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Lee Child
Paperback
Publisher: Jove Reissue edition (August 28, 2007)
The mark of a good story teller is the ability to convey all the necessary backstory information in a way which is entertaining while still moving the story forward. Lee Child is a good story teller and Running Blind is a good story. Whether you are new to Jack Reacher or you have been with the character from the start of the series Child welcomes all readers with a strong story arcs and well define characters. Make no mistake about it the Jack Reacher books are part thriller and part mystery. There isn't a lot of room for anything else and that is just the way it ought to be.
Reacher of course is a man's man and can't help notice the women around him just as they cannot help notice him. In the John D. MacDonald tradition of Travis McGee women find comfort in his presence and in his arms but unlike MacDonald's salvage specialist Reacher doesn't cure all their ills and certainly doesn't stay around for longer than is necessary. That being said the momentary lapses from solid mystery action to kissy face schmaltz are momentary and don't do anything to derail the main story.
The main story in this particular case is that Reacher is picked up by the F.B.I. on suspicion of being a serial murderer. The UnSub profile established by the F.B.I. team points to Reacher or someone exactly like him. The fact that Reacher worked on cases involving the victims and seems to be the only connection between them makes him all the more likely a suspect.
Nothing is ever clear in the world of politics and legal brinkmanship and when all is said and done the F.B.I. turns out to need Reacher more than he is worried about them or what they can do to make his life difficult. While having to deal with the inevitable bureaucracy of America's largest police force Reacher is also on the bubble time wise as he tries to figure out who the next victim will be in a list that is so long as to be impossible to work with.
Running Blind is a strong novel and the reader is given enough hints along the way to figure out a lot about the perpetrator of the crimes though maybe not quite enough to actually figure it out before Reacher does. Running Blind is well written, well executed and well worth the read.