Never Go Back

Jack Reacher, Book 18

By: Lee Child

Narrated by: Dick Hill

Length: 13 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE • THE BLOCKBUSTER JACK REACHER SERIES THAT INSPIRED THE STREAMING SERIES REACHER

Never Go Back is a novel of action-charged suspense starring “one of the best thriller characters at work today” (Newsweek).

Former military cop Jack Reacher makes it all the way from snowbound South Dakota to his destination in northeastern Virginia, near Washington, D.C.: the headquarters of his old unit, the 110th MP. The old stone building is the closest thing to a home he ever had.

Reacher is there to meet—in person—the new commanding officer, Major Susan Turner, so far just a warm, intriguing voice on the phone.

But it isn’t Turner behind the CO’s desk. And Reacher is hit with two pieces of shocking news, one with serious criminal consequences, and one too personal to even think about.

When threatened, you can run or fight.

Reacher fights, aiming to find Turner and clear his name, barely a step ahead of the army, and the FBI, and the D.C. Metro police, and four unidentified thugs.

Combining an intricate puzzle of a plot and an exciting chase for truth and justice, Lee Child puts Reacher through his paces—and makes him question who he is, what he’s done, and the very future of his untethered life on the open road.

©2013 Lee Child (P)2013 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Child is a superb craftsman of suspense." (Entertainment Weekly)

“A breathless cross-country spree . . . some of the best, wiliest writing [Lee] Child has ever done . . . Child’s bodacious action hero, Jack Reacher, has already tramped through 17 novels and three e-book singles. But his latest, Never Go Back, may be the best desert island reading in the series. It’s exceptionally well plotted. And full of wild surprises. And wise about Reacher’s peculiar nature. And positively Bunyanesque in its admiring contributions to Reacher lore.” (Janet Maslin, The New York Times)

“An adrenaline-charged, action-packed thriller . . . impossible to put down.” (Lansing State Journal)

Expect the Best

"Expect the Best, Prepare for the Worst" becomes a theme through this book, but no need to prepare for the worst--this story is awesome.
I've listened to all 18 of the Reacher series over the last three years, and Lee Child continues to shine as the creator of Jack Reacher in #18.
As a Jack Reacher fan, all the great qualities are there:
--Lee Child keeps it clean while keeping the action and the story riveting.
--He makes Reacher multi-layered and complex by having Reacher cracks skulls of bad guys, then in another scene, out smart the bad guys through his knowledge of body language, human behavior, math, and yes, even poetry.
--He reveals just a touch of Reacher's soft side.
--He continues to unfold details of Reacher's past, weaving together a complete character that gets better and better with each book.
--Throws in just a bit of humor that makes Reacher human.

This story is even better than many of the first 17 in the Reacher series because there are a couple of great female characters. Like, really, really great female characters--the best he has introduced yet.

The ending did feel a little "quick." I wish the action had been drawn out more, but to me, that's just a sign of a great book. I never want a great book to actually end.

If this is your first Reacher novel, you'll miss out on a few "insider" jokes, like the folding toothbrushes. But overall, you certainly would be able to follow the story and enjoy it.

As for the performance, as usual, Dick Hill is perfect. I think a narrator should disappear and let the story shine and Hill does that. As usual, I'm super impressed with his female voices, you don't even notice him which leaves you free to just enjoy the story.

As with most Reacher fans, I was disappointed with #17, but Lee Child is back and better than ever.

I highly recommend.

Mile High Club, Reacher style

Lee Child apparently heard the criticism sent his way after the highly disappointing, "A Wanted Man." Book 18 in the series, "Never Go Back" features the Jack Reacher many of us have grown to love. This installment finds him doing much more than sitting in a car and driving around for a third of the book. It starts off with heads bashing into cars and doesn't lose its momentum anywhere along the line. The totally unbelievable scenes that Child constructed during a commercial airline flight will have Reacher fans alternately cringing and smiling. The plot and characters were well conceived and the story flowed in a logical fashion. There were some twists and we met at least one character who is sure to surface in another installment down the line. My one criticism of the book was Scott Brick's narration. Maybe he slowed his delivery because Reacher himself is aging as this series progresses. But the slurry, methodical voice he used for Reacher seemed to be a bit overdone. Reacher fans will be happy to have him back. Let's hope Child doesn't phone it in for his next effort.

