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cjay1957's review against another edition
1.0
That was a major letdown for a Jack Reacher story. If you're curious, borrow it from a library or someone you know. Whatever you do, don't buy it. You're not missing anything if you never read this very short, very flat story that follows Jack when he was an MP for about a 12 hour day. Cheezy storyline.
vinitneo's review against another edition
3.0
The second Jack Reacher short story - Deep Down is interesting. In the first short story we got to see Jack Reacher when he was a child. In Deep Down we see him at the beginning of his career.
ericbuscemi's review against another edition
3.0
My only issue with Jack Reacher after reading [b:Killing Floor|78129|Killing Floor (Jack Reacher, #1)|Lee Child|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1347554731s/78129.jpg|4511038], [a:Lee Child|5091|Lee Child|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1205263586p2/5091.jpg]'s first published book, was the awkward-to-average-at-best writing, and before committing to read the rest of series, I wanted to see if it improved (Spoiler Alert: It doesn't). I figured a good way to do that would be to read something he wrote more recently. And then this short story, starring the very same protagonist and written in 2012, fell into my lap.
This story has good bones -- it has a compelling lead character, a tight plot, an interesting mystery, believable tension, and a memorable climax -- but comes off the rails due to a few notable shortcomings in the writing. This especially annoyed me because this had such potential to be a tremendously good short story, were it not for these irksome missteps:
1) The opening of the book cuts quickly, and multiple times, between Jack Reacher's point of view and two other points-of-view -- a nameless jogger, and a motorist -- solely to set up the accidental death of the jogger, a character the reader cannot, as she is nameless, yet be invested in. That this happens in a short story, and not a novel, where the author has the benefit of leading the reader on a roundabout path to the central plot of the story, makes it all the more unforgivable, especially in light of one of my other complaints. I am fairly certain the story, as currently constructed, can be read without reading either of those alternate points-of-view with no loss in story or context -- meaning it should have been, at the very least, just cut out, if not edited to be improved.
2) There is a scene where Jack Reacher is talking to his handler just after he finishes reading the four suspects' dossiers -- one of which points out that her grandfather was a high-ranking official in the Soviet military -- and the handler asks Reacher if he sees any red flags. He says no and the handler replies "Neither did we." Mind you, the setting of this short story is 1986 -- when The Cold War was still a very real thing. Whether the suspect is the guilty party, or this is just a red herring, surely this should at least be remarked on by someone of Jack Reacher's implied skill.
3) This story cuts out in the middle of an action sequence, jumps 24-hours and into a foreign country, and proceeds to abruptly end in that paragraph. I had to check back and forth to make sure I hadn't missed something. I know that Kindle Singles -- which this story was released exclusively as -- do not have restricted lengths, but even if the author or his editor had a hard word count for whatever reason, two-thirds of the opening scenes could have easily been edited out to make room to give this story the kind of ending it deserved.
Needless to say, I won't be picking up the Jack Reacher series wholesale and rushing through it, but I wouldn't be opposed to reading another Reacher book if my options were limited, like at an airport or somewhere similar.
This story has good bones -- it has a compelling lead character, a tight plot, an interesting mystery, believable tension, and a memorable climax -- but comes off the rails due to a few notable shortcomings in the writing. This especially annoyed me because this had such potential to be a tremendously good short story, were it not for these irksome missteps:
1) The opening of the book cuts quickly, and multiple times, between Jack Reacher's point of view and two other points-of-view -- a nameless jogger, and a motorist -- solely to set up the accidental death of the jogger, a character the reader cannot, as she is nameless, yet be invested in. That this happens in a short story, and not a novel, where the author has the benefit of leading the reader on a roundabout path to the central plot of the story, makes it all the more unforgivable, especially in light of one of my other complaints. I am fairly certain the story, as currently constructed, can be read without reading either of those alternate points-of-view with no loss in story or context -- meaning it should have been, at the very least, just cut out, if not edited to be improved.
2) There is a scene where Jack Reacher is talking to his handler just after he finishes reading the four suspects' dossiers -- one of which points out that her grandfather was a high-ranking official in the Soviet military -- and the handler asks Reacher if he sees any red flags. He says no and the handler replies "Neither did we." Mind you, the setting of this short story is 1986 -- when The Cold War was still a very real thing. Whether the suspect is the guilty party, or this is just a red herring, surely this should at least be remarked on by someone of Jack Reacher's implied skill.
3) This story cuts out in the middle of an action sequence, jumps 24-hours and into a foreign country, and proceeds to abruptly end in that paragraph. I had to check back and forth to make sure I hadn't missed something. I know that Kindle Singles -- which this story was released exclusively as -- do not have restricted lengths, but even if the author or his editor had a hard word count for whatever reason, two-thirds of the opening scenes could have easily been edited out to make room to give this story the kind of ending it deserved.
Needless to say, I won't be picking up the Jack Reacher series wholesale and rushing through it, but I wouldn't be opposed to reading another Reacher book if my options were limited, like at an airport or somewhere similar.
robairreg's review against another edition
1.0
Pretty strange. The premise was interesting, albeit incredibly low stakes. But it went no where interesting. Not worth the $2 on Kindle.
kcherry's review
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
afox98's review
2.0
So-so short story about Jack Reacher investigating some military weapons specs getting leaked overseas. Thin plot and the characters were weak - I never really got into any of them. Was glad when it was done.
laurenjcarter28's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.0
righteousridel's review
2.0
Deep Down is… acceptable. It is really short, and still has all the hallmarks of a Jack Reacher novel. You get a mystery, some action, and Jack coming up with answers that you could have guessed but probably didn’t.
On the other hand, it felt like 75% of the story was spent on preamble and set up. The detective work and action unfolds extremely quickly and is over in a few pages. The ending is equally abrupt.
In summary - eh. I mean it’s a fine waste of an hour or two, but it’s just an appetizer.
On the other hand, it felt like 75% of the story was spent on preamble and set up. The detective work and action unfolds extremely quickly and is over in a few pages. The ending is equally abrupt.
In summary - eh. I mean it’s a fine waste of an hour or two, but it’s just an appetizer.
teriboop's review
3.0
Lee Child's Deep Down is a Jack Reacher short story. I didn't enjoy this as much as his other Jack Reacher short story. It is pretty typical of his writing.