Book Review: Killing Floor by Lee Child

Killing Floor
Author: Lee Child
Series: Jack Reacher (Book 1)
Publication:  Jove; Reprint edition (October 30, 2012)

Description: When Jack Reacher suddenly decides to ask a Greyhound bus driver to let him off near the town of Margrave, Georgia, he thinks it's because his brother once mentioned that the famed blues guitarist Blind Blake died there. But it doesn't take long for the footloose ex-military policeman to discover that there are plenty of strange--and very dangerous--things going on behind Margrave's manicured lawns and clean streets that demand his attention. This first thriller by a former television writer features some of the best-written scenes of action in recent memory, a crash course in currency and counterfeiting, and a hero who is just begging to be called on for an encore.

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this first book in the Jack Reacher series. I liked the crisp prose and the laconic narrator. I also enjoyed trying to puzzle out the mystery with Reacher.

Reacher gets off a bus because he is near the town of Margrave Georgia. As a Blues fan, he wants to track down the famed guitarist Blind Blake. He seems to remember that his brother told him that Blake had died there. But things aren't all good in picture perfect Margrave. Reacher is in town for just a few hours before he is arrested for murder.

As a former military policeman, Reacher knows murder investigations and he also knows that his alibi is solid. He figures things will be straightened out quickly and he'll be able to move on. But a frame up leads to him getting more deeply involved. His involvement deepens even more when he learns that is was his brother who was one of the murder victims. They weren't close; Reacher hadn't seen him for years. But despite this childhood behaviors that said you protect your brother surface and Reacher decides that someone will have to pay for killing his brother.

The story has lots of violence. Between the villains torture murders and Reacher's casual murder of any villain he finds, the pages drip with blood. Reacher is an interesting character. He is rootless and likes it. He is detached from everyone and likes that too. When he pairs up with one of the cops, I could see a relationship that was doomed to failure. But his desire to protect Roscoe gave him additional incentive to solve the problems and find and kill all villains. By the way, who calls their love interest by their last name?

I enjoyed this book and look forward to reading more of the Jack Reacher series. One of the advantages of coming to a series late is that I don't have to wait for the next book to be available. I think I have 16 more in the series to read.

Favorite Quote:

I said it with total certainty. Total conviction. Like absolutely no other possibility existed. She looked at me. I wanted her to see this huge guy. A soldier for thirteen long years. A bare-knuckle killer. Icy blue eyes. I was giving it everything I had. I was willing myself to project all the invincibility, all the implacability, all the protection I felt. I was doing the hard, no-blink stare that used to shrivel up drunken marines two at a time. I wanted Roscoe to feel safe. After what she was giving me, I wanted to give her that. I didn't want her to feel afraid.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.