Guys love Jack Reacher, the recurring protagonist in a series of thrillers by Lee Child. He’s an ex-military policeman, big, strong, attractive to and successful with women, and nobody can knock this guy down. He observes the tiniest details about people and places, has an unerring internal clock and distance calculator, and a near photographic memory. Otherwise, he’s just like you and me.

Reacher, not working since his military days, decides to cross the country diagonally from Calais, Maine, to San Diego, California. On the way, he stops in the little town of Hope, Colorado. He finds that the next town over is called Despair, and is unable to resist seeing it as well. But the townspeople aren’t so welcoming. He is picked up by the police for “vagrancy” and driven back to the line marking Hope Township. There, he is met by a Hope policewoman, Vaughan, who drives him back into town.

Reacher doesn’t like to be told what to do, and decides to go back to Despair and find out why they’re running visitors out of town. He keeps trying, and keeps getting attacked. Nothing stops Reacher though. In a bar where it is six big guys against just him (or, as Reacher analyzes it, “twelve hundred pounds against two-fifty”), he easily repels all six, then finishes his beer.

Repeated incursions into the town with the help of Vaughan (who can’t resist him, needless to add), reveal a religious cult, a military conspiracy, and an environmental disaster. All routine diversions for Reacher, who takes care of all of it, including the lonely Vaughan, before leaving town once again.

Evaluation: The story isn’t all a video-game-as-a-book. The author injects poignant observations about casualties in Iraq, perceptive comments about foreign policy, and trenchant observations about crowd psychology. Still, it’s basically a book you read when you want to take a break from more rigorous reading. I find the Lee Child novels diverting, and the men I know who read them get positively giddy over the character of Jack Reacher. This one isn’t the best I’ve read, but it will do just fine for an airplane book.

Series Note: Although this is a series, these books stand quite well on their own. ( )

I found this very formulaic: Reacher wanders into town, finds something fishy, beats up bullies, gets involved with a woman, solves mystery, wanders off. I still couldn't put it down, though. A good read, just I was hoping for better from Child.
I also thought that Reacher's sudden vehement political views were both out-of-character, and unlikely for someone with his background. Apparently, Child had to vent his own views through his character. Next time, Lee, invent a character who could realistically be expected to have your views, instead of putting them in Reacher's mouth. ( )

This author’s books always seem to dominate the crime shelves whenever I go into a bookshop, and I’ve been a little dismissive of this author in the past; considering his books a little too thriller’ish for my tastes. A bit of a sweeping conclusion to draw on my behalf without ever having read any of his books. I was prompted to try this author, by a book podcast which reviewed his latest book and it sounded intriguing so I thought I’d give previous book a go. I’m glad I did. The central character is Jack Reacher, a former military cop who now travels through America giving aid to a cause he believes in. Although the concept does follow the lines of a thriller, Reacher is such a no nonsense guy, that I got pulled into the book just by his attitude of having total belief in himself. As well drawn as the character is, and this is an ongoing series so the author has had time to flesh him out, it’s the dialogue which just pulses off the page. Sharp, snappy. And at times very amusing. There’s no use of ‘he said/she said’, just great flowing dialogue. My only slightly complaint, is Reacher is a guy who can measure distances mentally, can weigh up a person when he walks into a room (he even has an eternal clock) and sometimes that level of technical information, for me bogged the story down at times. Personally I’d’ve liked to have seen the story edited a little tighter, but that’s just my personal preference. In the end, this is still a series I want to track down and immerse myself in. ( )

This is an excellent thriller about religious nuts, the Iraq War and corporate profits. Child is excellent at creating a sense of place, creating interesting characters and probing into the American mind. The protagonist is a loner who can observe society from a distance and act accordingly. It is modestly paced and takes time to present and observe the importance of small details in daily life and how they relate to culture, social policy, religion and human relations.

