl (a character I liked much better than Duffy). This romance was actually relevant to the plot, and it seemed more meaningful than the Duffy-Reacher romance.My second minor problem was was that there was a sequence of scenes towards the end of the book that seemed drawn out and pointless. Basically, it involved a few of the characters running around looking for the bad guys only to end up back where they started. This just seemed dumb, and served only to set up the next sequence of scenes (which I admittedly loved; I just think Child could have found a far better way to get to them).Overall, Persuader was an excellent edition to a series I love and a great development to a character I love. There were a few minor things that annoyed me, but not enough to drop my rating from five stars to four. Overall, a great read for any thriller fans.
2 stars for the back story. 4 stars for the rest. Another fun tough guy Reacher story. Several scenes where he takes out bad guys, my favorite parts.STORY BRIEF:Reacher thought he killed bad guy Quinn ten years ago. He recently saw Quinn on the street. He learns that FBI agents are trying to catch Quinn and Beck who work together. They believe Beck is into drug smuggling. Reacher gets hired by Beck and is now undercover.REVIEWER’S OPINION:There is a great scene in the beginning with Reacher thwarting a kidnaping attempt. There’s a fun scene later where Reacher kills two men with one stone. It weighed ten pounds. I still laugh when I think about it. What a tough guy. Ok so this is another typical Reacher story. It’s fun. It’s escapist. There are some really bad guys, and Reacher does them in. There were a few parts where I was thinking, don’t do that, or why are you doing that, or this is illogical. But it’s best if I try not to be too logical or analytical. Just enjoy it. It’s revenge, justice, and vigilantism. If civil and legal rights for bad guys are important to you, you may not like this. Even though I had a few grumbles about the book, as soon as I finished it, I went straight to the next one. These Reacher books keep me entertained and engaged. I did not like the way the author told the back story from ten years ago. I would have preferred the author tell it completely at the beginning of the book and then do the current day story without interruption. The back story was broken into about a dozen pieces, with little chunks thrown at us throughout the book. It was distracting and interrupting. At times I was confused until a character’s name was said which told me whether it was now or then. And, the back story was not very good. Also, I would have liked an epilogue to find out what happened to Beck and his family.THE SERIES:This is book 7 in the Jack Reacher series. I gave 4 or more stars to all of the first 6 books except for Running Blind, gave that one 2 ½.NARRATOR:The narrator Dick Hill was very good.tDATA:Unabridged audiobook reading time: 13 hrs and 51 mins. Swearing language: moderate. Sexual language: none. Number of sex scenes: one referred to not shown. Setting: late April, 2003, mostly Maine plus other east coast locations in the U.S. Book copyright: 2003. Genre: mystery suspense thriller. Ending: Good.
What do You think about Persuader (2008)?
This was the first Jack Reacher novel I've read. I'm not really sure whether it's the recent discussion of Child and Reacher on the Dorothyl listserv or the fact that the book was sent to me as an ARC and I felt like I had to read it, but I just never warmed up to the character. Or maybe it's because I'm coming to it mid-series (I'm one of those readers who likes to start at the beginning and read in order).Whatever the case, I can see the point of those who complain that Reacher is something of a superhero. No one could take the constant abuse he does. He swims in the freezing ocean. He beats up steroid-enhanced bad guys. He kills dozens of faceless, cardboard bad guys. The thing I was most bothered by is his cold-bloodedness. Sure, the bad guys in the book are really bad guys, but Reacher could give Richard Stark's Parker a run for his money in the emotionless, steely-determination department. He doesn't seem to care--he's a killing machine--and that got old. I was especially bothered by the way he does away with the main bad guy, who had escaped his wrath ten years previously--with a slowly-inserted, razor-sharp chisel to the head! Yuck! Maybe the guy deserved it (he's drawn as a very, very bad guy in the book), but Reacher shouldn't be enjoying it.At one point in the book, Reacher quotes Nietzsche--"whatever doesn't destroy us, makes us stronger." I think he needs to review the quote (also Nietzsche?) about how, when you're chasing monsters, you'd better be careful not to become one yourself. I guess it was the whole casualness with which the violence is handled that bothered me about the book, and I'm not someone who shies away from violence or from dark books. I don't think I'll be reading more in this series. A disappointment.**UPDATE**:I've actually read several more of Child's Reacher novels and they've become "must-read" books for me. That said, I still think this is one of the weakest books in this series.
—Craig
Another exciting Jack Reacher adventure. Each time I pick one of these up on a Daily Deal I always think that it will be my last, but Lee Child has a great pen for action-adventure. In this addition Jack finds himself knee deep in a covert mission where he is to extract an under cover operative that is caught up in a drug opperation, however, all things are not what they may seem. When he infiltrates and gains the trust of some of the key players involved, he starts to realize that the whole convoluted mission leads him back into his past.A lot of gun fights and the normal Reacher bravado, surrounded by some pretty interesting characters and a good, twisting plot. As always Dick Hill's narration added something extra to the story. I will be picking up the next Daily Deal in this series. It always keeps me wanting for more.
—Susan
It's amazing how interchangeable these are, and how well suited they are to being read while traveling due to their junk-food-like delivery of thrills, unmaskings, and fights. I consumed this volume in the space of two Bolt Bus rides and a few subway trips in between. Give the author credit: interchangeable is also consistent. It's easy to embark on a 6-hour trip with one of these, knowing you have the proper amount and type of entertainment. Nothing in this installment stood out to me, except that it has a crisp enunciation of the overall Reacher ethos: "I don't really care about the little guy. I just hate the big guy. I hate big smug people who think they can get away with things."
—Emily
