Running Blind (Jack Reacher, No. 4)

Across the country women are being murdered by a killer who leaves no evidence, no fatal wounds, no signs of struggle, and no clues to a motive. They are, truly, perfect crimes. In fact, the only thing that links the victims is the man they all knew: Jack Reacher.

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Reacher is the suspect in a bizarre series of murders in which ex-army women (who left the force because of a variety of sexual harassment cases) are left naked in their bathtubs filled with green army paint. The killer leaves no clues and what is even more bizarre, they have no idea how the women died.

Even after Reacher's name is cleared, he is blackmailed by the FBI into unravelling this bizarre case. He must get to the killer before more women die, or face the consequences of the FBI's fury.

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37 of 38 found the following review helpful:

An Exciting, Well-Done ThrillerSep 02, 2000

I have now read all of the Jack Reacher novels by Lee Child and I believe this one to be the best of them all. Not that it doesn't have flaws - some of the activities carried out by the FBI are pretty questionable, Reacher at times approaches super-human in his skills, and there are probably a few too many red herrings and digressions. Nevertheless, for what it is, this is an extremely fast-moving and exciting thriller. It is genuinely hard to put down and the ending will likely surprise you (though admittedly a careful reader will probably see it coming; there are clues aplenty). Child plays fair, however, and you buy the whole thing. I do wish Child's novels "reached" (pun intended) a wider audience; he is a good writer who has created an interesting and charismatic character. This book is well worth your time.

12 of 12 found the following review helpful:

Dying In Your Own BathtubJul 20, 2000

Author Lee Childs brings back the invincible ex-MP, Jack Reacher. This time, could he be the serial killer the FBI is after? Could he be the maniac that leaves dead bodies smeared with camoflauge paint in their own bathtubs?

In, "Running Blind", we are privy to an edgy laser paced thriller. After some shennanigans from the government with Jack's galpal, he willingly searches for a killer who leaves no clues. Jack begins with a few common threads; all of the victims brought gritty sexual charges against their military superiors, all won their cases, all then resigned, and then they were all found dead in their own bathtubs.

I do not want to take up too much of your time with this review...when you can be engrossed in this blazing blitz of a book on your own!

other reading suggestions: "Messiah" by Boris Starling and "The Empty Chair" by Jeffrey Deaver

Thanks for your interest & comments--CDS

13 of 14 found the following review helpful:

PainfulJun 18, 2007
By Larry Oliver "nollij seeker"
I have read several of the Lee Child's "Jack Reacher" novels and enjoyed them. Up until now. Child creates great characters (Reacher being preeminent) and has a talent for great individual scenes. His endings tend to be a bit clumsy, but I've forgiven that in the past for the joy of the ride. I can't do it with this one. The solution on this one, re. how the murders are committed, is so absurd that it has effectively ended my interest in the series. I figured out the probable solution early on during the book, but I kept telling myself I must be wrong as such a solution would be ridiculous. Unfortunately the ridiculous solution was the solution. I apologize for mentioning the ending without going into detail as to what it was and what specifically was wrong with it, but there's no way to do this without being a "spoiler" and I don't want to mess up the (already bad) ending for people who do choose to buy the book. If you like Lee Child, please continue to read him but know that he has done better work than this.

45 of 56 found the following review helpful:

Robin Hood and the Lone Ranger meet the 21st centuryAug 30, 2004
By Rennie Petersen
This is the first Lee Child book I've read, which is perhaps unfortunate, as several of the other reviews indicate that this book is not as good as some of the others in the Jack Reacher series. (By the way, this book has two different titles: "Running Blind" in the USA and Canada, and "The Visitor" in the UK and elsewhere.)

To start with the positive stuff, I love Lee Child's writing style. I'm a fan of thrillers, and this means I'm used to fairly mediocre writing, so this book was a very nice change.

The basic idea behind Jack Reacher's character is also interesting. He's a sort of vigilante Robin Hood, righting wrongs around him that the normal forces in society don't take proper care of. And he's not just muscle and weapons and fighting techniques, he's also very intelligent and knowledgeable and observant.

I also liked the basic story line, with a serial killer who has the FBI outsmarted and a motive that will come as a surprise.

So all-in-all I found the book appealing in many ways.

But now comes the list of problems that I have with this book, problems that are sufficient that it's doubtful if I'll ever get around to reading another book by Lee Child.

The characters aren't really believable. Jack Reacher is supposed be a loner, but not wanting to own anything other than a folding toothbrush must be a bit problematic. Lisa Harper is having problems with sexual harassment in the FBI so she gives up wearing a bra. Jodie Jacobs has found her long-lost secret love from her youth, but still prefers to pursue a high-flying career rather than make the relationship her top priority. And the nasty FBI guys are so nasty that Internal Affairs would be after them if they were ordinary cops.

On top of the unbelievable characters we have a story that lacks realism and seems contrived. The most unrealistic part involves the method by which the murderer kills the victims, which in my opinion is totally impossible on two different counts. Unfortunately, I can't describe this problem in detail without revealing too much and getting this review labeled as a spoiler.

So I think I'll wish Jack Reacher good luck in his continuing lonely travels, and continue my search for thrillers that appeal to me on other shelves in the bookstores of cyberspace and elsewhere.

Rennie Petersen

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