The Jack Widow series is one of my guilty pleasures. (Yes, besides space opera, thank you.) I’m fully aware of the fact that it started out as a blatantly obvious Reacher clone (with Reacher being Widow’s unaware father in the very first edition of the first book), but it has since then evolved into its own being.
So I like to look upon this as Reacher: The Next Generation. And just with Star Trek, I personally think the original is better, but the next generation has its own merits and is enjoyable. So yes, I’ll gladly take it!
That’s because Scott Blade has been honing his skills as a writer to an art over the course of the series. His novels are fast paced, and he gets the thinking right. I’ve mentioned this before, but the thing about Reacher is that no-one is doing shit without reasons. Everyone has a plan, kind of. They often go down the drain, but everyone follows steps that seem plausible, at least from their perspective points of view.
Lee Child is a master at this art, and a master at taking the reader along the mental journey of hero and villain alike. And Scott Blade comes pretty close. I would like to present the first chapter of this story as evidence A. It’s not just a bad guy killing someone – you can follow the intention, see the reason and can feel that they are pointing at something bigger. It’s done in a seemingly effortless way, and it’s just right for binge reading.
There’s a school of writing that has a mantra which goes: show, don’t tell. It’s pretty solid advice, to be honest, but I’ve said it before and will happily repeat it: Don’t take it to a dogmatic level. While showing is generally preferred – for the deeper connection it allows between reader and the character carrying the point of view -, it’s also something that’s dangerous when an author is overdoing it. To my personal opinion, there is nothing wrong with a little telling mixed in, especially when you’re providing context for the reader. Unless you overdo the telling part. Like Paracelsus said, all things are poison. The secret lies in the balance.
For a Reacher style novel, you expect a certain amount of telling, because Reacher and his buddies are all about details. Widow is the same – but I think Child has found a better balance, while Blade is still a tad shy of that level. But that’s really critique on a high level.
So, I’m going with 4 stars. This time around, I thought there were some pacing issues during the first half of the book, but all in all, still a solid thriller. Like a popcorn movie – it won’t ever win a prize, but it will satisfy your cravings for a quick thrill. And sometimes, that’s all you need.
Crossing the Pond Reviews 