The Affair [with bonus short story 'Second Son']
by Lee Child 
Jack Reacher (Collections and Selections — 16+)
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#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLEREverything starts somewhere. For elite military cop Jack Reacher, that somewhere was Carter Crossing, Mississippi, way back in 1997.
A lonely railroad track. A crime scene. A cover-up. A young woman is dead, and solid evidence points to a soldier at a nearby military base. But that soldier has powerful friends in Washington.
Reacher is ordered undercover to find out everything he can and then to vanish. But when he gets to Carter Crossing, Reacher meets show more local sheriff Elizabeth Deveraux, who has a thirst for justice and an appetite for secrets. Uncertain they can trust each other, they reluctantly join forces. Finding unexpected layers to the case, Reacher works to uncover the truth, while others try to bury it forever. The conspiracy threatens to shatter his faith in his mission—and turn him into a man to be feared. show less
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This is the 2nd book that I've read by this author. It still bugs me that he OVERUSES the phrase "I said nothing" constantly - to the point that I kept a running count (in my head, like the clock in Reacher's head). This book had 42 occurrences, sometimes 4 or more in a few pages. It's VERY annoying, and just poor writing. His grammar and syntax is also poor; sometimes he'll have very short sentences, which should be joined by commas or an "and", and other times he puts in way too many "ands" and commas. It's uneven and an editor should have reined him in years ago.
Those gripes being said, as a storyteller, he's quite good, and that's why I will read another of his books. He'll throw in humour (since he's English) in unexpected places, show more and make me laugh out loud. His fight scenes are so well described, that I end up reading them to my husband, who is also entertained by them. Also, this story made much more sense than the first one I read (the first in the series, too). It's so gripping that at times I can't put it down. It's a pain in the neck at night when I'm reading to go to sleep, and suddenly it's 3am. His characters were believable, likable and enjoyable. I'll read the Killing Floor next, and hope that he puts in less "I said nothing's", because I have lots to say about that. show less
Those gripes being said, as a storyteller, he's quite good, and that's why I will read another of his books. He'll throw in humour (since he's English) in unexpected places, show more and make me laugh out loud. His fight scenes are so well described, that I end up reading them to my husband, who is also entertained by them. Also, this story made much more sense than the first one I read (the first in the series, too). It's so gripping that at times I can't put it down. It's a pain in the neck at night when I'm reading to go to sleep, and suddenly it's 3am. His characters were believable, likable and enjoyable. I'll read the Killing Floor next, and hope that he puts in less "I said nothing's", because I have lots to say about that. show less
Fans of Lee Child may have wondered why Jack Reacher, Child’s popular protagonist, left the army. (Even in the first book in the series, Reacher was already an ex-Army M.P.) Child answers that question in The Affair, by going back in time to 1997 for the termination of Reacher’s military career, when Reacher was 36.
Most of the action takes place near Fort Kelham, a fictional army ranger base in Northern Mississippi, where Reacher has been sent to make sure the army is not implicated in the murder of a beautiful young townie. The young lady in question, who happened to be Caucasion, was the victim of a grizzly throat slashing, just the sort of killing a well-trained army ranger might be able to accomplish. It then transpires that show more two other local beautiful women were recently killed in an identical modus operandi, but being black, their murders caused hardly a ripple.
While in Mississippi, Reacher encounters some tough [but not nearly as tough as Reacher] Good Ol’ Boys, a beautiful ex-marine sheriff named Elizabeth Deveraux, and a sinister plot that extends high into the Pentagon. As one who has read Lee Child novels can expect, Reacher goes on to beat up the Good Ol’ Boys (six of them at one time), make passionate love to the ex-marine, and foil the sinister plot. In the process, the reader learns the extent of damage that (1) a freight train can do to a car; (2) a hunting knife can do to a throat; and (3) a well-timed head-butt can do to an unexpecting combatant.
Child is an expert at describing macho wise-cracking, verbal intimidation, and hand-to-hand combat. He is awful at describing sex. Unlike most of his books, this one contains several sex scenes, none of which is erotic, all of which could have been truncated. During the first and most explicit sex scene, I kept wondering and asking myself, “When is he going to finish?!” That scene was probably more painful because I was listening to an audio book and could not easily skip to the dénouement.
The reader of the audio version, Dick Hill, does a decent job of changing voices for the male characters; but when he indicates that a female is speaking, it is just painful. I’d have trouble being attracted to any woman who sounded like him even if she were gorgeous and intelligent.
Nevertheless, when he sticks to his knitting, Child can be very good, and this book is no exception. Child knows how to withhold just enough information from the reader to keep one off balance without being too gimmicky. The plot is nicely complicated, and the action outside the bedroom is fast-paced and handled with aplomb. Child uses repetition of verbal themes very effectively. For example, when Reacher says, “I said nothing,” you can almost hear ominous theme music playing in the background.
Evaluation: This isn’t the best Jack Reacher novel I’ve read, but it is not bad. Recommended for airport reading.
