Without Fail

Starred review from April 22, 2002
The sixth time's a charm for thriller meister Child, whose latest escapade starring ex-military cop Jack Reacher is handily his most accomplished and most compelling to date. The suspense-laden plot kicks off with U.S. Secret Service agent M.E. Froelich telling Reacher: "I want to hire you to assassinate the Vice President of the United States." V-p-elect Brook Armstrong has received a series of anonymous death threats, and Froelich needs to uncover their source and ascertain the effectiveness of Armstrong's security detail. Reacher agrees to masquerade as an assassin because he can't resist a challenge and because Froelich had loved his older brother, Joe, a Secret Service colleague killed in a botched operation. As Reacher pieces together an increasingly frustrating puzzle, Child ratchets up the excitement with several breathtaking set pieces, including a Thanksgiving dinner for D.C.'s homeless that turns deadly, a jaw-dropping coup de théâtre and a slam-bang finale in Wyoming's mountains. He even extracts tension from mundane events, as when Reacher searches for clues on a security video of an office cleaning crew. The novel's detailed insider's view of political skullduggery is certain to intrigue readers, and the various characters' relationships, handled with careful restraint, provide an added layer—the growing attachment between Froelich and Reacher; both characters' recollections of Joe; Reacher's regard for Frances Neagley, a former colleague whom he calls in for help. And then there's Reacher himself, the stolid, flawed man's man who gives no quarter on any level. Indeed, the novel's final line serves as a précis of this quietly fascinating character: "He headed west for the Port Authority and a bus out of town." This Child's play will be a tough act to follow. (May)Forecast:A selection of BOMC, the Literary Guild and Mystery Guild, this Reacher adventure is poised to be Child's bestselling one to date.

Characters never sound middle-of-the-road in Dick Hill's narration. They're brimming with personality, distinctive and vivid. All of that is especially true of Child's protagonist in this gripping, incisive thriller about an attempt to kill the vice president. Jack Reacher, a former military investigator, is cocksure and whip-smart, and Hill gives him swagger, wit, and passion. Reacher is brought in by the Secret Service, first to see if an assassin could get to the vice president and then to stop real assassins from doing just that. The book is a joyride for listeners, full of false leads, dead ends, concussive bursts of action, and characters who are fully realized and individual. This is as much fun as an audiobook performance can be. M.O. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2002, Portland, Maine