Killing Floor

A really quite brilliant book. The last 200-250 pages are absolutely incredible as more plot twists unfold and the action ramps up. Imagine Jack Reacher as James Bond but with less tech and not working for anybody but himself. Fantastic read. Arguably the best action story I've read so far. On to the remaining 20-odd Reacher books 👌🏼

I really wanted to love this as I'd heard how good the series was and was looking forward to going through them...but! Perhaps the later ones are more nuanced but in this one all the characters seem to have been taken out of the big book of clichés and they felt like they had been written by a 15 year old who'd watched too many action films. I don't mean to be overly harsh but it really disappointed me, especially as the plot was easily predicted with not one surprising turn in the whole thing.

I figured I'd give the Jack Reacher series a try with Killing Floor and I'm glad I got to see Lee Child's work. The book isn't anything amazing by far but it's a well-built story that works.

There are times where the story seemed sluggish and areas where improbable things happened too much but Child ran to the other end of the spectrum with page-turning scenes that made the book very enjoyable.

Most of the ‘gotcha' parts of the plot are easily seen ahead of time but Child doesn't pull any funny-business and keeps it simple. There's no twist out of nowhere that caused me to put the book down.

My main issue with Child's writing is his lack of full sentences. At least 30% of the book has fragmented sentences that are too casual and distracting from the flow. I also felt there was very little given into the history of Jack Reacher.

Overall, the book is a good read if you're looking for something slightly serious and if you're willing to slosh through the slower portions. Overall, not too bad.

I first read Killing Floor back in ‘97 when it was first published. I thought it was a powerfully good story then. Still a damn good read 22 years later.
I reckon Lee Child read a lot of John D. MacDonald and Robert B. Parker before he created Jack Reacher. Not a copy of their work at all as Child's style is different; but still, I can feel the ghosts of Travis McGee and Spencer when I read a Jack Reacher story.
4.5 stars on re-read.

Imagine a 90s B-action-movie.

OK, you got the story.

My main issue with this book is the writing style which is nothing else then very short sentences next to very short sentences that are followed by even shorter sentences. If you can get into the flow you will stop noticing it, but then from time to time you just can't and will start tripping like you would walk in pitch black night deep in a even darker forrest.
That and the fact that is just strange someone can go around murder a shit load of people and just walk away. That is just a level too much ‘Murica' for me.

Nice as a brain clearing reading, but not something I could do all the time.

Still, I will try to read one or two more from this series, just to see if it goes on like this.

Lee Child is the Mariah Carey of hack writers; in the course of his story he hits every cliche in the Bad Writing Inflictionary. I suspect the manner in which some of the characters meet their grisly end faithfully depicts the way he creates his characters and plot with equally gruesome results. If you like your bodies stacked like cordwood, stick with James Ellroy.