Note: This is the 16th book in the Jack Reacher series. I listened to the unabridged audio version on 11 compact discs.
(JAB) show less
Most of the action takes place near Fort Kelham, a fictional army ranger base in Northern Mississippi, where Reacher has been sent to make sure the army is not implicated in the murder of a beautiful young townie. The young lady in question, who happened to be Caucasion, was the victim of a grizzly throat slashing, just the sort of killing a well-trained army ranger might be able to accomplish. It then transpires that show more two other local beautiful women were recently killed in an identical modus operandi, but being black, their murders caused hardly a ripple.
While in Mississippi, Reacher encounters some tough [but not nearly as tough as Reacher] Good Ol’ Boys, a beautiful ex-marine sheriff named Elizabeth Deveraux, and a sinister plot that extends high into the Pentagon. As one who has read Lee Child novels can expect, Reacher goes on to beat up the Good Ol’ Boys (six of them at one time), make passionate love to the ex-marine, and foil the sinister plot. In the process, the reader learns the extent of damage that (1) a freight train can do to a car; (2) a hunting knife can do to a throat; and (3) a well-timed head-butt can do to an unexpecting combatant.
Child is an expert at describing macho wise-cracking, verbal intimidation, and hand-to-hand combat. He is awful at describing sex. Unlike most of his books, this one contains several sex scenes, none of which is erotic, all of which could have been truncated. During the first and most explicit sex scene, I kept wondering and asking myself, “When is he going to finish?!” That scene was probably more painful because I was listening to an audio book and could not easily skip to the dénouement.
The reader of the audio version, Dick Hill, does a decent job of changing voices for the male characters; but when he indicates that a female is speaking, it is just painful. I’d have trouble being attracted to any woman who sounded like him even if she were gorgeous and intelligent.
Nevertheless, when he sticks to his knitting, Child can be very good, and this book is no exception. Child knows how to withhold just enough information from the reader to keep one off balance without being too gimmicky. The plot is nicely complicated, and the action outside the bedroom is fast-paced and handled with aplomb. Child uses repetition of verbal themes very effectively. For example, when Reacher says, “I said nothing,” you can almost hear ominous theme music playing in the background.
Evaluation: This isn’t the best Jack Reacher novel I’ve read, but it is not bad. Recommended for airport reading.
Note: This is the 16th book in the Jack Reacher series. I listened to the unabridged audio version on 11 compact discs.
(JAB) show less
This is the second Jack Reacher book I've read and I enjoyed it better than the first ("Killing Floor"). The story was tight, the dialogue well done and witty, and the characters were nicely fleshed out.
"The Affair" is about a murder that's occurred outside a high security army base in rural Mississippi. An MP is sent to the base to investigate in case the culprit is a solider, but Jack Reacher, an MP himself, is sent to oversee the police investigation as well (since the murder didn't actually occur on base). Little does he know that the local sheriff was a former Marine MP, so she recognizes what she's dealing with in Reacher. This is a well-written who-done-it that keeps you guessing until the end.
My only real complaint was the show more violence Reacher commits during the investigation. He took steps that seemed unnecessary and others seemed ok with it. This didn't seem plausible, but I think the story was good enough to allow me to give Child a pass on this. show less
"The Affair" is about a murder that's occurred outside a high security army base in rural Mississippi. An MP is sent to the base to investigate in case the culprit is a solider, but Jack Reacher, an MP himself, is sent to oversee the police investigation as well (since the murder didn't actually occur on base). Little does he know that the local sheriff was a former Marine MP, so she recognizes what she's dealing with in Reacher. This is a well-written who-done-it that keeps you guessing until the end.
My only real complaint was the show more violence Reacher commits during the investigation. He took steps that seemed unnecessary and others seemed ok with it. This didn't seem plausible, but I think the story was good enough to allow me to give Child a pass on this. show less
In a story set in 1997, Jack Reacher goes undercover for the army, traveling to Carter Crossing, Mississippi to determine if a woman’s brutal murder could have come at the hands of a soldier stationed at nearby Kellum army base.
Sixteenth in the Reacher series, this narrative provides the backstory for Jack’s separation from the army. Character development is spot-on as is the realistic portrayal of the rural town, its people, and its prejudices. The plot twists and turns, offering some unexpected revelations as it keeps Reacher doggedly pursuing the truth.
This intriguing glimpse into Jack Reacher’s past is certain to please fans of the series; new readers will find much to appreciate in Reacher’s exploits. As the story show more unfolds, readers discover Jack’s personal code, his own self-doubts, his straightforward approach in dealing with injustice despite the possible repercussions. As with all Reacher tales, suspense builds as the pages turn and readers are likely to find it difficult to set the book aside before reaching the final page.
Highly recommended. show less
Sixteenth in the Reacher series, this narrative provides the backstory for Jack’s separation from the army. Character development is spot-on as is the realistic portrayal of the rural town, its people, and its prejudices. The plot twists and turns, offering some unexpected revelations as it keeps Reacher doggedly pursuing the truth.
