Not enough action. Reacher did some unsmart things. Incomplete ending. But, because I like hanging out with Reacher it was ok.

STORY BRIEF:
Reacher is on a bus. Due to winter weather he is stranded in Bolton, S. Dakota. Local police are guarding an elderly woman who witnessed a drug deal. Reacher decides to help protect her.

A biker gang has been living near Bolton in an abandoned army compound. The police believe they have been selling drugs (meth). The biker gang works for Plato, a Mexican drug lord who does very bad things to people.

REVIEWER’S OPINION:
Not the best Reacher story. There were a few stupid decisions that bothered me. For example, police personnel asked Reacher to do some things for them. Each time this took Reacher away from protecting the witness which Reacher should have planned for. That was out of character for him.

Other Reacher books had more thriller and suspense. This was mostly noodling through the mystery. There was almost no action until the very end of the book. And that was not enough. I’d like to tell you the number of bad guys that Reacher took out in this book, but I won’t, to avoid spoilers. I’ll just say that his count was extremely low compared to other books, which made it less fun.

I was very disappointed that the author DID NOT FINISH THE STORY! I believe the author ran out of time or hit a writer’s block. The reader doesn’t know if Reacher is dead or alive or how he survived if alive. (Hint: We know he lives because there are sequels.) The sequel “Worth Dying For” begins a couple days after “61 Hours.” WDF has a brief comment about how Reacher survived at the end of 61H. But it wasn’t enough for me.

I loved the short back story about the military doing psychological research on little kids. They filmed kids’ reactions while watching a movie with a monster. When the monster appeared on the screen all the kids leaned back in their seats with fear on their faces - except for 6-year-old Reacher. He was the only kid who reacted with aggression instead of fear. He had drawn his switchblade open in less than a second and was leaning forward in his seat to attack the monster. Another LOL for me.

NARRATOR:
The narrator Dick Hill was very good.

DATA:
Unabridged audiobook reading time: 13 hrs and 11 mins. Swearing language: I don’t recall any. Sexual content: none. Setting: current day mostly S. Dakota with a little Mexico. Book copyright: 2010. Genre: mystery suspense thriller. Ending: mostly good but unfinished.

THE SERIES:
Following is a list of the Jack Reacher books in order with my ratings. All the books could be read as stand-alones, but I suggest reading them in order, maybe saving the lower rated ones for last.

4 ½ stars. Killing Floor (#1)
4 stars. Die Trying (#2)
4 stars. Tripwire (#3)
2 ½ stars. Running Blind (#4)
4 stars. Echo Burning (#5)
3 ½ stars. Without Fail (#6)
4 stars. Persuader (#7)
3 stars. The Enemy (#8)
4 ½ stars. One Shot (#9)
3 stars. The Hard Way (#10)
3 ½ stars. Bad Luck and Trouble (#11)
2 stars. Nothing To Lose (#12) too many low ratings
4 stars. Gone Tomorrow (#13)
3 stars. 61 Hours (#14)
4 ½ stars. Worth Dying For (#15)