NOTHING TO LOSE is the 12th book featuring Jack Reacher, an ex-military man who left the army in 1997. He is alone as both his parents and his brother are dead, and he travels light. At the start of the book, he is staying in a small town called Hope, 20km away from another small town called Despair, both in Colorado. Before he leaves, he decides to visit Despair, but no-one will serve him in the main town diner, and then the cops turn up to ask him to leave town. He resists, is locked up and then forced to leave town on the basis that he is a vagrant. Ejected, he runs into Vaughan, a female cop on duty in her patrol car, and they strike up an uneasy friendship. Reacher is tenacious. He is determined to find out why he was turned away from Despair without a clear reason. He keeps going back to Despair to try to find out what the town is trying to hide. His friendship with Vaughan develops and she gets caught up in Reacher's investigation. Several things are going on in Despair, and in particular there is something very suspicious going on at the recycling plant, which recycles army vehicles and spent munitions. Reacher eventually teases out the truth, from a mix of experience and intuition, and sorts things out more or less singlehandedly, before heading out of town.
Reacher is not the sort of hero who is likely to settle down, put down roots and start a family, or worry about people's feelings as a consequence of his actions. He buys new clothes when his old ones get dirty, and throws the dirty clothes away. He is insular, determined, and single-minded, and has a lot of experience that helps him to predict how people will behave and win fights even when it is 6 against 1. He doesn't like being told what to do, and doggedly keeps on returning to Despair to find out why they were reluctant to even let him stay for a cup of coffee.
The book is competently written, but rather predictable. It is a good read, but not one of the better Reacher stories. ( )

This was an OK book. The characters were well written, but a little cliched - the drifter who used to be a cop blowing into town just in time to save the world and emotionally rescue the small-town female cop with a tragedy in her past. I also found parts of this book a bit MacGyver-ish for my taste. After all, who repeatedly bats heads with fanatical terrorists bent on kick-starting Armageddon and still comes out on top? The other thing that annoyed me about this book was the strong political message contained within. Don't get me wrong, I have no problem with books that have a moral to the story - but could we be a little more subtle about it?

If you can look past the faults, this is an enjoyable story. However, it is not one I'll be reading twice. ( )

Reacher is walking across America. He stops between the towns of Hope and Despair in Colorado. When he goes to a restaurant in Despair, he's ordered out of town and told that they don't like strangers. He learns that Despair is a company town run by a man who is an autocrat.

Reacher doesn't like being told what to do so returns to Despair after dark. He finds the emaciated body of a young man. Then goes back to Hope where he meets a woman named Lucy Anderson who is waiting for her husband. It isn't the man whose body Reacher found but Lucy tells him that her husband is missing.
There is also a military installation in Despair and a factory which comes under Reacher's suspcion.
There are times when I scratched my head with the improbability of events in the story. At one point, Reacher comes up against six men in a bar fight. He inflicts such damage to the men that they need medical assistance, one with a broken nose, one broken arm and one concussion. At the same time, Reacher walks away with hardly a scratch. In another case, while returning to Despair again, this time with Officer Vaughn from Hope, they see a crowd of two to three hundred people standing in the highway to block their way and chanting, "Out! Out! Out!" Improbable.
The story is slow to develop and the plot sways back and forth like a stormy tide. Apparently, Reacher has different thoughts as to the mystery behind Despair and how he decides one choice of action or another isn't fully detailed.
The town of Despair is unfriendly, the people think of nothing but themselves and with Reacher's usual goal to protect those who can't help themselves, maybe he should have left Despair to its own fate. ( )

It is Reacher, Jack Reacher - James Bond sans the babes & expensive gadgets. Maybe a MacGyver with a chip on his shoulder. Anyway, Reacher tales are as believable as Bond & MacGyver, but if you are willing to leave reality behind and simply go for a ride with Jack Reacher in Nothing To Lose, you won't be disappoinated. ( )

Child really has a unique main character in Jack Reacher, and oddly enough I identify with Jack Reacher because I'm ex-military and I lived "on the road" for eight months. Here's an ex-Army MP with enough of a pension to just roam...his home state is Wanderlust. Fate constantly throws surprising situations at him and Reacher has to deal with them. Child has shown he is very imaginative, and he has a terse writing style with short, suspense-building chapters that keeps the action going from the first page.

