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Without Fail (Hardcover)

by Lee Child (Author) "They found out about him in July and stayed angry all through August ..." (more)
4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (49 customer reviews)

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What better way to test the security surrounding a U.S. vice president-elect than to hire someone skilled in the killing arts to penetrate his protection? Assassination strategy, though, is only part of the assignment facing Jack Reacher in Without Fail. This restive, blunt-edged ex-military cop must also determine whether recent threats against VP-to-be Senator Brook Armstrong are legitimate or are primarily intended to embarrass the perfectionist head of Armstrong's new Secret Service detail, M.E. Froelich, who happens to have been a girlfriend of Reacher's late brother.

If Without Fail lacks the emotional urgency of Lee Child's previous novel, Echo Burning, it still barely lets the reader catch a decent breath between plot crests. Jack and his fetching yet formidable colleague, Frances Neagley, must figure out how warning letters to Armstrong are being delivered into the Secret Service sanctum, whether the senator is at risk because of something political or personal, and who staged the demonstration murders of two innocent men also named Armstrong, first initial B. Unfortunately, a few twists (including the source of a thumbprint applied to the threats against Armstrong) can be figured out in advance, and the story is light on character development. A tiny breach in Reacher's reclusive carapace opens as Froelich transfers the love she once felt for his brother toward him, and there are suggestions that Neagley may have depths of feeling just waiting to be plumbed. However, other players are mere ciphers--the sacrificial victims of an action-oriented yarn. --J. Kingston Pierce

From Publishers Weekly

The sixth time's a charm for thriller meister Child, whose latest escapade starring ex-military cop Jack Reacher is handily his most accomplished and most compelling to date. The suspense-laden plot kicks off with U.S. Secret Service agent M.E. Froelich telling Reacher: "I want to hire you to assassinate the Vice President of the United States." V-p-elect Brook Armstrong has received a series of anonymous death threats, and Froelich needs to uncover their source and ascertain the effectiveness of Armstrong's security detail. Reacher agrees to masquerade as an assassin because he can't resist a challenge and because Froelich had loved his older brother, Joe, a Secret Service colleague killed in a botched operation. As Reacher pieces together an increasingly frustrating puzzle, Child ratchets up the excitement with several breathtaking set pieces, including a Thanksgiving dinner for D.C.'s homeless that turns deadly, a jaw-dropping coup de th‚ƒtre and a slam-bang finale in Wyoming's mountains. He even extracts tension from mundane events, as when Reacher searches for clues on a security video of an office cleaning crew. The novel's detailed insider's view of political skullduggery is certain to intrigue readers, and the various characters' relationships, handled with careful restraint, provide an added layer the growing attachment between Froelich and Reacher; both characters' recollections of Joe; Reacher's regard for Frances Neagley, a former colleague whom he calls in for help. And then there's Reacher himself, the stolid, flawed man's man who gives no quarter on any level. Indeed, the novel's final line serves as a pr‚cis of this quietly fascinating character: "He headed west for the Port Authority and a bus out of town." This Child's play will be a tough act to follow.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
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Customer Reviews

49 Reviews
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4.0 out of 5 stars (49 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Reacher Reaches the Insider's Place, Dec 6 2008
This review is from: Without Fail (Mass Market Paperback)

If you have read any of the Jack Reacher novels you know he's the ultimate outsider, someone who was an insider and now enjoys his freedom. In Without Fail, old ties bring him into contact with the Secret Service to protect the Vice President. Reacher finds himself tied down a bit too as his brother's ex-lover becomes attracted to the resemblances between them.

The premise of this book is strong. Take someone who is tough and resourceful and have them probe for security weaknesses. Reacher is obviously perfect for that role.

While focused on that premise, the book works well.

But it turns out there's a real threat . . . and it's frightening! In the beginning, this premise also works well. But the premise eventually breaks down into a series of plot twists that left me feeling disappointed with who the baddies are and why they are after the Vice President.

The book's ending is clearly the weakest part of the story. It's too bad. The book starts off quite strong.

If you don't like to read books that end weakly, I suggest you read the next book in the series, Persuader, instead. It's a much more satisfying offering.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Reacher on the government payroll again??, Jun 9 2004
By Cory D. Slipman (Rockville Centre, N.Y.) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
Lee Child's "Without Fail" has a slightly different onset than his previous novels. Ex-MP major Jack Reacher, for once hasn't inadvertantly stumbled into a quagmire requiring his expertise and skills, he's being sought out. Secret Service agent M.E. Froelich is relentlessly pursuing him. Froelich, a former girlfriend of Reacher's deceased U.S, Treasury agent brother, Joe, has just been promoted to command the entourage sworn to protect Vice President elect Brook Armstrong. Apparently during pillow talk, Joe bragged that his younger brother Jack would be the perfect individual to test the efficiency of the protective Secret Service net surrounding a high ranking government figure.

