2 ½ stars. Long, drawn out process investigating murders. Not enough action. The ending was frustrating.REVIEWER’S OPINION:The story starts off in an exciting way with thugs demanding payoffs from a new restaurant owner. Reacher likes the restaurant and takes action. That was fun. But after that there was very little action, not enough. It was a long, drawn out process trying to solve the murders, but no one figured anything out until the very end. I’m reminded of the Michael Connelly books which have interesting discoveries along the way. That was missing here. For maybe the last third of the book, I had a good guess as to who and how, but Jack and others appeared kind of dumb because they never considered this. Sure, the author gave the reader more hints than Jack got, but I felt the characters should have been more open minded. Instead, I kept hearing it’s impossible. The first third of the book was pretty good due to anticipation, but the end was a letdown.I really like the Reacher character and the series. Although I had problems with this book, it still kept my interest, and I plan to read the next one.The FBI does really bad things to force Reacher to work on the case. At the end, the FBI does more really bad things. I hated the FBI’s actions and threats almost more than what the killer was doing. So I didn’t feel good at the end of the book.I wanted the killer to suffer. So far in all four books, the bad guy is quickly killed at the end. I wanted to see them get caught, see them suffer, hear their words after they realized it was over. Especially in this book, I wanted to hear what the killer would have said about motive and methods. Without those insights and feelings, the ending was empty.I did not like the author throwing in one character as a red herring. The purpose was to confuse the reader. It wasn’t explained, justified, or done well.One thing odd about Reacher is that he doesn’t travel with clothes. He only has what he is wearing. He sometimes showers, but then he puts on the same clothes. He doesn’t do laundry. I’m sure his clothes smell. In previous books he would buy cheap new clothes and throw away the old. He wasn’t buying any new clothes in this book. This is one of those suspend disbelief items. Just don’t think about it.STORY BRIEF:A serial killer is killing women who were raped or sexually harassed while in the military. The men who hurt them were put in jail or lost their jobs. The women left the military. The FBI profilers think the killer is someone like Reacher. Since the first two victims knew him, the FBI have Reacher under surveillance. They learn Reacher is innocent when a 3rd victim is killed while they were watching him. Now the FBI forces Reacher to help them solve the case. They believe his military contacts and experiences will be useful. They threaten Reacher’s girlfriend to keep him in line.THE SERIES:If you haven’t read any Reacher before, start with books 1 and 2. You do not need to read them in order. There are at least sixteen books so far. My ratings and order of the first four books are:4 ½ stars. Killing Floor4 stars. Die Trying4 stars. Tripwire2 ½ stars. Running Blind.NARRATOR:The narrator Dick Hill was very good.DATA:Unabridged audiobook reading time: 13 hrs and 5 mins. Swearing language: I don’t recall any. Sexual language: none. Number of sex scenes: one referred to not shown. Setting: 1999 various other U.S. locations. Book copyright: 2000. Genre: mystery suspense thriller. Ending: Bad guy is caught, but there is no good feeling because other things are frustrating.(view spoiler)[POSSIBLE SPOILER:Michael Connelly published “The Poet” in 1995. “Running Blind” was published five years later. It’s probably just a coincidence, but I felt like RB was a copy of or inspired by TP concerning the killer and methods used. TP was much better, I gave it 5 stars. I don’t want to be too critical since there are thousands of books out there about killers and only a limited number of ways to kill someone. But the similarities were in my mind as I was reading this. I understand Agatha Christie has also used the same thing. (hide spoiler)]
Fourth in the Jack Reacher suspense series revolving around Reacher, a big man with nothing to prove and a heart of gold.My TakeHoo, boy, Jack is between a rock and a harder place. And with a little help from Child, Jack pulls the wool over their eyes and exposes the true killer. Somehow, I knew who it was, but I just couldn't figure it out. Not until the end when the truth had to be spoon fed me! Looking back, all the clues were there. I was just too busy racing through the pages to find out whodunnit.Very clever, very tense. And very dramatic. Yeah, I know vigilantism is wrong, but the law only seems available to either the rich or the criminals. I like Jack's so-very efficient approach.The FBI's power is terrifying.They just walked all over Reacher. If I were in charge and a profiler had their head so far up their own ass, I'd be taking a much harder look at other possibilities and not getting trapped into just one perspective. I just cracked up when the FBI gets all excited 'cause Jack doesn't have pjs. Man, they have got to get a life. I am curious as to how the Feds got to Garrison ahead of him. I just love how Jack's fellow military comrades step up and help him out!The StoryThe FBI has no problem framing Jack Reacher for a slew of murders across the country. The one common denominator these ex-army women have is Jack, ergo, he's a killer. Now, of course, if he'd be willing to put his own considerable experience in their hands and help them, why, the FBI will only threaten his girlfriend with a horrible death.Seemingly, Jack hasn't much choice. After all, the FBI does have first hand evidence of his threatening the bully boys.The CharactersJack Reacher has settled down! Never thought I'd see the day! He inherited General Leon Garber's house and he's spending his time learning the joys of home ownership. Well, okay, the joys of being with Jodie Garber Jacob, a hotshot financial lawyer in line for partner at Spenser-Gutman.Alan Deerfield, Assistant Director of the FBI, runs the New York office. Special Agents Tony Poulton and Julie Lamarr, a nasty ol' bitch of a profiler, work for Agent-in-Charge Nelson Blake who runs the Serial Crimes Unit in Quantico. Blake expects Reacher to work with Lamarr and every other word out of her mouth about Jack is "son of a bitch"...yeah, it's direct and with bile. Jack gets his jollies ragging her for her major at school---you'll just crack up! Agent-in-Charge James Coyo runs Organized Crime in New York City. Lisa Harper is Reacher's FBI liaison at Quantico with some very specific instructions. Dr. Staveley is Quantico's senior pathologist. His results make me wonder about all the other MEs.The ex-army women include Amy Callan, Lieutenant Rita Scimeca, Caroline Cooke, Lorraine Stanley, and Alison Lamarr.The CoverThe cover is split between a metallic gold rising up from the bottom as a calendar desk blotter where it meets purple dissolving into turquoise—the result of headlights glaring out at us. Then a silver gun on the desk's surface pointing slightly away reflecting the turquoise and gold. Pretty.The title is Jack. He's Running Blind as the FBI profiler insists he's guilty.
