The Enemy

Rating:
Summary: excellent and timely
Review: In 1989, twenty-nine years old military police officer Major Jack Reacher is reassigned from Panama to Fort Bird, North Carolina. When he arrives at his new duty station, he finds many other MPs transferred there, but thinks little of it.

On January 1, 1990 just past midnight, Reacher, as the MP duty officer doing graveyard receives a call that a two-star General Officer on his way to a conference was found murdered in a run down motel while apparently having sex with someone other than his spouse. Not long afterward, the general's wife is killed. Two more people also die. Reacher investigates the homicides ignoring the brass that tries to persuade him to stop. He believes the link is the conference if he can only find a copy of the agenda before his superiors charge him with insubordination or the killer targets him next.

The backdrop of the fall of the Berlin Wall and expected force reduction of military personal with the end of the Reagan era contrast with the news that the hero's mother is dying from cancer in Paris; together they provide a deep backdrop to the tale. Though still a loner, Reacher willingly takes on the service to uncover the identity of the killer. That personality trait is superb when he is an independent operator, but seems more like misconduct and insubordination within the Army chain of command, which does not allow for independent aces seeking justice outside the military. Yet his lone ranger investigation also meets the values expected of a soldier. Reacher is a five star general.

Harriet Klausner

Rating:
Summary: Reacher shelled by tanks and busted one grade
Review: In the previous seven books of the Jack Reacher series, author Lee Child positions his hero in space and time after his release from active duty with the U.S. Army's Military Police. We've gotten to know Jack as a relatively asocial tough guy who wanders the United States attracting big trouble as he helps others cope with assorted villains. Here, in THE ENEMY, we see Reacher in his previous life as an MP officer.

It's New Year's Eve 1989, and Major Reacher has only just been yanked off duty in Panama and hurriedly assigned to Fort Bird, North Carolina as the Executive Officer of the post's MP detachment. As the MP Commanding Officer is on leave, Jack is Fort Bird's acting top cop. At the stroke of midnight, Reacher gets a call from the local civilian police saying they've found a dead general in a cheap hotel room. He'd apparently died of a heart attack while entertaining a hooker. The deceased turns out to be General Kramer of XII Armored Corps deployed in Germany. Kramer had been traveling to California for a Big Meeting, and had gone far out of his way from a Washington, DC layover for a night's sleazy good time. Trouble is, the general's briefcase containing the meeting agenda has disappeared, and Jack's duty is to find it. Soon enough, the bodies begin to pile up, mostly of murder victims. And Reacher is pressured from above to stand down from his investigations or be charged himself with one of the killings. But Jack bulls ahead anyway in the trademark Reacher style that his fans have learned to expect.

THE ENEMY strikes me as the most complex Reacher thriller to date. Perhaps too complex. Reacher's personality is unadorned. (In a previous book, we learn that he doesn't even know how to fold a shirt.) His rapport with any Bad Guy involves kicking butt. Here, when the Army is faced with the imminent retreat of Soviet forces from East Germany following the collapse of the Berlin Wall, and the service's various disciplines - infantry, armored, special forces, etc. - must now individually engage in skullduggery to ensure its pre-eminence in a revamped, post-Cold War military, the subtleties of the situation perhaps ill-fit Jack's black-and-white, simplistic approach. But, of course, Reacher prevails in his usual manner, thus providing a superficially satisfying read.

What causes me to give four stars instead of five is my overreaction to the author's poor research on a couple of points. Towards the end, Reacher must fly to LAX in Los Angeles, then drive to a military base north of Barstow. Jack notes that LAX and Barstow are 30 miles and a 1-hour drive apart. What map was Lee, who lives in New York City, looking at?! The two are more like 150 miles apart, or a 2.5-hour drive on a good day through SoCal traffic. On another occasion, Reacher observes about the Army's promotion ladder:

"... the ladder stretches all the way up to a five-star General of the Army, although I wasn't aware of anyone except George Washington and Dwight David Eisenhower who ever made it that far."

This is a remarkably obtuse statement from someone who attended West Point. While Washington was posthumously appointed by President Ford to forever be the most senior officer in the American Armed Forces, he never achieved higher than the highest rank then existing, i.e. 3-star Lieutenant General. Five-star rank was established by Congress in 1944 to give the most senior American officers equal standing with British, French, and Soviet Field Marshals. Five U.S. Army officers, all of the World War II era, have achieved that exalted status: George Marshall, Douglas MacArthur, Eisenhower, Henry Arnold (of the Army Air Corps), and Omar Bradley. (Four naval officers have also been given a fifth star: Leahy, Nimitz, King, and Halsey.)

Despite my reservations about THE ENEMY, Jack Reacher is my favorite literary super-hero, and Child's next book is on my Wish List.


