A Wanted Man

By: Lee Child

Narrated by: Jeff Harding

Length: 11 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's Summary

When you're as big and rough as Jack Reacher - and you have a badly-set, freshly-busted nose patched with silver duct tape - it isn't easy to hitch a ride. But Reacher has some unfinished business in Virginia, so he doesn't quit. And at last, he's picked up by three strangers - two men and a woman. But within minutes it becomes clear they're all lying about everything - and then they run into a police roadblock on the highway. There has been an incident, and the cops are looking for the bad guys....

Will they get through because the three are innocent? Or because the three are now four? Is Reacher just a decoy?

With his signature Swiss-watch plotting and heart-thumping suspense, A Wanted Man shows Lee Child at his sublimely skilful best.

©2012 Lee Child (P)2012 ISIS Publishing Ltd, Random House Audiobooks

Critic Reviews

“He could take out Bond, Dirty Harry, Jason Bourne and Ethan Hunt with both hands tied behind his back. And then sleep with their girlfriends two at a time before getting the last bus out of town” ( Sun)

Good to see Reacher is back

If you could sum up A Wanted Man in three words, what would they be?

A wanted read

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Yes, always something happening, some good twists and turns.

Which character – as performed by Jeff Harding – was your favorite?

Jack Reacher

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

N/A

Any additional comments?

Reacher books are good, but I think Lee is getting carried away with the scene and history descriptions that sometimes appear to go on with no actual relevance to the rest of the story. Sounds a little picky i know, but the first books in the series weren't as bad as they are now. Not bad, but you know what I mean.... :-)

2 of 2 people found this review helpful

Jack Reacher in general

Love Jack Reacher books in general. Can’t comment on this particular one as I couldn’t listen too it.
The narration was monotonous to the point I couldn’t continue listening.

A bit of a story arc for Reacher now...and this is a goodie

The story had enough unpredictability to be edge-of-seat material, and Reacher is in his prime.

Jeff Harding IS Jack Reacher for me - his resonant slightly nasal voice drives the vocal performance - listen to an early Reacher story narrated by someone else and Reacher somehow shrinks and gets softer. A great match!

A back on form Reacher - a very good listen

Typical format with new scenery, Jack must need a holiday by now. I did enjoy this though and I found myself lingering in the car park so that I could hear a little more... I am still clearly hooked on Reacher.

Great

I love this series. Intricate plot. Fantastic characters. Great final twist. Jack Reacher Rules. O.K. More please Mr Child.

Great first half, faulterin slightly

If you’ve listened to books by Lee Child before, how does this one compare?

This a great listen, sections of it being amongst the best Lee Child has done. The opening section of the book, from the point where Reacher accept a lift hitchhiking, to the point he eventually leaves the car, is fantastically tense and intriguing. Both Child and Reacher are in their element here: a tightly controlled environment, with three strangers to suss out and very little to go on, and the dawning realisation that no one in the car is telling the truth... Child's meticulous description of environment and people, Reacher's methodical, pin-sharp throught-narrative, play out fantastically as he tries to get to grips with the mysterious situation. The parallel narrative of a FBI murder investigation interplays very very with Reacher's story as we begin to understand how the events are connected. When Reacher does leave the car, his teamwork with the FBI agent continues to be tense and fascinating. All the Bourne-style evasion tactics, and Sherlock-Holmes-style investigation tactics get a thorough workout. And then I feel the bottom drops out of the story a bit. Without wishing to give anything away, when What's Going On finally becomes clear about three quarters of the way through, a lot of the impetus from the two third of the book seems to be lost. There are some great twists, but perhaps at the expense of a lot of the final third not feeling like its been sufficiently set up by the rest of the book. The ending is a great set piece for any action thriller, though, so it;s hardly a major critisism.

What aspect of Jeff Harding’s performance would you have changed?

He seemed well cast for the tone of the book - measured, laconic and dry, like Child's writing. However, on occasion his determination to intone every line of the narrative in the same way did annoy me. I know Child's writing style is repetitive: he likes to list everything Jack Reacher is thinking about or looinkg at in short, neutral sentences. Harding would give each sentence the exact same rhythm and tonal pattern which got to be a bit grating as the sentences piled up, especially when there were long stretches of narrative with no dialogue to break it up. I wasn't totally convinced by his perfromance of some characters either. He gave the female characters the same exact voice, and delivered Sorrenson's lines in particular in a way I felt was at odds with how they were written (e.g. he made her sound calm where I thought the dialogue implied she was annoyed, or angry where I thoughtthe line was amused etc). I've heard a lot worse performances, though, and Harding certainly kept my attention.

Jack the riddler.

Would you listen to A Wanted Man again? Why?

In probably, the most complicated Lee Child logic to follow, Jack inadvertently falls down the rabbit hole into explosive drama.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

This is the weirdest Jack plot, and some of the others are weird enough.

What does Jeff Harding bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Jeff is the Reacher maker. Good man, good fellow and kind to puppies - I'm sure.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Reacher in a hitch!

Lee has done it again

A good solid read ( listen) that kept the interest up right through.
Reacher has done it again,kept us on the edge.
Cant wait for the next one!.

worst book yet

What would have made A Wanted Man better?

complete rewrite

What do you think your next listen will be?