Froelich, remembering Joe's boast and now being in a position to authorize this type of audit was seeking out Reacher. She ultimately convinces Reacher to secretly stalk the V.P. and try to uncover opportunities to broach security and do him harm. Reacher recruits ex-Army master sergeant and lethal and capable colleague Frances Neagley to work with him.

During their mission Reacher and Neagley discover that the audit was a charade. The Secret Service has apparently been infiltrated and there actually have been threats made on the life of V.P. elect Armstrong. At the urging of Froelich's boss, Agent Stuyvesant they join with the Secret Service to help eradicate this dangerous threat to security. Reacher fans can imagine what happens next!

Suffice to say that Lee Child is an extraordinary entertaining writer.

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4.0 out of 5 stars Layer Upon Layer of Mystery and Violence, April 18 2004
By S. Schwartz "romonko" (alberta canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This is a complex thriller, and in it we see Jack Reacher a little differently than we have in previous outings. He has been asked by a woman who was involved with his now-dead brother to help her find weak spots in the Secret Service protection of a newly-elected Vice-President. This meeting with M.E. Froehlich opens up a little of Jack's history to us and the life that he and his older brother led while they were growing up as army brats in various army bases throughout the world. We also see Jack request the aid of a former co-worker from the army. Neagley is the female equivalent of Jack - brilliant, well-trained and oh so cool. Jack and Neagley make a formidable team. Not only do they find the weaknesses in the Secret Service protection detail, they hunt down and take retribution themselves on the bad guys that not only threatened the Vice-President, but who hurt and killed people who were close to them. Child's writing is spare and chilling. Yes there is violence, but it's not over-drawn and seems to flow as part of the story and helps build the terrible tension that is simmering throughout the whole book. His form of writing keeps the reader hurriedly turning pages to find out what happens next.
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 		 Most recent customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Favorite new Author
LOVE Jack Reacher. Loved all the books, except maybe the Persuader... But all the ones that precede that one are well worth your time.
Published on Feb 9 2004

4.0 out of 5 stars Pretty good but gun lore sadly lacking
I thought this was a pretty good adventure tale, which got better as it went along. My biggest beef is that the author really needs a firearms consultant. Read more
Published on Sep 29 2003

5.0 out of 5 stars Not A Failure: A Great Thriller!
The Secret Service classifies serious threats of assassination in two ways. They are separated into those assassins that want to commit the assassination and get away as compared... Read more
Published on Aug 28 2003 by Kevin Tipple

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book. The first that I've read by this author..
But not the last one I'll read by this author. Lee Child has set up a tight story with many twists and turns. Read more
Published on Aug 21 2003 by apoem

4.0 out of 5 stars Favourite so far
I've recently discovered the Jack Reacher series - this is the third I've read and by far the best. I enjoyed all of them but loved the side of Reacher that we see in this novel... Read more
Published on Jun 2 2003

2.0 out of 5 stars Cardboard characters and preposterous plotline
Come on. Jack Reacher, hired by a top secret service field officer to "consult" and beef up the security afforded our vice-president, is given no ear piece with which... Read more
Published on May 28 2003 by desefinado

5.0 out of 5 stars As good as the genre gets
Jack Reacher returns in this lengthy and compelling thriller revolving around the Secret Service. Upon the recommendation (and reputation) of his deceased brother - who was a... Read more
Published on May 24 2003 by D. Ross

4.0 out of 5 stars Finally, a Great Reacher Novel
I really enjoy Reacher novels for the character and action but the plots tend to be farcical and sometimes even ludicrous which spoils the fun. Read more
Published on May 19 2003 by C. Baker

5.0 out of 5 stars Jack is back!
With each Jack Reacher adventure, Lee Child allows us to learn a little more about this elusive all-American hero, filling in the details of man of few words, unselfconscious... Read more
Published on May 18 2003 by Rebecca Brown

3.0 out of 5 stars Is Jack becoming a social animal?
I'm attracted to Lee Child's novels because of the hardboiled and self-contained nature of his hero, Jack Reacher. After almost two decades as a military cop in the U.S. Read more
Published on April 29 2003 by Joseph Haschka

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