Rating:
Summary: Exciting police procedural with a blockbuster ending.
Review: In the taut, staccato style reminiscent of Raymond Chandler or John D. MacDonald, Lee Child presents his eighth Jack Reacher novel, a police procedural with a difference: Reacher is an MP, an army Major at Fort Bird, North Carolina, obedient to a different set of rules and objectives. Recently transferred from Panama to be MP Executive Officer, Reacher must immediately investigate the death of a two-star general who has died in a seedy, nearby motel, presumably with a prostitute. His briefcase, containing the agenda for a top-secret conference in California, has disappeared, and when Reacher and his aide, Lt. Summer, go to break the news to the general's wife, they find her dead, too, bludgeoned to death with a crowbar within hours of the general's death.

With almost military precision, dramatic complications unfold, and Reacher soon finds himself facing two new deaths, one of which is a gruesome butchering which takes place on the base. Ordered by superiors to cover up the murder by calling it a "training accident," Reacher and his aide investigate surreptitiously, soon discovering that his MP XO counterparts at twenty more bases throughout the world have also been newly appointed to their positions, all of them on or around December 29. Obvious questions arise about who is pulling the strings, who has the power to transfer so many MPs to new posts, and why someone would want to do so.

Child is a meticulous writer whose plot follows a strict chronological order and moves at a breath-taking pace, with one dramatic scene following hard on the heels of another. Reacher and his aide Summer are not fully developed characters, but they do not need to be as they struggle to learn who is controlling the grisly chess game which has resulted in four deaths. The action is resolved in an extravagant grand finale, with twists and turns and spectacular surprises. Though the ending resolves the disparate threads, it may also be a disappointment to some readers, since the premise behind the plot and the motivation which led to the murders, when finally revealed, seems too unrealistic to justify the murderous extremes to which "the enemy" has gone. Though Child is brilliant in creating an exciting story packed with action, the final pages feel cynical and reveal a view of humanity that is grim. Mary Whipple

Rating:
Summary: YAGRRS - Yet another great read in the Reacher series
Review: In this "prequel", Jack Reacher is a Major in the Special Unit of the Military Police. It's 1990 and the Soviet Union is teetering on the brink of collapse. Transfered, apparently for no reason, to Fort Bird, he's immediately confronted with a dead body. Not a problem, except this body belongs to a General.

The Armored Cav officer has been found in a hotel room after an *ahem* liaison and the cause of death appears natural. Problem is, the General's briefcase is missing. In Reacher's pursuit of the briefcase, a Delta Force Sergeant ends up dead -- the victim of a grisly homicide -- and Reacher is the prime suspect.

Now Reacher needs to solve two mysteries and he has a week to do it: some Delta Force buddies of the Sergeant have given him a week to find the murderer... or Reacher will suffer the consequences.

Frankly, it doesn't get any better than Lee Child. He really is in the "pantheon", at the level of elite authors who are (or were) consistently great. Raymond Chander, A.J. Quinnell, Nelson DeMille, C.S. Forester... the only problem with reading Child's books is the wait for the next one after you finish.

Rating:
Summary: Another winner for Jack Reacher
Review: Jack Reacher fans should like this addition to the series just fine. It's a flashback to Reacher's days as a Military Police major. Surprisingly, our hero relies less on physical mayhem and more on brainpower to solve this mystery. He gets a lot of help from his hastily drafted assistant, Lt. Summers, a sharp and energetic little MP, whom Reacher picks up in the mess hall on a moment's notice when he needs a woman to accompany him on a death notification. The story moves briskly through a series of murders seeming to have some connection to the transfers of several officers, all on the same day and for no apparent reason, and to the missing agenda for a conference that was to take place at a California army base. It turns out that the fall of the Soviet Union is at the bottom of it all.

Rating:
Summary: Lee Child Has done it again
Review: Lee Child has become one of my favorite authors and I have read all his books. I really enjoyed this book because it gave some background into Jack Reacher, Lee Childs main character. Like all his other novels I found "The Enemy" well written, suspenseful and hard to put down. I look forward to his next Jack Reacher novel.

Rating:
Summary: A master work from a master craftsman
Review: Lee Child writes books the way Miles Davis played music. Every composition contains recognizable elements, and yet every composition is completely different.

In a Lee Child composition, some of the recognizable elements are: clean, elegant prose; a tight plot; abundant twists and turns; and more than one heart stopping surprise. An added element in "The Enemy" is that this book not only stops the heart, but tugs at the heartstrings.