This intriguing glimpse into Jack Reacher’s past is certain to please fans of the series; new readers will find much to appreciate in Reacher’s exploits. As the story show more unfolds, readers discover Jack’s personal code, his own self-doubts, his straightforward approach in dealing with injustice despite the possible repercussions. As with all Reacher tales, suspense builds as the pages turn and readers are likely to find it difficult to set the book aside before reaching the final page.
Highly recommended. show less
Welcome back, Jack!
You can enjoy this one without having read any of the other Reacher novels. It's a prequel to the entire series, revealing how Jack came to be that big guy on lonely stretches of road with his thumb out in the wind.
The Affair is set in 1997, when Jack Reacher is still an MP in the Army. Someone is killing women in the tiny town of Carter Crossing, Mississippi. The Army suspects that the killer may be a Ranger at the base near town, and Jack is sent to investigate. Then two men are killed. Is the same person committing all these murders? Why? And what is the Army hiding? Do they really want Jack to find the killer?
This one was slow to warm up, but by the second half I had a hard time putting it down. A good mystery, show more a weird redneck town, some great humor, a little marathon sex. What's not to like? As a bonus, you get to find out how freight trains can work as an aphrodisiac. It's all about timing. show less
You can enjoy this one without having read any of the other Reacher novels. It's a prequel to the entire series, revealing how Jack came to be that big guy on lonely stretches of road with his thumb out in the wind.
The Affair is set in 1997, when Jack Reacher is still an MP in the Army. Someone is killing women in the tiny town of Carter Crossing, Mississippi. The Army suspects that the killer may be a Ranger at the base near town, and Jack is sent to investigate. Then two men are killed. Is the same person committing all these murders? Why? And what is the Army hiding? Do they really want Jack to find the killer?
This one was slow to warm up, but by the second half I had a hard time putting it down. A good mystery, show more a weird redneck town, some great humor, a little marathon sex. What's not to like? As a bonus, you get to find out how freight trains can work as an aphrodisiac. It's all about timing. show less
Another great Reacher, harking back to 1997 just before he left the army, in fact his final case. He's dispatched to a one horse town in deep Mississippi which is totally reliant on a nearby army base, undercover, to find out if one of the base personnel is responsible for a brutal murder of a beautiful local woman. As always nothing is quite as it seems and Reacher is quickly making waves which reach to the highest levels in Washington, who foolishly try their best to stifle Reacher's investigation. Cracking read which keeps you reading long after you should have gone to bed!
The 16th entry in Lee Child's seemingly endless series of the adventures of Jack Reacher, man of action. This one flashes back to Reacher's final days in the U.S. Army, when he is sent undercover to investigate a woman's murder in a small Mississippi town whose only economic engine is a nearby military base. The Army is afraid that one of the soldiers from the base, in particular the son of a U.S. Senator, may have been involved. It doesn't take Reacher long to blow both his cover and the ravishingly beautiful county sheriff, in that order. Much blood and other bodily fluids are spilled on the way to the story's climax (sorry, sorry, but this one had a LOT of sex in it). Good if you don't mind blood and bodily fluids, or if you have a show more thing for choo-choo trains. show less
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181+ Works 142,950 Members
Lee Child is the pen name of Jim Grant, who was born in Coventry, England on October 29, 1954. He attended law school at Sheffield University, worked in the theater, and finally worked as a presentation director for Granada Television. After being laid off in 1995 because of corporate restructuring, he decided to write a book. The Killing Floor show more won the Anthony Award for Best First Novel and became the first book in the Jack Reacher series. In 2012, the first Jack Reacher film was released starring Tom Cruise. His book's, Worth Dying For and Past Tense, made the bestseller list in 2018. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Lee Child is a LibraryThing Author, an author who lists their personal library on LibraryThing.
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Contains
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- The Affair [with bonus short story 'Second Son']
- Original publication date
- 2011-09-27
- People/Characters
- Jack Reacher; Sheriff Elizabeth Deveraux
- Dedication
- Dedicated to the memory of
David Thompson
1971-2010
A fine bookseller and a good friend - First words
- The Pentagon is the world's largest office building, six and a half million square feet, thirty thousand people, more than seventeen miles of corridors, but it was built with just three street doors, each one of them opening ... (show all)into a guarded pedestrian lobby.
- Disambiguation notice
- Do not combine this 2-in-1 book with the individual stories contained in the book. Thanks.
ISBNs of 2-in-1 book are: 044024630X (Paperback), 0440339359 (ebook)
ISBNs 0385344325, 0593065700 are for the 2011, single hardcover book edition.
ISBN 0553825518 is for 2012, single paperback book edition.
None of these ISBNs are for the 2-in-1 edition.
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Statistics
- Members
- 1,815
- Popularity
- 11,968
- Reviews
- 39
- Rating
- (3.89)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 6
- ASINs
- 5