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Using the latest advancements in military technology, the world's superpowers battle it out on land, sea, and air for the ultimate global control.
A chillingly authentic vision of modern war, Red Storm Rising is as powerful as it is ambitious.
It's a story you will never forget.
Hard hitting. Suspenseful.
And frighteningly real.
From the author of The Hunt For Red October, a New York Times bestseller for over 40 weeks, comes his greatest performance yet. Red Storm Rising is an alarmingly authentic portrait of escalating aggression between superpowers on all fronts--land, sea, air and space.
Tom Clancy is the world's favorite international thriller author. Starting with The Hunt For Red October, all of Mr. Clancy's books have hit #1 on the New York Times bestseller list. Mr. Clancy lives in Maryland and owns an interest in the Baltimore Orioles.
I read this novel while serving a few years after it was published. I worked in one the the primary rates that the story focuses on. Found Clancy's understanding of the overall dynamics of the cold war frightening. I could not put this book down until I was done. It was read by most of my division and by the time I got it back, it was in tatters...but everyone loved it. This was his second book and I think it really put him on the map for a lot of readers. His first book, Hunt for Red October was great, but limited in scope to primarily ASW. This novel showed that his mind was keen to an overall picture that was poised to happen for 40 years. Younger readers might have a tough time understanding some of the "how could this happen" as the Soviet Union has been dissolved for a while. The world was living in the intrigue of the of the first few chapters for most of the 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's. This novel could be thought of as a history lesson based on a fictional line of events. It was that close...great read, and it is out as an Ebook for my Nook as well!
8 out of 8 people found this review helpful.
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Posted March 19, 2010
The title says it all, with the exception of his Jack Ryan novels, I'm including "The Bear and the Dragon" with those. This is his finest novel. Even nearly 25 years later, this story still rings true to what's happening today. Other than the USSR, one could easily replace "USSR" with "Russia" and this could happen next week. A must read for any Tom Clancy fan, or Larry Bond, Dale Brown, or any of the other Military thriller novelists. This book deserves a permanent place in your libraries.
7 out of 7 people found this review helpful.
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Posted August 1, 2010
To me, the best book he ever wrote.
6 out of 6 people found this review helpful.
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Posted February 23, 2010
I Also Recommend:
Here's a surprise: another great book from Tom Clancy. It is one of only two novels that are not part of a series. In general, the book is a world war three scenario in which the Cold War becomes hot. It starts when the Soviet Union begins a massive assault on Eastern Europe due to dwindling oil reserves. They quickly take much of Germany as well as Keflavik, Iceland. Despite the ferocious attack, it quickly settles into a war of attrition. Each side has underestimated the amount of supplies needed and it is a race to re-supply their militaries. This becomes increasingly difficult for NATO due to Soviet air attacks based out of Keflavik. Eventually the Soviet Commander-in-chief (Western Front) realizes the Politburo was wrong in starting the war. He begins to doubt the USSR's leadership (Beyond that you'll have to read the book for yourself!). There are several sub-plots ranging in location from Iceland to Germany and the Sea of Okhostk. They start off separately but eventually intertwine to create an explosive ending. Tom Clancy uses this novel to demonstrate the fact that many conventional ideas about warfare are exceedingly incorrect. He states that in a major conflict, munitions usage is much higher than projected. He also presents the idea that fast attack helicopters (Such as the AH-1 Cobra and MI-24 Hind) are too lightly armored and ineffective in a ground conflict. One of Clancy's most notable achievements in this book is the intertwining of numerous sub-plots to express how modern warfare is multi-faceted. He utilizes several main characters (Such as Lt. Edwards (USAF) and General Pavel Leonidovich Alekseyev) from each side and all from differing perspectives to show the true nature of war. As usual, Clancy uses his one-of-a-kind writing style to convey the emotions of the characters. It is especially effective in Lt. Edwards story. However, despite Tom Clancy's incredible talent, there is perhaps too much of a focus on submarine warfare. The overuse of this aspect can take away from the novel's overall effect, as they become dull and boring later on in the book. Overall, Red Storm Rising is perhaps one of Clancy's greatest novels, especially of those dealing with the Cold War. It deals with all major issues surrounding modern warfare, and causes the reader to wonder if NATO is as well prepared for war as they would like us to believe. If you are a fan of Tom Clancy, this book is most definitely a must-read.
5 out of 5 people found this review helpful.
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Posted March 21, 2011
I think this was one of the first books that I ever read by Mr Clancy. I just finished reading it again after many years. All I can say is WOW!
He is truly a master. It'll keep you up for hours, not wanting to put the book down.
Well done!
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
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Posted December 2, 2005
I've read Red Storm Rising 5 times over the past ten years and enjoyed it more each time. Once you open the book you just can't put it down. Extremely realistic. Highly recommended.
3 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
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Posted December 26, 2011
First off, this is NOT a Jack Ryan novel, forget what you may have seen on some paperbacks.
What this is is a very plausible telling of what could have happened if some relatively minor incidents were allowed to get out of hand.
On the political side it shows what happens when scared men are too afraid to admit their mistakes, and choose war over easier solutions that would have required admitting mistakes.
On the military side, well some of it is dated material. The stealth fighter, for example, is not used in the manner described, but it still makes for excellent story telling.
The naval action scenes are beyond first-rate and worth re-reading.
The air combat and other combat scenes grab you by your gut and hold on to you.
You get your money's worth from this novel.