To be honest I had a hard time suspending my disbelief about the strange towns Reacher finds himself in while crossing Colorado, Hope and Despair. But I'm a cynic anyway, so I just followed Reacher's adventures and challenges and let Child take me along. I also think that in present-day America it would be hard to hide such a monstrous conspiracy, but, who really knows? If you haven't read this one I do not want to spoil it for you.

Two things are certain, this book is escapism at its best and you don't ever want to mess with Jack Reacher! ( )

A page turner. ( )

Fun fun fun fun fun. Not literature, just a fun read. Iraq war veterans, underground railroads, dirty bombs, Christian fundamentalists, cult-like town...what's not to like? While reading Lee Child, I usually think I've got the mystery part figured out, but I never do. Good times. ( )

The Reacher books by Lee Child are fast moving, easy reads that are perfect for sitting in the summer sun with. excellent stuff and as always great fun with the big guy. ( )

12th book in the Jack Reacher series

After reading many of his previous novels, I found this one a disappointment.

The story started promising enough with Reacher walking into the town of Despair Colorado. The town people are not keen to see strangers in this area and they show it. What are they hiding? As time passes, Reacher becomes more and more determined to find out.

Reader boredom sets in with an endless description of bar brawls fights with police and generally everyone insight. We would imagine the action to be full of twists and turns but it is so repetitive the plot becomes tedious, convoluted and implausible, wandering all over the place… Read more ( )

Solid entertainment ( )

I don't agree with some of the highlighted reviews that say this book is a miss for Child. As far as I'm concerned a not-quite-as-good Lee Child is better than some other authors' best efforts. Lee Child knows how to write a story, and Jack Reacher is just as wonderful in this book as he is in others. In this book Jack is caught in between Hope and Despair (these are actually two small towns in Colorado that are about 14 miles apart in distance, but miles apart in everything else. Hope is a clean, happy little town, and there's a pretty cop there that Reacher hooks up with. Despair is a closed-ugly-company-factory town that does not like strangers, and they are hiding a very deep, dark secret. Of course, Reacher cannot rest until he uncovers that secret. When he does, it's even more ugly than even he imagined. I enjoyed the book. I love Reacher. Bring it on Lee Child! ( )

The previous two books in the Reacher series (THE HARD WAY and BAD LUCK AND TROUBLE) weren’t /quite/ as much fun as the others, imho. I’m therefore all the more delighted to tell you that NOTHING TO LOSE is /terrific/ - right up there with my personal favourites, PERSUADER, ECHO BURNING and ONE SHOT. The way Reacher mows into town like a man-sized Godzilla is, as always, intensely satisfying. But seeing, in this one, some nutcase End Times fans meet an early personal apocalypse just gave me a special warm glow. You don’t need to read the series in order, so if you haven’t met Jack Reacher or Lee Child before, here is a grand place to start. If you like fast, thrilling storytelling you’ll be glad you did. ( )

I first met Jack Reacher in Lee Child’s One Shot. He is quite a character, so I’ve joined him for several more of his escapades. The latest one is in Nothing to Lose.

Lee Child’s Nothing to Lose may not be the most intellectually stimulating book around. But it sure is fun!

My complete review is on my Blog, Nate's Library, specifically at: http://nates-library.blogspot.com/200... ( )

I just finished reading Lee Child's "Nothing to Lose." It is one of his Jack Reacher novels. I had never heard of Lee Child or the Jack Reacher series before I read this book. I'm hooked.

This book is from a genre I have never heard of before: "Revenge Fantasy." Jack Reacher, the narrator and protagonist of the book, is a former MP who is now one hard dude. He walks everywhere he goes with nothing but the clothers on his back and an ATM card in his pocket. He doesn't take any crap from anybody. Some of my favorite dialog:

In a diner, in Despair, Colorado, where four toughs are trying to get him to leave,

Tough: "You need to get going"

Reacher: "Going?"

"Out of here."

"Out of where?"

"Out of this restaurant."

"You want to tell me why?"

"We don't like strangers."

"Me either," Reacher said. "But I need to eat somewhere. Otherwise, I get all wasted and skinny like you four."

The book is full of dialog like that. I loved it. What nerd wouldn't? Who needs a story with dialog like that.