What do You think about Running Blind (2001)?
Book four in the Jack Reacher series by Lee Child. In this book Jack is hijacked by the FBI and coerced/forced to help them solve a series of murders. Ex-Army women are being murdered in a most bizarre manner - the killer leaves no clues, the cause of death is impossible to discern, and the victims are discovered submerged in paint in their bathtubs. As depicted in this book, the FBI are a bunch of scumbag thugs and Reacher should have f*ucked up a bunch of them well before the end of the story.I wish there was something good to say about this book, alas, there really isn't. I knew who the killer was, and how the murders were committed fairly early in the book. Not only was the means of the murder obvious, it was so improbable that every expert I have ever read on the topic will tell you that it is impossible. And the red herring that was tossed in among the clues was simply dishonest and lazy writing. Whereas the clues pointing towards the real killer were so obvious that I wonder if anyone was even slightly surprised at the big reveal.I have not been impressed with this series as a whole - so far the best of the bunch has barely warranted a 3 star review - and looking back, that might have been generous. I guarantee that the 2 stars here was a gift. Since I would feel like a quitter to stop reading the series now, I will give at least one more a try - but if it doesn't show real improvement, it might be the last.
—Bruce Snell
Women are being murdered in some bizarre ritual. They are all connected in that they worked and resigned from the US Army. Other than that, the motive is unclear. The murders are ritualistic, with each victim being found in their home, naked, in a bathtub of army camouflage paint. The murder sites are free from evidence and the cause of death is not evident. With little to go on, the FBI suspects that the murderer must be an army man who has a link to these women in the past. A man who can kill, and be ruthless and efficient when the situation arises. The man that fits the profile is Jack Reacher. Of course Jack didn't do it, and once the FBI determine this, they enlist Reacher as a consultant. Jack is convinced the FBI is heading in the wrong direction with their investigation and so the intrigue begins.I thoroughly enjoyed this brilliantly written thriller. Reacher was less of a one-man wrecking ball. The violence was more subdued and the highly intelligent, but dangerously threatening Jack Reacher was revealed. Each word is polished and crafted by Lee Child so that nothing is wasted. And what a great storyline that builds suspense, tension, and intrigue througout. I became invested in the story right from the start, and quickly developed a need-to-know mind set. How are the murders being achieved? Who is the killer? What is their motive? Why are these women submitting so easily? Do the victims know the murderer? Why is there no evidence at the crime scene? Throw in lots of red herrings and some misleading evidence and I could not stop reading until the answers were revealed. A brilliantly crafted thriller that will not disappoint Reacher fans and thriller readers alike.
—David
So once again Reacher is caught up in a situation. This time he is being forced by the FBI to work as a consultant on a case involving the bizarre murders of ex-military females, some of which he knew personally; the victims are found in their homes immersed in bathtubs full of green paint and no visible evidence.My issue with this is that in a previous book, he more or less made allies for life with the FBI since he rescued one of their top agents, so how is it in this book, the FBI is basically blackmailing him(yes, the FBI is threatening to harm his girlfriend and trump up fake charges)? How about some continuity? Couldn't Reacher have just put in a phone call to the right people and told these FBI agents to shove it?As the reader, you spend page after page reading mundane dialog; Jack likes to talk in riddles. You also get to suffer through Lee Child's tendency to add artificial length to his books with his typical meandering. It's like, 'Look, just spit it out!'The book did not appear to be well researched as far as military things are concerned, and newsflash Lee. . . .hypnosis does not work the way you used it in this book.Oh, and I'll ask again, why the heck does everyone in the book use the word 'right' so freaking much? I swear every other line of dialog ends with 'right?' It gets annoying.Sorry, but the whole, "I must always be on the move, and don't need anything but the clothes on my back and my toothbrush" is so hokey.In this book, the guy spends weeks in the same unwashed clothes, yet some hot FBI agent wants to jump in bed with him? Please.
—Dre Mosley
