Reacher is one of those characters who is admired by his male readers and lusted after by his female ones in equal measure…Child’s tough-as-nails protagonist has become one of the most appealing of contemporary heroes.

Jack Reacher has the manliness of John Wayne, the coping skills of Jack Bauer, the fieldcraft of John Rambo and the coolness of Dirty Harry.

Child is a great storyteller, building plots that, although complex, are as compelling as they are ultimately logical. Put it this way – the reader never feels conned. Also, Reacher is the sort of cool but ultra-tough good guy who’ll stop at nothing to get to the truth . . . another sure-fire hit.

[Reacher] has long since gained mythical status…storytelling of the highest order: lean, laconic, laced with tension.

Forget the A-team. If you’re in a fix, and you want help, you need Jack Reacher . . . the twists come thick and fast, the false trails are cleverly laid and the surprise developments are genuinely unexpected . . . Child, as always, delivers.

Perhaps there are action-lit writers more recognizable than Child, but the bet is that none of them will turn in a tighter-plotted, richer-peopled, faster-paced page-turner this year.

As always, the action is intense, the pace unrelenting, and the violence unforgiving. Child remains the reigning master at combining breakneck yet brilliantly constructed plotting with characters who continually surprise us with their depth.