Killing Floor

Jack Reacher, Book 1

By: Lee Child

Narrated by: Dick Hill

Length: 17 hrs and 47 mins

Publisher's summary

THE FIRST NOVEL IN LEE CHILD'S #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING JACK REACHER SERIES—NOW AN ORIGINAL SERIES ON PRIME VIDEO!

“From its jolting opening scene to its fiery final confrontation, Killing Floor is irresistible.”—People

Ex-military policeman Jack Reacher is a drifter. He’s just passing through Margrave, Georgia, and in less than an hour, he’s arrested for murder. Not much of a welcome. All Reacher knows is that he didn’t kill anybody. At least not here. Not lately. But he doesn’t stand a chance of convincing anyone. Not in Margrave, Georgia. Not a chance in hell.

©2015 Lee Child (P)2015 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

A People Magazine “Page-Turner”

A Barry Award winner

An Anthony Award winner

“All [Jack Reacher novels] are ripping yarns, but...Killing Floor wins awards for Best Corrupt Southern Town in a Summer Novel and Best Exploding Warehouse.” (Stephen King, Entertainment Weekly)

“Combines high suspense with almost nonstop action. Reacher is a wonderfully epic hero: tough, taciturn, yet vulnerable.” (People)

“Great style and careful plotting. The violence is brutal...depicted with the kind of detail that builds dread and suspense.” (The New York Times)

Jack loves 'em and leaves 'em

My first Audible copy of Killing Floor, purchased years ago, was narrated by Dick Hill in 1997, and the narration duration of the text of the book, excluding a 30 minute segment from the next book Dye Trying, was 14 hours 57 minutes. This version of Killing Floor is narrated by Dick Hill in 2015 and the recording duration is 17 hours 47 minutes, So the 2015 version of the text is 2 hours 50 minutes longer than the 1997 version using the same narrator.

First I verified the narrated text of the two versions is identical, so the difference in length of the books is entirely due to the speed of recording Dick Hill's voice. Hill's voice has changed a lot in 18 years: 2015 Dick Hill is deeper and marginally clearer. Frankly, the 2015 version is painfully slow to listen to at recorded speed while the 1997 version is not. For me the fastest comfortable playing speed for the 1997 version is 2X while for the 2015 version it is 3X.

If you have the the earlier version of the audiobook is getting the 2015 version worthwhile? Not for me although the changes in Dick Hill's voice are pleasing.

I have listened to the Audible versions of all of the Reacher series twice. Killing Floor is one of the best books in the series. So far it seems that Books 1, 5, 6, 9, 10, 15, 16, and 17 have been remastered (the versions originally sold by Audible are no longer available).

always good listening material<br /><br />

Enjoyed listening to this book. The story keeps you not wanting to turn it off. Great knowing Jacks first adventure. Love the storyteller voice. and tempo.

Well worth the read

Lee Child has such a way with a story! Very violent but funny too; and Reacher is soo tough but so compassionate; he's like a therapist with a punch! Great story, this one. I love how Lee Child goes into such detail; he really gets it. The narrator; he is very good but I have to agree with another reviewer; he sounds like he is 80! Voice sometimes loses a syllable as happens with older folks. But I can handle that because he is a good narrator; the different accents; you are never at a loss who is speaking. Highly recommended.

Decent, but flawed

Good enough if you like bravado. Unfortunately, the reader's voice was too old sounding for a 36 year old protagonist. That alone made it hard for me to listen too.

Good narration and great plot

Having watched the movie first and then heard the narration, both were equally entertaining. Enjoy.

Great story

Thank you for making this available. It did not disappoint. I really like Dick Hill narrating. Long but worth it.

Good story

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

I thought the narration was okay. I got used to his voice. Def confused why the Boston accent sounded Australian but wasn't the biggest fan of his voice.

Not at all what I expected

I was not sure to expect from Jack Reacher first story, but the story was unexpectedly gripping. A modern adventure book with an unexpected hero.

Wrong narrator

Nice story but the narrator sounds like he is 65 years old. He is the voice of Jack Reacher who is supposedly 36. It feels wrong.

Good as expected.

Always like this series. Glad they are always read by Dick Hill. They are interesting move fast and well worth it