Yes there is a story. Jack Reacher is walking from Maine to San Diego and he walks through Hope, Colorado on his way to Despair. He runs into trouble in the diner and gets arrested for vagrancy and then driven to the edge of Despair back to Hope.

He meets a policewoman, Vaughn, a woman with a secret, who is sympathetic to him. Eventually she consumates her sympathy with him. Later, Reacher finds out her secret. They also work together through a bunch of adventures to find out why the people of Despair including the fundamentalist, industrialist, mayor, are so hostile to outsiders.

What kept me going through this book is Reachers reparte with the various bad guys he comes up against. The story was ok but not very compelling. The problem with books with a mystery is that most of the time I am disapointed with the secret of the mystery. It is kind of like monster books. The buildup is the best part. The revealed monster is alwasy disappointing.

I give this book 2.5 stars out of 5. I'll read more books by Lee Child. ( )

Sadly not quite up to the usual standard. Reacher breezed through it with no real feeling of danger or show of emotion. ( )

I'm a Jack Reacher fan - love, love this character. I also love Indiana Jones. But in the last movie, it left me with the same feeling as I had after I read this book. It left me with questions to ponder, such as is the guy getting too old? Isn't it time for a new character?

NOTHING TO LOSE didn't knock my socks off as did the previous Reacher books. I'll keep my fingers crossed though and wait for the next in this series. Maybe I'll have the answer to my pondering questions then. ( )

This is the latest of the Jack Reacher novels by Lee Child. It is a fast paced contemporary thriller, with one of the more interesting of the noir protagonists of the last decade. Jack Reacher is a former military policeman, whose wanderings bring him into contact with people in trouble and needing the skilled help he is willing to give. Owning little, freed from conventional human ties, Reacher is nevertheless a bright, caring, and compassionate man -- who is willing to use his remarkable skills to put right what has often gone wrong.

This latest addition to the series is a real page-turner. Reacher is evicted for vagrancy from a tone aptly named Despair. Angry at being given the bum's rush, Reacher decides to find out why the beaten down people of Despair are so anxious to keep strangers out of their tiny hamlet. What he discovers involves the US Army, the current war in Iraq, and a group of born again Christians who are doing everything they can to prepare themselves for the end times they are certain are upon us.

To the casual eye Reacher might seem like a modern McGyver -- but in this book Child is careful to draw a clear line between cause and effect. Reacher's skills, both pugilistic and investigative, are clearly explained and traced back to both his childhood and his military training. I found his actions and his motivations entirely believable.

Reacher is a substantial force for good wherever he finds himself -- and I often regret he is only fictional.

Very highly recommended. ( )

Another great Jack Reacher book. Ex Military Police for 10 years. Super tough guy takes on the bad guys. Pretty girl cop in the good town of Hope. They take on the mystery of nearby company town of Despair run by a religious fanatic. Reacher as usual very analytic about situations which is informational. A good read. ( )

Neither the best nor the worst of Lee Child's Jack Reacher novels. As in prior novels like Killing Floor and One Shot, the locale in which Nothing to Lose is set comes alive much as if it were another character in the story. And, once again, Reacher is aided by an interesting female police officer (I'm not sure if there are many female cops left that he Reacher hasn't met). I saw some aspects of the eventual resolution to the mystery coming, but all-in-all, the storyline kept my interest. As usual with a Reacher story, the story and plot themselves are almost secondary to Reacher himself and, after Nothing to Lose Reacher remains one of the most interesting current characters in the thriller genre. ( )

This is Lee Child writing at the top of his form. Jack Reacher, the everyman hero, heads west and when he runs into a town that tries to throw him out, decides to find out why. Three separate mysteries are solved, a short anti- Iraq war segment and an explosive finish. All very satisfying as our hero demolishes the bad guys, changes his clothes every three days and has a short affair. Certainly nothing new about Jack Reacher character and his approach to life but with the change of scenery all in all a ripping good story as they used to say. ( )

Yes, it's more political, yes there is less action than in most of Reacher's escapades, but still, my only complaint is that as Canadian, I don't like the fact that our Army is "3 guys and a dog" documented in type - we try to keep that on the down low. ( )