The Hard Way

Starred review from March 27, 2006
In bestseller Child's 10th novel to feature ex-army MP Jack Reacher (after 2005's One Shot
), a sidewalk cafe encounter in New York City plunges Reacher into one of his most challenging—and thoroughly engrossing—adventures to date. Acting out of "reflex and professional curiosity" (and the promise of a generous fee), Reacher agrees to help sinister ex-army officer Edward Lane, whose posse of six Special Forces veterans are even more ominous than he, track down his kidnapped daughter and trophy wife. Since the kidnapping of wife number one five years earlier ended in her death, Lane cautions Reacher that he will not brook police interference ("You break your word, I'll put your eyes out"). From Lane's quarters in the West Side's venerable Dakota apartment building to the shady sections of SoHo and Greenwich Village, the author's atmospheric descriptions make Manhattan a leading player, with menace lurking at every intersection. The inevitable showdown, on a farm outside a tiny English village, ranks as one of Child's most thrilling finales.

August 7, 2006
Ex-army MP Jack Reacher is contracted by Edward Lane, the leader of a mercenary company, to track and recover Lane's kidnapped wife and daughter. But while Reacher is adept at finding people, this time he's got his work cut out for him, for in this case, the client seems to be just as suspect as the criminal. Hill narrates with a crisp, midrange baritone which effectively, if not spectacularly, conveys Child's prose. For the most part, Hill speaks naturally and clearly, but at times, he seems to exaggerate his enunciation, which results in some stilted passages. He doesn't alter his style much when shifting between dialogue and description, and so conversations are sometimes not as engaging as they could be. While Child's prose reads fine on the page, Hill's interpretation of it seems a bit too smug, which makes even the hero a bit unlikable. Hill's adequate performance will likely be sufficient for the casual audiobook listener but not for connoisseurs. Simultaneous release with the Delacorte hardcover (Reviews, Mar. 27).

Starred review from March 1, 2006
Jack Reacher may know the time to the minute without a watch and bring justice to bear wherever he goes, but this time he does it the hard way, sweating the details and working the clues. Because this time -despite his acute observation and intuition -he makes some wrong assumptions and a mistake that could turn tragic. Watching the passing scene over espresso in a New York café , Reacher sees something that involves him in the kidnapping of Kate Lane, second wife of Edward Lane, whose first wife, Anne, was also kidnapped and killed, despite FBI efforts. Lane, rich from hiring out ex-military mercenaries, contracts with Reacher, who works covertly with private investigator Lauren Pauling, a retired FBI agent who had led the Anne Lane case. In his tenth outing (after "One Shot", Reacher is humanized by both his mistakes -as he finds that both kidnappings are not what they seem -and his relationship with the fiftyish Pauling. Tension builds through plot twists to another riveting finish by Child, who shows again his mastery of the thriller. [See Prepub Alert, "LJ "/06.]" -Michele Leber, Arlington, VA"

Copyright 2006 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from February 15, 2006
Child's last two Jack Reacher novels (" One Shot" , 2005, and " The Enemy" , 2004) have emphasized procedural detail rather than the high-octane action that gave the series its identity. There's still plenty of procedure, but this time the gearshift is back in overdrive: "Reacher, alone in the dark. Armed and dangerous. Coming back." Former military cop Reacher does his level best not to come back: he lives off the grid (no address, no belongings), but his instincts keep driving him toward solving other people's problems, the kind that won't stay solved without violence. Here, he's having an espresso in Greenwich Village when a man walks across the street, gets in a car, and drives away. It happens every day, but it's not always a kidnapper picking up the ransom. Soon Reacher is involved in helping a ruthless mercenary find his wife and stepdaughter before the kidnappers tie up loose ends. There's a lot more to it than that, though, and it takes three-fourths of the novel before Reacher figures out who the bad guys are. Like all the best thrillers, this one is about more than pace: yes, the narrative propels you forward with a locomotive's thrust, but Child never loses sight of the small detail or the human fabric--not unlike Reacher in the dark, armed and dangerous, intent on the action in front of him but always aware of the sights and sounds to his sides and behind him. (Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2006, American Library Association.)