Rating: 
Summary: OK to read, but a wierd story.
Review: This is an okay novel to read but it has a strange story. Some of the parts are cool but the story is like James Bond meets Bruce Willis. Some parts of the book might confuse you. Like "who's he?", "What happened?", and What is happening?" But honestly, I would recommend this book if you hate the government and you want to destroy it. Because that is mostly what you here in this book. Like I said, it has a strang story.
Rating: 
Summary: i loved this book
Review: The book started from the moment you open the page. A little ramdoish but it is an intertaning book.
Rating:
Summary: Decent book -- a lot of fun.
Review: Didn't read the first book and spent the first fifty pages or so rolling my eyes at Jack Reacher's invulnerability and/or machismo -- but once you get past that, you actually find yourself rooting for the guy and cheering when he finishes off the villains one by one -- who couldn't root for a hero who uses a lit cigarette and a wooden chair to wipe out a room full of bad guys? Some of the writing is a little dry and the character of Holly seems thin, but overall it's still better than most others in this genre. The descriptions of the technology and military gear can be a bit boring, but overall pretty informative -- Childs obviously did his homework. If you like techno-thrillers with he-men heroes rescuing damsels in distress (okay...a brainy, well-trained damsel but a damsel nonetheless), then you'll enjoy the book.
Rating:
Summary: Don't start this book if you're planning to sleep...
Review: On a dreary night stuck at O'Hare, I was desperate for something to read. Picked up Die Trying and the long wait went by in a flash. As one who enjoys the genre, I found this book to be a fun read - don't get caught up in the details, and smile to youself at times when the details don't click. Just hang with the story and enjoy the ride.As one who always reads the end of the book first, I wish I had read a few pages earlier. Did not think the end matched the book, and it left me disappointed and annoyed. I contained my pouting long enough to go get his earlier book, which was OK, and now am eager to read the third. I think I would agree with others who feel the criticism of this book is too strong. It's not meant to be great literature, just great escapism. In that it excels!
Rating:
Summary: A Definitive 'Guy' Book: Shallow and Technical
Review: I don't read many techno- or militiary thrillers because what makes them sell so well among men is exactly why I find them so dry. They are typically sterile of much emotional interaction, and what little there is, is rather staid and shallow, yet they are rich in technical detail and flourish. Too rich. This book is typical of that genre. But lest that be taken as a criticism, I enjoyed it, for what it was. I didn't find any of it particularly unrealistic, though I DID find the motivations of the malitia group rather simplistically stated. There was much political controversy and conspiracy theory on which Child could have drawn deeply to flesh this portion out. Still, like an episode of the A-Team, this book isn't bad for passing time until something better starts on one of the other channels. I kept this book in the car for reading during long waits in a theater or bank queue, and for that it served its purpose well.
Rating: 
Summary: A stay up late read
Review: I too do not understand all the criticism of this book. If all authors had to have completely realistic heros and situations, most thrillers would never make the shelves. I have read plots that were far less plausible (Clive Cussler comes to mind) and yet it's ok to suspend belief for a brief time. I liked the militia story line a lot and found the technical descriptions fascinating. I read this book before Killing Floor, but I couldn't wait to get another book by Lee Child.
Rating: 
Summary: How did this book ever get published?
Review: This is one of the most poorly written books I've ever read. It was a complete waste of time. I kept waiting for it to get better, but to no avail. The hero is something out of a dime novel. Larger than life; knows everything about everything; is smarter than anyone at any level of the CIA, FBI, Armed Forces, etc. In short, it was disgusting. Child would have us believe things that aren't conceivable by any long stretch of the imagination. Perhaps in comic books, things like he describes could happen, but NOT in the real world. I regret that you only go as low as One Star for a rating. I'd have given it a negative. I will also NEVER again, waste my time reading one of Childs stories. Perhaps he should return to scriptwriting. At least we wouldn't have to read his garbage.
Rating: 
Summary: A Real Disappointment
Review: Not nearly up to the level of the debut. Padded, with a ridiculous, cliched set of villains.
Rating:
Summary: A really good thriller! (so why all the venom?)
Review: Being a long-time thriller reader (who's read everything by Clancy, Cussler, Higgins, Forsyth, and, for those with long-term memories, all the way back to Alistair MacLean), I happened to stumble across this one at an airport newsstand, knowing nothing about the author, protagonist or anything else. Having just now finished it, I'll agree with most of the other reviewers that it's quite a neat book. Sure, the writing isn't perfect, and the coincidences are a bit too much, and the hero is too much of a superman to believe...but this is a riveting read, and a lot of fun! Given that my tolerance for bad writing is pretty low (as an example, while I love Clancy, I think most of his co-written stuff is dreck), I am at a lost to understand the vituperation from several of the other reviewers here. The writing, while not perfect, is very, very good. The plotting is great, the characters pretty interesting, and the hero invincible enough that you never get too scared, but human enough that he continually gets into scrapes. All in all, an excellent read, and on the basis of this one, I went out and got the preceding and following books in the series. Ignore the naysayers and try it (perhaps starting with the first book in the series: Killing Floor)...I think you'll like it.
Rating:
Summary: Learn the craft of writing, Lee!
Review: Although the story is fairly good, I find it hard to believe there's actually a publisher and/or editor out there who would let such a loose, sloppy style be published. Even in my basic writing classes, I was taught to use the active, not the passive voice. Passive reigns throughout this book. And "Show, don't tell." Give me a break! This is one of the "First Commandments" of good writing taught in all Writing 101 classes. When only two people are involved in a scene, it's not necessary to continually put, "he said" or "she said" after ever spoken line. I found it VERY distracting. Child has a long way to go as a good writer. The fact that he's had 3 books published only tells me, not ALL publishers or editors, know their business. Must be a bunch of "wanna-be's " who did this one.
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