The Affair question

I'm a huge Reacher fan; I've read and enjoyed every Reacher book. This was the first one I literally couldn't finish. It wasn't so much that the 1997 Reacher was less engaging for me as a reader; he seemed more or less fully formed to me in the 1997 of the book. It's that Reacher seems barely present in this book at all. It's weird... something's missing. The wit, the menace, the spark, I don't know. Add to that a venue that didn't grab me, a romance I didn't care about, and a crime that totally failed to hold my interest, and this one was a major disappointment. Not to say I won't be anxiously awaiting the next one like I always do... just saying that I couldn't muster the interest to drag myself through the last 40 pages. That's a first.

I am loving this. The younger Jack is great to see and I like the military focus.

I thought it was a good idea to go back in time again. For Reacher fans like myself it felt kind of nostalgic, which was great. I have to agree with Bill that the romance and the crime lacked focus compared to earlier books, yet I would never stop reading. Especially not when you only have a few pages left. What was brilliantly done in this book was the tie-in with the "first" one (Killing Floor, I think), and Reacher's relationship with his brother. Child led us full circle, I guess.

I really enjoyed The Affair. The 1997 thing didn't bother me, although now I've read all of your comments, I agree it was probably too present. Methinks the editor may have put that in there to aid the reader who takes months to read a book.
My review here: http://thetysonadams.blogspot.com/201...

I spoke with Lee about it tonight... No really.... well... he spoke about it. I just got to shake his hand when he signed my book (personalized!!).

But one of the reasons for the 'prequel' was that Reacher needed to get laid. Lee's words.

It was at a fund raiser; Conversations: An Evening with Lee Child. Someone asked if there was any romance in Reacher's future. Lee said that since 61 Hours, Reacher has been wanting to see who goes with the voice on the phone in Virginia. So he didn't have a love interest in South Dakota, nor in Nebraska in Worth Dying For. Lee figured he couldn't have a third book in a row without Reacher getting laid, but he's not ready to take him to Virginia, so he decided on the prequel format. It also answers questions people have asked about why Reacher left the Army.

given that, to be honest, in the last 3 books the Reacher character has become a parody of himself I found the going back to 1997 storyline refreshing. Yeah the prose was clumsy i.e.. "but that's how it was in 1997" repeatedly, but hey thats a hell of a lot better than finishing every chapter with a countdown from 61!
I felt that the Reacher character become more real in this book because he has become so superhuman in the last few that it is unbelievable. This is the first book since "bad luck and trouble" that i've enjoyed this was a huge step for me. I was about to give up!

I thought The Affair was a great read. It was enjoyable for me to get more insight into why Reacher is the way he is.

I really liked this book. It is the first Reacher book I have read. I did not realize it was a series, and from the posts it sounds like the earlier books are even better. I can't wait to start from the beginning now.

I'd love to see Reacher go back to when his brother was still alive - I loved the book where they went back to France to see their mother one last time, and I loved the "Second Son" short story!

Not his best effort....but it did fuel my desire for him to meet up with the voice in Virginia. I am fine with the trip down memory lane, now let's get to Susan Turner...

I enjoyed the book, like Bill said "Reacher was fully formed", this was an aspect I found difficult to accept, considering how early this book is placed in Reachers life, I would have expected some faults to be highlighted and Lee did not seem to put these there.

Having said this I still found the book enjoyable and like Bill will wait anxiously for the next one to arrive.

What is wrong with the tale that started Reachers' walkabout??

Nice that occasionally Child takes us back to the military Reacher.

Although I can appreciate Child's own motivation for the timeshift, personaly I found it hard to rollback the years.Having followed Reacher through so many stories it was hard to ignore how the character had developed. In some ways I was left feeling it was an "easy shot" for Child to take us back rather than further forward, but I still enjoyed the storytelling.