The Hunt for Red October (Jack Ryan) by Tom Clancy
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Book Reviews of The Hunt for Red October (Jack Ryan)
Book Review: I'm glad I read this the second time
Summary: 5 Stars
I recently re-read this gem of a book, and I'm very happy I did. This was the first Tom Clancy novel I ever read, and although it inspired me to read the rest of his library, my memory kept nagging at me that this was an "average" book at best. Well, my memory is apparently malfunctioning. "The Hunt for Red October" is an exciting, fascinating book which sets the stage for the slew of outstanding work by Tom Clancy released since. All the elements of the "technothriller" appear in this novel for the first time, with strong hints of Clancy's understanding of human nature which he would develop beginning with "Patriot Games".
This book is much more than an encyclopedia of naval and submarine lore, which explains its lasting popularity. The pacing of your average Clancy is akin to Forsyth, however I find Tom Clancy's work to be superior. Even though the technical language is very prevalent, I never had the impression that I was being preached to; I actually enjoyed learning new things as I went along (as I do with every Clancy novel).
This novel was made into an excellent film, but the book delivers so much more than the film could.
"Hunt" is a great read by itself, but anyone interested in getting "into" Clancy would be better off reading both "The Hunt for Red October" and "Patriot Games" before making a final judgment about whether or not they enjoy Clancy's style. These two works tend to balance each other out between his "technical" side and his stronger "true" storytelling skills.
Book Review: The Hunt for Red Octobre
Summary: 5 Stars
Most people first impression of The Hunt For Red October by Tom Clancy is that it is just another submarine story. But it is just the opposite of that. it is an exiting epic full of adventure and suspense.Jack Ryan, a CIA analyst, discovers that a new stealth soviet missile submarine is missing. Jack needs to figure out where the submarine is and why the entire soviet fleet has been deployed to look for it. But while Jack tries to figure out where the submarine is and why his family life suffers.
One night when Jack gets home for work he smells food. he walks into the kitchen and finds a plate of food, burnt out candles and his wife asleep on the couch. Jack remembers that he broke his promise. Cathy plays a significant part in the story but is not near as important to the story as Jack Ryan.
Along with Jacks point of view you get the story from the leader of the Soviet intelligence agency the KGB. You get to learn why the Soviets are hunting ther own submarine and why.
One night when Jack was in the office late the DDI Admiral Greer, walks in and hands jack a cassette tape. Jack listens to 3 or four times. on his fourth time listening to it he hears a faint swishing sound. He decided it sounded like it was water going through a pump.
Could this be the Soviet missile submarine? How does it move so silently? Why is it so close to the American mainland? You are going to have to read the book to find out.
The Hunt for Red October will keep anyone that reads it occupied for hours. It is a thriller that you do not want to put down.
Book Review: The best of the lot.
Summary: 5 Stars
I've always thought Harper Lee was one of the smartest -- or was it luckiest? -- American writers, because she quit while she was ahead. Having produced a masterpiece in "To Kill a Mockingbird", she never wrote another book. She went out on top.Clancy is, first, not her equal as a writer; and second, not quite as smart. "Red October" was one of the most concise, gripping thrillers imaginable. It's the book all the other military-techno-thriller authors have been trying (without success) to duplicate ever since. Like Lee, Clancy's first book was his masterpiece. Unlike her, he kept writing, and was never again able to catch the magic of his magnum opus. Oh, I don't blame him: by continuing to churn out the stories, he became famous and wealthy. No harm in that. And many of his subsequent stories, though not the equal of "Red October", were nonetheless superior to most of Clancy's peers' efforts.
My main complaint about the later books is that Ryan (who in the first book was one, not the only, hero) was turned into a superman in later installments. .... Jack? So great he became president -- and a great one. Cathy? Not just a doctor, but the top eye surgeon ... Robby? Not just a fighter pilot, but the best one and eventually an admiral. Robby's wife? Not just a pilot's wife, but a respected concert pianist ... Jack is such a demigod, apparently, that all who surround him become larger-than-life.
As the new Clancy novel is due out any day now, it might be a good idea to re-read the one that started it all: the classic "Hunt for Red October".
Book Review: Still his best
Summary: 5 Stars
This, Mr Clancy's first book, still remains his best. Although it deals with a farfetched possibility (the defection of a unit from the Soviet navy by an "act of barratry"), the overall frame is cleverly thought up, constructed and developed; events, in their different locations, are well wedged and studded into their sequence; characters are well portrayed. This book was highly original when it came out, also thanks to the technical knowledge displayed. All following appear to have been dictated by its commercial success: they progressively drag on what might be called "the Jack Ryan saga", with an interlude ("Without Remorse") that gives us the unnecessary explanation of who the mysterious John Clark had been, is and has been up to - and they become progressively tedious as the plots become more unlikely and elephantine. One is led to wonder what Jack's career will be next, now that he is the President of the U.S.A.: although a "Sir", he surely cannot become King of Great Britain, a position the hereditary chain of succession of is much more intricate and populated; he could not be tolerated too well as Czar Ivan Emmetovich Ryanov - what else is left? If a tragic accident were fictionally made to happen, he could remain a widower, and then be pushed up to the papacy by his Jesuit friends at Georgetown University. However, it will always remain a pleasure to read other books by this author, with one proviso: he ought to write them entirely by himself, coauthorship does not become him.Book Review: Just one of those books
Summary: 5 Stars
What can really be said about this white-knuckled page-turner? There's a reason that Tom Clancy is so synonymous with this genre and that reason is the Hunt For Red October. The book has lost a little bit of its thrilling luster, in my opinion, thanks to the fall of the Soviet Union, but it is still a frighteningly realistic tale. In other words, it used to be "oh man, this could so easily happen" and now it's "oh man, that could so easily have happened". In either case, this book will have you on the edge of your seat. Marko Ramius and Jack Ryan are compelling, multidimensional protagonists whose interaction is rivetting. It's one thing for a guy to sit down with a load of military data and use it to write a story, but it's another thing for that guy to birth characters that are so real and well-crafted. Jack Ryan is that bookish guy turned James Bond kind of character that you love to read about. He's become one of my favorite protagonists in recent years outside of a Hemingway novel, and I'm sure he'll stay that way for some time. I'm a huge Clancy fan and I've read justa bout everything he's managed to scribble down, but the Hunt For Red October continues to be his masterpiece in my eyes. Perhaps that's because it's so original and ground-breaking, or maybe it's just because it isn't 1000 pages like everything else he's written. In any case, if you haven't had the privilege of reading this (I've got to give props to the film version, too. I would recommend it also), grant yourself that privilege right away.