The Hard Way: A Reacher Novel (Jack Reacher, #10)

by Lee Child

Jack Reacher was alone, the way he liked it, soaking up the hot, electric New York City night, watching a man cross the street to a parked Mercedes and drive it away. The car contained one million dollars in ransom money because Edward Lane, the man who paid it, would do anything to get his family back.

Lane runs a highly illegal soldiers-for-hire operation. He will use any tool to find his beautiful wife and child. And Jack Reacher is the best manhunter in the world.

On the trail of vicious kidnappers, Reacher learns the chilling secrets of his employer’s past—and of a horrific drama in the heart of a nasty little war. He knows that Edward Lane is hiding something. Something dirty. Something big. But Reacher also knows this: He’s already in way too deep to stop now. And if he has to do it the hard way, he will.

• ISBN10: 0440423023
• ISBN13: 9780440423027
• Publish Date: 19 August 2025 (first published 1 January 2006)
• Publish Status: Forthcoming
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Random House USA Inc
• Imprint: Bantam Dell Publishing Group, Div of Random House, Inc
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 400
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780440423027

Reviews

[zooloo1983]

And Jack is back!
I think this book is one of my favourites so far (I said that a while ago on another book of Lee Child’s) and the reason for this is for one humble minute Reacher admits he was wrong, showing that our favourite action hero is fallible at times. I loved that, the remorse he went through, and the lengths to rectify his mistake.

This story we have a woman who has been kidnapped with her child and her husband wants her back, and then there is Jack. Jack is very happy, sitting in a coffee shop drinking his much-loved coffee when an English man approaches him to discuss the events of the previous night. (Jeff’s accent here was perfect, I loved it!) He follows the clues, and I actually figured out something before Jack, am I just learning to think how he does now? Working for the husband, Edward Lane a mercenary, of the missing wife we learn this is not the first time he has had a wife kidnapped….well it didn’t end well the first time! As usual, Reacher gets involved and something again does not sit well with him, so this means it does not sit well with us!

This book was more graphic this time around, and some of the things that the “bad men” said had my jaw dropping and cringing with terror that they might actually follow through on these threats, I mean they really couldn’t….could they? Surely Jack would not let it happen. Near the end of the book, there is a scene where a coat hanger was discussed and what they would use it for. (I don’t want to really explain much more) I started to panic and really hoped it didn’t play through. It was uncomfortable to listen to, the pure evil of this man was just horrifying. Thank god I will never have to meet him!

Also, learning the story of Hobart and Knight and the torture they went through in an African prison. It broke my heart because it probably does happy, and again the graphic detail was at some points just too much. For the characters to live through, well there are no words. These two scenes affected me, normally I can handle most things, but these scenes were hard to listen to.

Again, Lee Child has brought a fast-paced book, to keep you hooked every minute, and Jack literally doing everything the hard way. The one man action army but with a new partner (and new bed partner) for the book, and I loved their relationship, would be nice if Jack would just stop once. Everything he does is never for him, he is selfless in a respect, he just wants the truth and his version of justice.

Will it be a happier story next time??