Tripwire | Litsy

pick

That was stunningly good. There are those who will insist I'm 'grading on a curve', comparing it to the preceding books in the series, rather than mysteries or novels in general, to come up with such a glowing statement, but I honestly think this was just a well written book, designed to effectively entertain and engross the reader.
The first book in the series I liked, the second book I didn't, this third book: I loved. 1/?

Robotswithpersonality 2/? Lee Child is consistent in delivering atmospheric descriptions, always taking a moment to provide an often poetic sense of place, regardless of how benign or undesirable the place may be.
He's consistent in providing a mystery (that I only got just before it was revealed, which is my perfect ideal in mystery books, and to me demonstrates skill on behalf of the writer, leading the reader) that will be methodically investigated; 2w

Robotswithpersonality 3/? this book did that even better than the first two did, and when it's done at the right pace that's something I really enjoy reading. Which leads into the first of two key differences that boosted this book in my estimation in comparison to its predecessors.
1) The pacing
2) The female characters
2w

Robotswithpersonality 4/? 1) How this story was divided up and bounced between following various people moving toward certain goals never felt like we were moving away from the action, even with what might be termed not the main players, it's not just that things were in a state of skillfully ratcheted tension, and you care about the characters because they are well written, complex motivations etc, it was that the plot was written in such a way that you want to go 2w

See All 14 Comments

Robotswithpersonality 5? along, see how it unfolds, if various people will succeed, and somehow it's written so even portions which others might argue are slowing down the action are worth reading.

2) I would be totally unsurprised if after the second Reacher book, Child got a buttload of negative feedback about how his female character(s?) were written. If so, he definitely took it to heart and did better here. 2w

Robotswithpersonality 6/? Yes, the threat of sexual violence against women looms large over a significant part of the narrative, increasing the repugnance of the villain(s), but it never actually becomes a part of the plot/on or off screen action. Yes, Marilyn and later Jodie are both objectified by bad men, but, and I recognize this is subjective, it didn't feel excessive or gratuitous within the context of the narrative. 2w

Robotswithpersonality 7/? Yes, for moments at a time Marilyn and Jodie fit within the parameters of damsels in distress, but they spend the vast majority of the story in partnership with male characters who are aided by them, who defer to them when circumstances require their skill, resources, expertise, equanimity. I'll even throw Mrs. Hobie into the mix, because she was a more vibrant physical presence of the two parents, and Crystal, 2w

Robotswithpersonality 8/? because for the little we saw of her at the beginning, I would gladly have had her as Reacher's partner for this book: exotic dancer exuding independence and confidence, enjoying her skills and resultant revenue with a beautiful car competently operated and under no illusions about Reacher's availability.
I get that readers will react differently to the age gap and background between Reacher and Jodie, but I think Child's framing is about as 2w

Robotswithpersonality 9/? unobjectionable as you can get given the circumstances.

On an unrelated note, and one I find harder to articulate, I admire how Child handled the discussion around the Vietnam War. Don't get me wrong, these books could easily win a 'pro-military/military propaganda' label. Given some characters consulted in pursuit of the mystery are serving military, the resentful manner in which they talk about the Vietnamese is not a shock, and also not 2w

Robotswithpersonality 10/? comfortable to read. The bias is evident, the reader is to empathize with American soldiers who lost their lives, not so much with the military brass who mis-handled the conflict, covered things up, tried to minimize news of deaths and deny culpability by leaving more MIAs than confirmed deaths on the record. The dual heartbreak of promising young men lost to violent death, many conscripted for such an end, and the later work of those who 2w

Robotswithpersonality 11/? struggle to identify remains. You can't help but sympathize with parents left without answers, with the righteous anger of those who recognize the tragic waste in the loss of life. Obviously a different book might not have that be such a one-sided criticism of the war, would also consider the POV of the Vietnamese, also fighting a foreign military force, which also caused great loss of life,and which media/pop culture (I'm not too informed on 2w

Robotswithpersonality 12/? the history) suggests often acted unethically during the conflict.