The eighth Jack Reacher novel, "The Enemy" takes place in 1990, as the Berlin Wall is coming down and the world is drastically changing. In the Army, Jack Reacher's life-long home, change is not good. It's an enemy to be defeated by any means necessary. Reacher is a man who has dedicated his life to doing the right thing, to protecting the Army. Now he's faced with an awful task: he must protect the Army from itself.

In seven previous Jack Reacher novels, we've come to know him as a loner, a man who cannot and will not end his chosen life of wandering isolation. In "The Enemy" we meet a younger Reacher, not yet hardened by the choices this case will force upon him. This Reacher is just a bit warmer, just a bit more accessible, with an easier sense of humor.

When he's inexplicably transferred from Panama to Fort Bird, North Carolina, Reacher doesn't think much of it - hey, it's the Army - but he soon discovers that this is no ordinary assignment. A heart attack victim at the local no-tell motel is a two-star general. The general's wife is found murdered. Reacher's commanding officer is replaced, suspiciously, by a vicious idiot who wants nothing more than to make Reacher the fall guy for the entire mess. And in Paris, Reacher's mother is very, very ill.

Partnering with a young, female lieutenant, Reacher sets out to solve the mystery in spite of the roadblocks in his path. And, typically, he refuses to let anything or anyone stop him. Just as typically, Reacher is determined to do the right thing, no matter what the personal cost may be. In this case, the personal cost will be high - maybe more than Reacher can afford.

The question at the heart of the book is, who or what really is the enemy that Reacher has to fight? And does he have any hope at all of winning the battle? Lee Child has written another gripping novel, one with heart and soul, suspense and passion - a masterwork from a master craftsman.

Rating:
Summary: We have met the enemy and they are us.
Review: Lee Child's "The Enemy," which is set in 1990, is an engrossing prequel to his popular Jack Reacher series. At the time, the Berlin Wall was coming down and Communism was weakening. The Cold War was almost over, the political climate was changing, and the generals in the army were coming to the realization that they, too, would have to change.

Those of us who have followed Jack Reacher's escapades know him as a footloose civilian with few ties to anyone. In "The Enemy," Child goes back to Reacher's days as an investigator for the 110th Special Unit in the United States Army. Major Reacher is puzzled when a series of unexplained transfers has many commanders being moved around like pieces on a chessboard. Reacher himself has been abruptly transferred, without explanation, from Panama to Ford Bird, North Carolina. One night, Reacher is informed that a two-star general named Kramer has been found dead of an apparent heart attack in a seedy motel. Reacher is called in to keep the matter from becoming an embarrassment to the army. What Reacher doesn't know is that Kramer's death is about to set off a deadly chain reaction.

"The Enemy" is an exciting and intricate novel about the many ways that people bend the rules to get what they want in life. The large cast of characters includes a beautiful and brilliant lieutenant named Summer, who helps Reacher investigate a series of homicides even after he has been ordered to call off his inquiries. Reacher and Summer risk their careers and their lives to follow the clues wherever they may lead.

Child is an accomplished action-adventure writer, and he maintains suspense nicely as the book's plot becomes more and more complex. The novel's sole weakness is its implausibility. Some of the events and the motivations in the book strain credulity. However, if you are willing to suspend disbelief, you will enjoy rooting for Reacher. He is a strong-willed and tough individual who is shrewd, loyal, and honest to a fault. When he finds out that his values are not shared by many of his fellow soldiers, Reacher begins to lose faith in the army. "The Enemy" reveals the genesis of the Jack Reacher we know today--a cynical loner, who is slow to trust and reluctant to form long-term relationships. Writing a prequel was a smart move for Lee Child, and it has paid off.

Rating:
Summary: A fine mystery thriller
Review: New Year's Eve 1990, and Russia is about to fall. The US military is unsure how global power shift will affect defense budgets. Then the body of a general is found in a motel near Fort Bird, N.C. Of coure MP detective Reacher is put on the case. Plot thickens as reacher discovers that the general was on his way to a secrete meeting with a bunch of army top secrete types. Then the generals wife is discovered beaten to death and after that the body of a gay delta force officer. and this is just the begining! Reacher wades into the case with a his usual mixture of intellegence and violence. but this story is more mystery suspense then the typical reacher thriller. The plot is taught and kept me on the edge of my seat. there is also some good personal stuff on Reacher Relation ship with his brother and dying mother (which I found especially moving as I recently lost my mother to cancer). All in all this is another winner from one of the better thriller writers! May I also recomend a neat little thriller "A Tourist in the Yucatan" Check it out, you will not be dissapointed.

Rating:
Summary: Lee Child does it again.
Review: The book was fantastic. I read the whole thing in 2 days because it was hard to put down. I first started reading Lee Child when I purchased WITHOUT FAIL and then later read the not as good, PERSUADER. But I like how Child set the book in the past with the great, Jack Reacher. Great Read!