Peter Telep

This latest "Tom Clancy" book is a pure disgrace. By putting his name on this thing, Clancy shows how little respect he has not only for his own work, but also for his readers. If you're someone who remembers the old days of Clancy, with Jack Ryan and Patriot Games, or Clear and Present Danger, then by all means, don't waste your money on this pathetic imitation. If you're new to Clancy, then buy the old ones and leave this one on the shelf.

The premise of the main story is show more interesting--members of the Taliban join forces with a Mexican drug cartel--so I thought I might be able to hang in and see if I wasn't just going through a bad patch in the middle that Clancy's "co-author" wrote without his oversight. But when I got to the point of laughing out loud at the stupid plot turns and dialogue, I decided that, even though I was almost 400 pages into this 750-page book, I'd had enough.

Not only is the dialogue wooden and stupid, but also the main character, Maxwell Moore, "ex-Navy SEAL" (oh, puh-leeze), is someone I simply could not care less about. Will he live? Will he die horribly at the hands of the Juarez Cartel? I COULDN'T CARE LESS.

Moore and a colleague are undercover, keeping watch over Miguel and his girlfriend Sonia. Miguel is the son of Jorge Rojas, the richest man in Mexico, maybe "the richest man in the world." Moore is watching the two young people from the balcony of his hotel room, "a clear view of their naked forms splayed across the bed....'Must be nice to be young,' Moore said, sighing over his own lost years. 'They're pretty horny, huh?' said Fitzpatrick," Moore's partner. Seriously? This drivel is just embarrassing. A few pages later, the two young people not only get away from the Mexican gangsters who are trying to kidnap them, but they also give Moore the slip, just long enough for girlfriend Sonia to save the day, pulling out the knife that she just happens to have with her, and slashing open the bad guy's throat. The blood "comes in a great fountain against the wall," and the boyfriend stands there, "stunned," while he wonders, "Who was this girl he'd fallen in love with? She was remarkable."

Done, I'm done. And as for Tom Clancy, I'm simply embarrassed for him. I'd like to give him the benefit of the doubt--maybe he didn't even read this thing. But would I have bought a book by author Peter Telep? No, I would not. I bought this one because it had Tom Clancy's name on it. This book is nothing but a fraud, and I think this is a case where LT needs to give readers the wherewithal to give a book a negative star rating.

I returned the book to the seller. I hope the publisher gets the message. show less

CIA operative and former Navy SEAL Max Moore is fighting a battle on two fronts. He starts off fighting the Taleban in Pakistan; then transitions to the drug wars in Mexico. We had all the acronyms you can think of, sub plots that start and go no where, and other inconsistencies. Where's Jack Ryan? The funniest part was that the terrorists and drug lords used American idioms...research that and it would have been richer, Clancy. Would I read another Tom Clancy novel? Definitely!

Interesting setup regarding possible links between terrorists and narco-cartels.

Entire novel looks like a cross between "Without remorse" and "Debt of Honor" but without the depth of these two books.

Main character (I think Clancy franchise truly loves SEALs :)), Moore, is basically Clark for the new age.

Where this book falls short IMHO is all the "we-are-the-best" attitude of the main character. Don't get me wrong - in this novel plans go south, agents get killed, there is a true show more cat-and-mouse game going on between good and bad guys etc. But there is no doubt at any point that good guys will prevail (anyone remember "The Sum Of All Fears"? Now that was tense action novel).

Good guys are superior in everything (training, equipment (you'll get the specs on any weapon they choose and of course they are always choosing US production lines because - you get it - they are the best), you name it) and that's the main issue I have with the novel - you need group of commandos from country X in 2 hours at some location in the Mexico? No problem, we can make it happen. You need hi-tech equipment at location Y - it's waiting for you. I mean even Alias would say something like "Wait a minute, this is ridiculous! How are you doing this" :)

Also, each chapter seems a little bit repetitive (e.g in one chapter they are chasing down a cartel boss and reader is introduced to the character; next chapter repeats all the info - to the letter .... I mean what for, this is the novel not serialized series of short stories that are published with few days in between).

It's a fun read though, and in truth I am giving it 3,5 stars (can't select it though).

If you want a little bit more darker (and maybe more realistic) story on anti-cartel operations give Forsyth's "The Cobra" a try. show less

Finally, a new Clancy book that is up to his old standards! Combining drug cartels with Pakistani terrorists, infiltrating America's borders, quick action, heroes and traitors. I read this in less than 2 days. Couldn't put it down.