I think if there's one area that really shouts 'I was written in the late 90s!' it's the ableism prominent in a main villain having extensive burn scarring, an amputation and a prosthesis, a hook, of course, and how often those features are focused on to increase the sense of menace he exudes. There's no objective reason to fear someone who has traumatic injuries, who is 2w

Robotswithpersonality 13/? essentially a disabled war veteran, but Child wants the reader to associate this appearance, with his grotesque behaviour, make it ugly, as if one were a mirror for the other, the same kind of thing unenlightened horror films of earlier decades did (still do?). I sincerely hope it's the last time the author feels the need to aim for such a harmful and lazy shorthand. 2w

Robotswithpersonality 14/14I am curious where the series goes from here, as there are definitely 'putting down roots' potential offered at the end of this book that I didn't see in the last two, but considering how many books there are in the series, I'm just hoping nothing bad happens to any of the characters previously introduced to get him back on the road.
I'll definitely be picking up the next book, cross your fingers the writing quality endures, even improves! 2w

Robotswithpersonality ⚠️ violence, gore, ableism (edited) 2w

8 likes14 comments

Robotswithpersonality

Tripwire (Jack Reacher, #3) | Lee Child

Okay, from the perspective of a drifter who spent most of his life on army bases that no doubt had designated labour for laundering uniforms, this makes some sense, but less so for a guy described as 6'5“ now weighing in at 250 lbs, a good portion of that, muscle. My dude, do you just happen to stumble across a Big&Tall each time a wardrobe change is required?!

9 likes1 stack add

Airykah13

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

#31by31 - 10hrs - 100pts
#20in4 - 5.5hrs - 55pts
Mystery - 10pts
Word Search - 161pts - 1,610pts
Participation - 1pt

Total: 1,776pts

#teamwhoyagonnacall #scarathlon

FlynnDewey

8 likes

Minervasbutler

Tripwire (Jack Reacher, #3) | Lee Child

pick

Third in the Reacher series and the best one so far as we have an actual plot with a proper villain rather than just a series of descriptions of Reacher bopping baddies. Excellent.

58 likes2 stack adds

swishandflick

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

so-so

I think I have to be in a certain mood to enjoy Reacher, and unfortunately I wasn't in it. There seemed to be very little plot strung together by a lot of action scenes. I just wanted there to be... more. Still a solid page turner, I just kept getting a "what's the point?" feeling like it was mostly just action for action's sake. Which, now that I'm thinking about it, could actually be the point and I'm just not the intended audience ? / ⭐️⭐️⭐️

72 likes

Biohaz74

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

pick

Easy read great action read 7/10

1 like

BarkingMadRead

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

When a neighbor wants to pass on some books and thinks of you! Woohoo!

Crazeedi So very kind!! 5y

37 likes1 comment

Vivlio_Gnosi

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

pick

⭐⭐⭐⭐
Solid action story. Great plot twists and well thought out arc. A fun read. My only knock is that the pace felt a bit slow.

3 likes1 stack add

Vivlio_Gnosi

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

*PLOT TWIST WARNING!!*
Expect the unexpected at the end of ch. 16! And that's all I have to say about that.

KarouBlue True story! 6y

RaimeyGallant Now I definitely need to read this! 6y

Vivlio_Gnosi @RaimeyGallant it took me by complete surprise. So much I want to say! 🤐 6y

3 likes1 stack add3 comments

Vivlio_Gnosi

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

Moving this #fiction #thriller from my #TBR stack to my current read stack.

1 like1 stack add

Beckys_Books

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

pick

My favorite Jack Reacher novel so far. Great villain and Reacher seems on the brink of serious life change. But, I'll believe it when I read it in the next book.

32 likes1 stack add

Richryan52

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

pick

While I always enjoy Lee Child's Reacher stories, this is definitely one of his best. In addition to Child's fast-paced prose, this book also features what I believe is the best villain he has ever created.

13 likes

NatalieR

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

pick

I'm slowly working my way through the Jack Reacher series...this is only book 3. I'm a growing fan with each one.

Eggs Beautiful hibiscus 🌺 8y

NatalieR @Eggs Thanks ☺️ 8y

47 likes2 comments

transemr

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

pick

Not sure what it is, but Jack Reacher seems to be the thing my very anxious brain can process right now, so I'll keep reading about him!

4 likes1 stack add

Avidreader6

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

Finally an end to the pining! I never knew Lee Child could write pining and angst like some of the best fic writers.

BookishFeminist 😂😂 8y

Avidreader6 Reacher is just usually so much more Bond about it all. Everyone has a good time and is happy, but it's just that. Here it was so much sentiment and pining. So totally unexpected lol 8y

2 likes2 comments

Avidreader6

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

Back to Reacher! Book 3 in the series and I'm excited to see what he gets up to. Though, I hadn't realised how old this book was til he mentioned the World Trade Center.

Scott-Silverii

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

pick

When I need a dose of reality minus the descriptive prose, I gotta have my Jack Reacher. While I enjoy reading Lee Child's books, going back with audio gives an entirely different perspective.

1 like1 stack add

Elyn

Tripwire: A Jack Reacher Novel | Lee Child

so-so

Plot was good...writing not so much. Still enjoying the series.

Welcome to Litsy!

Trending Hashtags

Trending Books