The Color of Death vs The Original (A Joe Reacher Thriller): Which Should You Read?

Cover of The Color of Death The Color of Death Trey Gowdy & Christopher Greyson · 2025 ★★★★☆ 4.5 288 pages · ≈ 5 h 20 m · Moderate
More

From the number-one New York Times bestselling author and FOX News host Trey Gowdy comes a dark mystery debut about a murder in a small South Carolina town. Assistant DA Colm Truesdale must pick up the pieces of his own…

1★2★3★4★5★
vs
Cover of The Original (A Joe Reacher Thriller) The Original (A Joe Reacher Thriller) Dan Ames ★★★★☆ 4.0 236 pages · ≈ 4 h 22 m · Moderate
More

A USA TODAY BESTSELLING AUTHOR A string of brutal murders. A signature that shouldn't exist. A secret worth killing for. When Treasury investigator Joe Reacher discovers American expats are being hunted across the…

Side by side

The Color of DeathThe Original (A Joe Reacher Thriller)EnjoymentDifficultyInfluencePopularityClassic

The verdict

Affiliate links: we may earn a commission on purchases.

Scores by source

The Color of DeathThe Original (A Joe Reacher Thriller)
Hardcover 3.2 (2) —
Apple Books 4.5 (418) 4.5 (9)
Check price →Check price →

Reception

The Color of DeathThe Original (A Joe Reacher Thriller)
Ratings 418 9
Editions 5 —
Wikipedia attention 213 —
Pages 288 236
Check price →Check price →

Questions readers ask

Which is rated higher: The Color of Death or The Original (A Joe Reacher Thriller)?

The Color of Death has the higher combined reader rating across sources (The Color of Death 4.5/5, The Original (A Joe Reacher Thriller) 4.0/5).

Which is shorter to read: The Color of Death or The Original (A Joe Reacher Thriller)?

The Original (A Joe Reacher Thriller) is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The Original (A Joe Reacher Thriller) (236 pages, ≈ 4 h 22 m); The Color of Death (288 pages, ≈ 5 h 20 m).

Which is harder to read: The Color of Death or The Original (A Joe Reacher Thriller)?

Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — The Color of Death: Moderate; The Original (A Joe Reacher Thriller): Moderate.

Shared themes