Not Lee Child

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Boring like he was itemizing a grocery list or counting sheep

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Waste of time, disappointed

Any additional comments?

My grocery list is more captivating

More Classic Reacher

As a self-confessed fan of the Jack Reacher series I was not disappointed by this latest offering from Lee Child. It contains the usual tight and clever plot line as well as plenty of the kind of dry humor and fast paced action you'd expect.
Jeff Harding is a brilliant narrator and captures Reacher perfectly.

DON'T GET IN THE CAR JACK... Opps too late.

Other than Jeff Hardings female voice that always disturbs me a bit, This is classic Reacher you won't be disappointed.



Even though Child's books work to a tested formula you find yourself immersed in a will he won't he frenzy that grabs you early in the book and just won't let go.

4 of 4 people found this review helpful

Excellent listen - Lee Child is back on top form

Yep, Lee Child is back to some of his best work and is supported wonderfully by Jeff Harding.



I really like the way that this book follows straight on from his last couple of books as it maintains a good threat and narrative to Jack Reachers world. Nothing here on the plot but its well written with enough twists and turns to please everyone who knows Lee Childs' creation.



Jeff Harding is excellent at reading this work - not too fast, great characterisation and really clear diction make this an easy listen.



Well recommended especially when taken with the other books in this range.

8 of 9 people found this review helpful

Would the real Jack Reacher Stand up.

Hmmm…where to begin? …I have either read, or listened via Audible to most of the Jack Reacher stories, usually on average this amounts to one or two a year… between “real” books.

I have found that all these stories have followed a well-trod format,
i.e. Arrive in Town, Meet the girl, Beat some local baddies up, Discover some kind of fiendish plot, Sleep with the girl, Kill the main baddie, and then Move on.

Subsequently these adventures are a bit …“bubble gum”.... you just chew them for a bit… enjoy similar reliable taste, for a short while and then dispose of the waste - if the book is a paper copy it involves a trip to the charity shop.

However this book doesn’t appear to quite follow the plot, ..or does it?…it doesn’t vary enough to make it much different, but in saying that I felt that it lost something of the flavour…like a diet Pepsi…or that local fried chicken bar that’s not KFC..

To be honest the Reacher plot can be a bit boring and predictable , just like any Bond movie once you have seen a couple. However in reality only the folk who like the Bond movie, or Coke a Cola, or McDonalds and their ilk.. who have to go there to get the expected familiar taste, it not compulsory, but if it turns out to be different than usual. . .if it don’t quite taste right or the same……then it triggers some uncomfortable alarm to go off.

This book appeared to me to be either ever so slightly different, or so exactly the same that I have finally succumbed to the fact that I am bored of the old and trusted Jack Reacher format

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Not his best work but still entertaining

Would you try another book written by Lee Child or narrated by Jeff Harding?

This was a great performance of Reacher by Jeff Harding but the story and writing were ok at best. The story seemed far fetched, even for Reacher, and did not seem to be a challenge for him. There was almost no suspense or anything really interesting happening; it seemed to plod along. It is still worth listening to if you are a Reacher fan.

What was your reaction to the ending? (No spoilers please!)

Seemed too easy, but showed Reacher's character quite well.

Which character – as performed by Jeff Harding – was your favourite?

Reacher

If this book were a film would you go see it?

Yes

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

A Wanted Man is another winner from Lee Child

The eventful life of Jack Teacher continues to unfold as he finds his unique skills in demand again very quickly as his previous encounter with the bad guys!

All he is trying to do is hitch a lift to get him to Virginnia...eventually.......but his ride proves to be his latest challenge when he discovers that 3 people in the car are not what they seem.

The next 24 hours are typical Reacher hours, but this is no predictable story line! This is Lee Child at his story-building best. To the rescue once again, Virginnia seems like it`s a VERY long way off..............

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

RichieB12

I have read all the previous Jack Reacher novels and enjoyed them. This was my first audio book but it was a very weak story with next to no storyline. There was no pace or excitement, the narrators tone was repetitive and dull, as was the text. Where the early Reacher books were fast and exciting this was, sadly, so slow I wonder if Lee Child is a spent force.

2 of 3 people found this review helpful

Reacher is losing his edge

What made the experience of listening to A Wanted Man the most enjoyable?

Having read all the books in chronological order I feel Reacher is losing his edge. In 61 hours Janet Salter, the woman he was protecting, is killed and in this book Julia Sorenson, a FBI agent, is killed alongside him. Plus his broken nose, suffered in Worth Dying For, is still giving him problems. What is going on with my hero? On now to book 18 where I hope he finally gets to Virginia and Susan Turner.

3 of 5 people found this review helpful

thrilling stuff.

makes you think about what really goes on that we don't take get to hear about .

solid reacher srory

Good book to listen to walking the dog. just gotta love reachers outlook on life.

Brilliant

This story opens up Jack Reachers heart and his military skills even more.
The army certainly lost an elite soldier to the civilian worlds better.
Lee Child has created a character that is honest, thoughtful, honourable , and someone who if was real, I would certainly look up too.