I’m not sure why books don’t carry warning labels: “WARNING: This book is highly addictive! Begin reading at your own risk!,” but they should.  Many years ago, while in law school, I came across Travis McGee in the wonderful books by John D. Macdonald. Those books, like “The Deep Blue Good-bye,” were my escape from studying for exams, writing papers or doing the laundry!  Once I finished the series, I went through withdrawal, but with kids in the picture I really didn’t have time for such addictive books!

And then many years later, with my kids now older, I encountered a new addiction, Jack Reacher, and again I had a found a means of escape from dishes and laundry!  Lee Child, the author of “A Wanted Man,” the seventeenth and most recent book in this series, has created an interesting hero.  Jack Reacher is a former MP who served overseas and who now after being discharged, hitchhikes his way across the country and keeps running into bad situations that need his special skill set to be resolved.  In this book the story opens with Jack hitchhiking and getting into a car with two men and a woman who are on their way home from a company meeting.  But Jack soon realizes that all is not as it seems and he is soon embroiled in a matter that has the local police and FBI scrambling to keep up with the trail of carnage, murder and kidnapping that follows that car.  Child is very effective in holding your interest as Jack sits in the car for mile after mile; a rather unique setting where the action is all in Jack’s head as he tries to figure out what is going on and what kind of people are in the car with him.

Although this kind of series can tend to have a certain “canned” or repetitive quality to them, Child has avoided that to a large extent and always manages to surprise and keep you guessing.  His hero Jack is a bad-ass-both every man and superman-who is vulnerable at times and someone you can relate to and always has interesting insights into the human condition.  Each book reveals something new or different about Jack while at the same time keeping you on the edge of your seat.

A movie of one of the books in the Jack Reacher series will be released soon. Tom Cruise is to play Jack and although I am not sure that is the best casting choice, I am trying to keep an open mind!

Brenda’s Recommendation: (****) Four Stars for the book, (*****) Five stars for the series.

Recommended For: Sharon and Marian

Book Study Appropirate? No

I read this as an ebook.