Killing Floor

by Lee Child

Libby audiobook 18 hours

Published: 1997 (this version 2015)

Read by: Dick Hill

Genre: realistic action, thriller

I have seen many "Reacher" clips on YouTube - both from the Tom Cruise movies and the Alan Ritchson TV series on Amazon Prime. It made me curious, so I got this audiobook in anticipation of a few long car trips. Interesting . . . and horrible. 

The British author sets the story in the United States, presumably because of our gun culture and lawless attitude. I had already formed an opinion about the character of Jack Reacher based on clips I'd seen (and definitely prefer Ritchson to Cruise in this role!) but I didn't anticipate making my brain work this hard.

As I was listening, I was trying to calculate Jack's age . . . he was born in the 1960s and his brother Joe was born in the 1950s, but they were 36 and 38 years old in this book. So . . . 1959 and 1961? This would set the story in 1997, which fits with when Child published this book. I'm not sure, but the video versions may have changed this a bit. 

The only line that really caught my attention (and made me laugh) was one about someone "sleeping like a baby." Reacher's thought (paraphrased) is wondering if that meant they slept well or woke up screaming every ten minutes. Funny! And true.

The clues, mystery, and some details (like the barbershop guys) were delightful. The more violent and gory details (like how the Morrisons were tortured and murdered) were horrific. Warning: spoiler ahead!

 

Spoiler: I was worried briefly that Finlay would be the "tenth" person in the evil ring. Some of the bad guys were super easy to spot, but Finlay's FBI buddy was a surprise. 

My curiosity is appeased. I don't feel a need to read more of these books or watch the versions. There's plenty of darkness in the world . . . and if someone loves Jason Bourne, John Wick, etc., they will probably love Jack Reacher. I'm moving on!