Reading order
| # | Title | Year | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Killing Floor | 1997 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 2 | Die Trying | 1998 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 3 | Tripwire | 1999 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 4 | Running Blind | 2000 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 5 | Echo Burning | 2001 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 6 | Without Fail | 2002 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 7 | Persuader | 2003 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 8 | The Enemy | 2004 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 9 | One Shot | 2005 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 10 | The Hard Way | 2006 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 11 | Bad Luck and Trouble | 2007 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 12 | Nothing to Lose | 2008 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 13 | Gone Tomorrow | 2009 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 14 | 61 Hours | 2010 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 15 | Worth Dying For | 2010 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 16 | The Affair | 2011 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 17 | A Wanted Man | 2012 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 18 | Never Go Back | 2013 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 19 | Personal | 2014 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 20 | Make Me | 2015 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 21 | Night School | 2016 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 22 | The Midnight Line | 2017 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 23 | Past Tense | 2018 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 24 | Blue Moon | 2019 | Lee Child | Buy |
| 25 | The Sentinel | 2020 | Lee Child & Andrew Child | Buy |
| 26 | Better Off Dead | 2021 | Lee Child & Andrew Child | Buy |
| 27 | No Plan B | 2022 | Lee Child & Andrew Child | Buy |
| 28 | The Secret | 2023 | Lee Child & Andrew Child | Buy |
| 29 | In Too Deep | 2024 | Lee Child & Andrew Child | Buy |
| 30 | Exit Strategy | 2025 | Andrew Child | Buy |
Jack Reacher is 6'5", weighs 250 pounds, and carries nothing but a folding toothbrush. He has no home, no car, no phone. He buys clothes, wears them until they’re dirty, then throws them away and buys new ones. He drifts across America on buses and thumbed rides, getting into situations that need his particular set of skills.
Lee Child created Reacher in 1997 after being laid off from a television job. He wanted a hero who could appear anywhere, solve a problem, and leave without forming attachments. The first book, Killing Floor, sold modestly. The series built an audience through word of mouth, eventually becoming one of the best-selling thriller franchises in the world.
Each book is largely standalone. Reacher arrives in a new place, notices something wrong, and fixes it. The formula works because Child writes with distinctive precision: short sentences, physical details, and a protagonist who thinks through problems step by step. Readers know what they’re getting and keep coming back.
Two Tom Cruise films were produced in 2012 and 2016. Fans debated whether the 5'7" actor could play the 6'5" character. Amazon’s 2022 TV series cast Alan Ritchson, whose physical presence better matches the books. The show brought new readers to the series.
Lee Child began co-writing with his brother Andrew in 2020 and fully handed over the series by 2025. Andrew Child now writes Reacher solo.