Review: Persuader

Persuader by Lee Child
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’m unsure as to whether or not I have had this rant before. I feel as though I may have touched upon it somewhat, but this time I really need to get it off my chest. For that, I apologise in advance for the following paragraph…

Why does Lee Child keep changing what perspective he is writing from? I understand authors changing perspective, wanting to writing in a different way, but when it is done within the same series it annoys me. I want consistent reads. Flickering between first and third person Jack Reacher stories is really bugging me. It is part of the reason why I read them so far apart – and, even then, I still manage to find myself annoyed when he changes perspective again. I know this is very much a personal thing, I know most will consider me crazy for being so annoyed by such a small aspect, but it really bugs me. I want one way or the other for the telling of the same character’s story.

And rant over. Sorry, again.

Okay, so I’ve said before that the Lee Child reads are somewhat of a guilty pleasure. I’m not the biggest fan of his writing style, but I love the Jack Reacher stories. They pull me in, keep me entertained enough to overlook his writing style. Sometimes the stories are better at keeping my attention away from my dislike than others; and in the case of this story, we have a very strong one. I was pulled in, wanting to see what came next.

As I read the first chapter, I was somewhat confused. I sat thinking ‘this does not sound like the Reacher I have come to enjoy during the first six books’, and I was ready to throw my book out of the window. Then came the last line. The last line in that first chapter… well, it guaranteed that I was hooked. I wanted an explanation. I wanted to know what was going on. I knew there was something good coming.

My belief was confirmed, with the story being one of my favourites in the Jack Reacher series thus far. The fact that I gave it a four star rather than a three, as I have with quite a few of the others, shows just how much I enjoyed this one. Once I was started, I was unable to put it down. The action and intrigue kept up, leaving me constantly wanting more.

I could sit here and say my usual rant about his writing – telling you how I feel it is lacking in style and is more than a little bit repetitive – but if you’ve read any of the other Reacher books then you know what to expect. This one is much like the others, giving you all you expect from a Lee Child novel in terms of both writing and the story.

In short, as soon as that sentence hit me, I was done for.

View all my reviews