I think most folk are aware that Lee Child is an author from England that writes the Jack Reacher series of action/adventure books. The books are laced with all kinds of violence and yet Lee Child is hypocritically critical about how easily available guns are in the U.S. Lee Child also is not very knowledgeable about guns in general. I also think most folk on this forum have given up on reading his stuff.
I’ve read a lot of his books (I get them from the library) but don’t really ‘keep up’ on what he’s writing. I grabbed one of his later books, ‘Make Me’ last week and I think it’s one of his worst.
He has the heroes in his book go to the concierge of the hotel they are staying at and get the concierge to buy them an HK P7 9mm pistol and two fully automatic HK MP5 9mm submachine guns. The heroes can’t buy the weapons because they are out of state but Child says it would be legal for the guy at the hotel to buy the guns for them.
1. The concierge, buying guns for someone else is doing a straw purchase. This is not legal.
2. The concierge, with just his driver’s license cannot go out in an afternoon and legally buy two fully automatic HK MP5 9mm submachine guns.
Child must know is incorrect. Child’s publishers must know this is incorrect. And yet it’s still in the book.
It’s the gun play at the end of the book that is just jaw-droppingly, idiotically bad.
SPOILER ALERT this is the climatic ending of the book.
Jack Reacher and Michelle Chang, the beautiful ex-FBI agent have the bad guy trapped out in the open at the bad guy’s hog farm. Reacher and Chang are behind a building. The bad guy is out in the open 60 feet away. Yep. 60 feet. 20 yards as Child tells us. Reacher and Change have their fully auto MP5’s. The bad guy has an M16. Reacher is suffering from the effects of a blow to the head from a few days before and in his own words is about 90% okay. The big question is can they hit the bad guy 60 feet away with their submachine guns. Well here it is (Spoiler Alert Again!). Reacher’s plan is to step out from behind cover and let the bad guy take shots at him until the bad guy runs out of ammunition, then they’ll rush him. I guess they need to close the distance for their HK MP5 9mm sub-guns to be effective.
Reacher does this. Steps out, remains perfectly still and lets the bad guy take a couple shots at him. Doesn’t even duck. Doesn’t even have his partner shoot at the bad guy while the bad guy is aiming. After a couple shots Reacher’s partner DOES take two shots at the bad guy but both miss. (Well they’re at 20 YARDS for goodness sake.) (Big, Big spoiler alert.) After that they walk up to the bad guy, who has lost the heart to continue the fight, and after a brief conversation, kill him.
Okay, not that you needed it, but you have been warned.
I’ve read a lot of his books (I get them from the library) but don’t really ‘keep up’ on what he’s writing. I grabbed one of his later books, ‘Make Me’ last week and I think it’s one of his worst.
He has the heroes in his book go to the concierge of the hotel they are staying at and get the concierge to buy them an HK P7 9mm pistol and two fully automatic HK MP5 9mm submachine guns. The heroes can’t buy the weapons because they are out of state but Child says it would be legal for the guy at the hotel to buy the guns for them.
1. The concierge, buying guns for someone else is doing a straw purchase. This is not legal.
2. The concierge, with just his driver’s license cannot go out in an afternoon and legally buy two fully automatic HK MP5 9mm submachine guns.
Child must know is incorrect. Child’s publishers must know this is incorrect. And yet it’s still in the book.
It’s the gun play at the end of the book that is just jaw-droppingly, idiotically bad.
SPOILER ALERT this is the climatic ending of the book.
Jack Reacher and Michelle Chang, the beautiful ex-FBI agent have the bad guy trapped out in the open at the bad guy’s hog farm. Reacher and Chang are behind a building. The bad guy is out in the open 60 feet away. Yep. 60 feet. 20 yards as Child tells us. Reacher and Change have their fully auto MP5’s. The bad guy has an M16. Reacher is suffering from the effects of a blow to the head from a few days before and in his own words is about 90% okay. The big question is can they hit the bad guy 60 feet away with their submachine guns. Well here it is (Spoiler Alert Again!). Reacher’s plan is to step out from behind cover and let the bad guy take shots at him until the bad guy runs out of ammunition, then they’ll rush him. I guess they need to close the distance for their HK MP5 9mm sub-guns to be effective.
Reacher does this. Steps out, remains perfectly still and lets the bad guy take a couple shots at him. Doesn’t even duck. Doesn’t even have his partner shoot at the bad guy while the bad guy is aiming. After a couple shots Reacher’s partner DOES take two shots at the bad guy but both miss. (Well they’re at 20 YARDS for goodness sake.) (Big, Big spoiler alert.) After that they walk up to the bad guy, who has lost the heart to continue the fight, and after a brief conversation, kill him.
Okay, not that you needed it, but you have been warned.