2nd Best Jack Reacher novel

What did you love best about Never Go Back?

Great story. Almost as good as Killing Floor - which is my favorite

Who was your favorite character and why?

Jack Reacher of course!

Have you listened to any of Dick Hill’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Dick Hill is one of my favorite narrators. I intentionally search for books he has read and have tried new authors solely because he is the reader.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The end.

Any additional comments?

I can not wait for the next Reacher book, I have enjoyed every one and recommend them to anyone who has never picked up a Lee Child book.

Don't bother

If you have ever enjoyed a Jack Reacher novel, give this one a miss. A more frustrating audio novel I have never encountered. It's as if Lee Childs were getting a penny a word like the old-time journalists used to earn. There's more useless detail in this novel than you could possible imagine. Who is interested whether the heroine's boots are under the chair and Reacher's jacket on the back of the chair when it has nothing to do with the plot. Speaking of which, I'm sure the plot is fascinating, but the snippets are so few and far between as to be laughable.The premise of Reacher's returning to his 101st command base because of a voice on the phone is weak enough, but the rest of the plot unfolds with glacial speed and I find myself longing for the hardcover so I can skim.

Where has Lee Child gone?

I was hoping beyond hope that Child's last book (Wanted Man) was a fluke. I thought that he got the terrible writing out of his system and now he will be back in form. Unfortunately this new book is nearly as bad. The only blessing is this time we didn't have to listen to Reacher speak with a broken nose. I am no longer willing to sit through the seemingly endless redundant dialogue to get a couple of minutes of my "Reacher fix".

Come back to us Lee!!

A Tired Series

No one loved Jack Reacher more than I did, at least for the first 6 or 7 installments. The plots were taut and unexpected, our hero intriguing and the wit as dry as the Mojave. But these wonderful books have devolved into self-parody. This novel has a ridiculous plot -- with such risible features as an inflight brawl in an airplane restroom. As if two small people could fit in one of those, much less the Frigidaire-sized Reacher and his opponent! Also, Reacher has theories about himself that involve campfires and howling wolves and he's happy to share them. The mystery of Reacher's stunning fitness (the man eats pancakes and cheeseburgers exclusively, logs countless hours riding around in cars and never so much as skims a gym contract) is explained, basically, as "born this way". I am very very sorry to be unable to recommend this book.

It is time to move on.....

What did you like best about Never Go Back? What did you like least?

Reacher is officially over done! There really aren't any new story lines for this character and Childs is totally reaching (pun intended) in this one.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

Sam was the only interesting character in the story and then nothing

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

Dick Hill could read the phone book and I would still listen to the whole thing which is the only reason I now how this one ended.

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

Nope

Any additional comments?

Come on Lee let Reacher go! You are far to great a writer for this kind of drivel.

Reaching to keep Reacher

Reacher has been such a great series, but I think the plots, action and women are wearing thin for me. That isn't to say I won't be ready for the next one when it comes out but for right now I am glad the series is out of unheard books.

Classic Reacher

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would recommend the audiobook. It has a plausible story line and enough hook to keep you wanting to continue.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Never Go Back?

I loved the interaction with the Samantha Dayton character. I thought it was really funny that one of the bad guys in the book is named David Baldacci.

My favorite Reacher story yet

I'm not a big review writer, but I'll say that this story is solid and captivating, like most of the Reacher series.

This my favorite in the series because the story itself was fascinating, one of the protagonists is a strong and intelligent woman (she's in it throughout the entire story), and there's not as much violence as there is in many of the books. The main female character held Reacher back a bit, like a woman would, which I personally liked. It gave the story more depth, in addition to the usual intrigue.