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Nothing to Lose

Author: Lee Child
Publisher: Bantam Press
Category: Book

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Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

62 reviews
Sales Rank: 823

Media: Hardcover
Pages: 432
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.5
Dimensions (in): 9.4 x 6.1 x 1.6

ISBN: 0593057023
EAN: 9780593057025
ASIN: 0593057023

Publication Date: March 24, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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Customer Reviews:

Showing reviews 6-10 of 62

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Disappointing - the poorest of the series July 8, 2008
After the very entertaining "Bad Luck and Trouble" I hoped Lee Child would be on a role with this, the latest in his typically excellent Jack Reacher series.

Sadly "Nothing to Lose" is indeed a bit of a dud, soley due to the extremely weak plot. It meanders along to a very unsatisfying conclusion, and is not helped by an equally uninspired, and rather limp, sub-plot that doesn't really deliver much satisfaction either (I won't go into details, because whilst I don't recommend the book I don't want to give away any spoilers either).

Sadly, for every entertaining distraction (Reacher's numerous brawls with heavy handed locals, coupled with some killer Reacher put-downs) there were other annoying traits, such as Child's bizarre geographic obsession with using the words "west of.." and "east of..." throughout.

So, whilst it's a novel technically as well written as any other in the series, it's the dreary plot that drags "Nothing to Lose" down to the bottom of the pile. I'm confident though that next time Child will come up with a winner.

4 out of 5 stars

ROUTINE REACHER July 7, 2008
I'm a big fan of Lee Child and his rogue, justice-dealing loner, Reacher. In "Nothing to Lose", Reacher must solve the mystery of a remote town, Despair, whose people seem unaccountably keen to see the back of him. This makes the plot reminiscent of the first Jack Reacher, "Killing Floor". Indeed, the whole plot is uncomfortably formulaic and reminiscent of earlier Lee Child thrillers, from Reacher shacking up with an interesting loner female to his final assault on a stronghold defended by some tough guys. I hoped desperately for some twists or intriguing characters, but in vain. Indeed, the plot conceit of having two neighbouring towns entitled "Hope" (decent place) and "Despair" (dump) was symptomatic of what feels like the author's need to let a second pair of eyes edit this down to something tighter and better (see eg "Tripwire" or "Echo Burning"). I'd have liked to another outing for Reacher's best female sidekick, the enigmatic Neagly, too (see "Without Fail" and "Bad Luck and Trouble"). And Reacher's terrific, ironic sense of humour, as seen in "The Enemy" seems to have deserted him.

So why 4 stars? Well, it's still a decent read, and moves along briskly enough. But c'mon Lee Child, you can do better than this!

For: an OK read. Against: slow-moving and formulaic in places.

3 out of 5 stars

Not great July 7, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

When Lee Child writes thrillers well he's the best around, but 'Nothing to lose' is perhaps the worst Reacher novel I've read so far. The plot is slow, repetative and verges on the incredible. When it arrives, the climax of the story has Reacher doing something so irresponsible it beggars belief. You get the impression that Child realised the book was a dud after page 25 but plowed on to meet contractual obligations. Having said that, most Reacher fans will find something to enjoy here and I look forward to the next Reacher novel.

1 out of 5 stars

Boring and Unthrilling July 5, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful

I've read every Lee Child and some of them such as The Visitor or Killing Floor have amazing suspense and excitement. This one is totally pedestrian with no suspense at all. My advice, read something else and save some money!

2 out of 5 stars

Where does Jack Reacher go next? July 5, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful

I have read and enjoyed all the Jack Reacher novels, but like the other reviewers was very disappointed with "Nothing to Lose". Whilst all the plots have pushed the boudaries of plausibility, the structure and pace of the writing has always kept me interested. This time I felt no spark at all and got the impression that the author was as bored writing the story as I was reading it. There is also the problem of maintaining Jack's credibility as a hard man and magnet to women as he approaches 50. With his dreadful diet and lack of regular exercise, he is getting to the stage where bar room brawling might best be practised in flashback. Like most Reacher fans I would like to see the character developed. The team approach in "Bad luck and Trouble" did work well and there must be scope to change Jack's life style to meet the passage of time without him losing the raw edge that makes him what he is.