Personally I believe it is one of Clancy's best works.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted October 29, 2011
You can read the synopsis to get an idea of story line. This book is a great story and was written during the Cold War when we really feared the "Red Storm". The editing of this book could use some work, having read both hard copy and ebook versions, there seems to be a lot of spelling errors in the ebook version.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted November 23, 2010
One of Clancy's best.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.This book is a Christmas Present for my father he loved the book when he read it isn paperback, but he wanted the hardcover to complete his collection.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted August 13, 2009
This book was great.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted July 24, 2006
An epic battle for the North Atlantic and Europe. Once it gets going, you won't put it down.
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted March 6, 2006
Red Storm Rising is the best book I have ever read. I have never read a Tom Clancy book before, and I would recommend this book to anyone interested in the Clancy series. The writting is superb. Clancy describes everything perfectly. You will find your self wanting to know more about each character and later on you do. This book is about a war between NATO and the Soviet Union. And Clancy intertwines the stories of several characters throughout the war. You will follow a Russian politician, Air Force lieutenant, Navy Commander, Russian General, and many more. Clancy makes it easy to get to know each character and transitions from each story very well throughout the novel. There are many action packed chapters as well as political chapters and they compliment each other well with a perfect balance. It would be good to have some basic military knowledge before reading this. Very great story Tom Clancy! I wish this book never ended, I want more! Red Storm Rising
2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted June 28, 2012
Good book toms best. Better than his newer books. He should write like this again
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted June 14, 2012
Plot and Structure Assignment
Scott Raymond Wilmot I
English 102, Module 3, Written Essay (M3A1)
Excelsior College
Approach
For my “Plot and Structure” reading assignment I chose Red Storm Rising [hard cover], by Tom Clancy. This techno-thriller, as the experts call it, is very well wrote and walks you through what might actually happen in World War III. Granted, the events and weapon systems referred are dated back in the mid-1980s, however Clancy’s strategic perspective, accuracy of tactics, and how the American fighting forces are important to the lowest levels is spot on. It doesn’t matter what your background is, or what genre you favor with reading or movies…If you read “Red Storm Rising” you will gain a better appreciation for the evening news and what it means in terms of future events, and also realize that one person or a small group can make a difference on the world stage.
Analysis
This book begins with the loss of a Soviet oil refinery destroyed by Islamic terrorists. The fire of this refinery burned so large it was seen by NORAD satellites and by the crew watching the monitors. One of the shift sergeants told the colonel, “The refinery---well its gone sir” (Clancy, 1986, p. 16), and as the crew continued to dialog about how there would be nothing left in a few days, this situation has begun a series of events that the world has prayed against during the entire Cold War.
Oils shortages are now obvious across the region and Soviet senior leaders begin to plot a coup to try and capture refineries in the Persian Gulf by force. As our real history shows from Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, any attack in the Persian Gulf is of strategic interest to our nation. So, now we have a chain of events that begin cross border operations in Europe with Soviet Spetsnaz [Soviet Green Beret’s], and naval scuffles in the northern Atlantic. One encounter between an American ship and Soviet Submarine was unusual when the torpedo hit the submarine and survivors needed to be rescued, who are now prisoner of war; the American Captain…”What the hell am I supposed to do with prisoners?” (Clancy, 1986, p.273). As tensions increase, the uses of F-117 stealth fighter/bombers begin striking Soviet targets as counter attacks. Our senior leaders were so crafty they began to use F-15s to fly into the stratosphere and fire anti-satellite missiles into space to destroy Soviet satellites in hopes to blind the enemy. Of course, losses begin to increase on both sides as it appears there is no end of World War III in sight.
Summary
This a long book to read in today’s busy times, however it’s full of heroic events down to the individual who are as realistic as what you see every night on the news today. The suspense alone keeps you reading more each day even when you’re reading time runs short. I’ve read this book twice; once in 1993 when the weapon systems were still relevant, and this week in preparation for the college essay. Even after a 19-year gap between readings, I can still see application to current day strategic analysis. This book and the author are brilliant and I look forward to a potential movie of Red Storm Rising in the future.
Work Cited
Clancy, T. (1986). Red storm rising. (pp. 11-652). New York: G.P Putnam's Sons.
1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
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Posted May 1, 2012
Red Storm Rising is a masterpiece of the multi-thread techno thriller fiction genre. Weaving in and out of five separate storylines through seven hundred pages of novel after a while you start to feel like an "inside baseball" player in Intelligence.
My greatest regret was that no one ever figured out how to make this book into a movie, or mini-series, which in the 1980's would have been very timely and powerful. Seems like they missed their window.
Larry Bond and Clancy together will keep you on the edge of your seat, but provide enough technical background to keep the geeks and weenies like me enthralled. As I re-read the book some 25 years after it's initial publication, I find myself closely identifying with the characters, and trying to speak the Russian names and places aloud. It just plain grabs you.
Well Done, TC/LB!
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted March 16, 2012
Tom's best book.
1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.ThePearlEH
Posted February 3, 2012
Too many tungue-twisting names. Hard to decide who the good guys are.
1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.I highly recommend this one. A real thriller.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted December 4, 2011
I was stationed there for nine years. Spent time in all those towns and in some of the forests. This book really brings home what it would have been like if it had really happened. The feel and taste of combat in the FRG was real with no holds barred. Best read ever.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Overview
Using the latest advancements in military technology, the world's superpowers battle it out on land, sea, and air for the ultimate global control.
A chillingly authentic vision of modern war, Red Storm Rising is as powerful as it is ambitious.
It's a story you will never forget.
Hard hitting. Suspenseful.
And frighteningly real.
...