Reacher/Lee Child Gun Goofiness in ‘Make Me’

A while back I started a thread about the shortcomings of an author's portrayal of guns and shooting in his novel.

The author was Lee Childs and the protagonist was Reacher...
 
Lee Child's knowledge of guns is pretty weak. In one of his novels the climactic scene revolved around the notion that if a magazine had been loaded for more than a day or two, the spring would loose its tension and wouldn't feed.
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I'm afraid I have to admit I read this one. Yep. Lee Child actually used the above 'bit' about loaded magazines.

BUT...Child had to go one step further...at the climatic moment, the semi-auto that had been left loaded for years, the one where he claims the magazine springs would weaken...the round in the CHAMBER doesn't fire!!!

What the round in the chamber had to do with magazine spring is known only to Lee Child.

But as has been mentioned before he's laughing all the way to the bank.
 
"There is only one thing worse in life than being talked about,
and that is not being talked about..."

-Wilde
 
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I started reading a book some time back and I was okay with the demons, wizards,fairies, and such until the hero broke out a 6 shot Chiefs Special. At that point the book lost all credibility and I gave upon it.
 
If you don't like really stupid gun stuff then stay away from Dean Koontz unless you like 45 colt revolvers that eject their empties and James Patterson whos heros carry Glock revolvers.:eek:
 
as an avid reader I tend to just over look the obvious crap that wasn't well researched or I simply chock it up to "literary license".

They're the authors, it's their story, and they can say what ever they please.

Most books that I have read state clearly that it's a work of fiction. To me, that is enough said

Exco
 
Sorry, but I love the Reacher novels. Granted, Lee Child is not very knowledgeable about firearms, but he does write a pretty good novel that holds a guy's interest. I read a lot of novels and have been awaiting his latest to hit the market in paperback.
These are entertainment, not educational books.
 
I like Reacher, too, but he is starting to wear me out.

The problem is that he's such an obnoxious know-it-all on everything, but then stuff he says about guns is often just ridiculously wrong. This is after he bores us with tedious detail about the weapon in question, leading us to believe he's done some research.

Someone beat me to mentioning the scene where a 38 Special bullet, at almost point blank range, bounced off his mighty pectoral muscle. There was another scene where somehow he knew, based on observing the BG's trigger pull, which way to dodge the bullet as it was leaving the barrel, again at extremely close range.

Then he gets all preachy about guns, and violence in America, but goes into lengthy and obsessive pornographic detail about hideous violence, mutilation, etc. He's really into this stuff in an extreme way.

Oh, and one whole book was essentially a rant about his hatred for Dick Cheney. Just spare us, Englishman.

I like the concept of the character, but he is just so completely full of himself, while pretending he's just a simple wandering soul. Which he NEVER stops reminding us of. For a guy who is supposedly free of the concerns of the common man, Reacher sure is obsessive compulsive about some petty things.

David
 
prefer the Elvis Cole/Joe Pike novels]
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Me too.

But as an Englishman myself, I can get really embarrassed reading his stuff, Mr Reacher, that is. As they are Library books, free to me, no complaints.

Reference dead Magazine springs, many years ago, Princess Margaret's Bodyguard, carrying a .380 Walther? Ex Police Inspector? Fired one shot, missed, that was all she wrote. Could make an other round to feed.

My memory's rubbish, but I think an Ex Boxer, passing by, laid the bad guy out.
 
The reader of fiction is expected to suspend his reality while in the story. Otherwise you can't enjoy any of the story. Suspension of reality is a key element of enjoying any fiction.
 
I'll admit that while recovering from major surgery a few years ago I read a few of the books in the Jack Reacher series. I took them for what they are worth, nothing and treated it as fantasy fiction which is what it is. Being retired military, and having been a Provost Marshall during my active service, I had to laugh at his descriptions of the Military Police Corps and everything associated with it. And of course his firearm information was a joke. But they were quick light reads and served their purpose for me.

I find I get more annoyed with a movie or TV show that seems to be accurate with its firearm and other tactical information most of the time, and then commits a major error. Homeland seems quite realistic to me in many ways, but this season had a character pull the trigger on an empty semi auto (thinking the gun was fully loaded). When it went click she pulled the trigger several more times without pulling the slide, each time making a loud click as if it were an empty double action revolver instead of a semi, and that really annoyed me.
 
vito
When it went click she pulled the trigger several more times without pulling the slide, each time making a loud click as if it were an empty double action revolver instead of a semi, and that really annoyed me.
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I think my biggest pet peeve is the striker semi-auto cocking mystery sound. Many times in various TV/movies when someone whips out their Glock to threaten a good guy/bad guy, there's a mysterious clicking/cocking sound.
I just go with it.
 
Lucas Davenport and his equally killer adopted daughter Lette are the best.

Her one handed wounded arm take down of two cartel members with a 1911 and appropriate attitude in the gun fight are wonderful.
 
Vito,
Sometimes ignorant authors are saved by reality.
Like revolvers with a safety, there are some.
And double action only autoloaders that act like revolvers, there are some.
They just get lucky probably without even knowing.
 
revolvers with a safety, there are some. And double action only autoloaders that act like revolvers, there are some.
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And Glocks with a thumb safety.
And revolvers that don't have a cylinder/barrel gap that can accept 'silencers'.

The conspiracy buff in me suspects these firearms were developed by grants from the 'Mystery Writers of America' just for this purpose.
 
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