The Five Fingers

Debate rages about the veracity of this book, but one thing remains: it is a monumental nail-biter/page-turner. Fans of war stories will not find better than this. I, too, have read this book several times because it's like a great roller coaster ride: you now know when the twists and turns are coming, but it's great entertainment going through them again. It's bloody realistic, so I don't feel the need to know if it really happened. Other reviewers have gone over the plot, so I'd like to jump into advocating a film version. The drawing card: VIOLENCE! The carnage in this story makes The Wild Bunch look like a warm-up act. Sam Peckinpah is gone, so as far as I can see it, Quentin Tarantino is the only director to do this book justice. Accurately done, this would be a XXX movie for violence and gore. It would make Saving Private Ryan look like a General Audience movie. People would be vomiting in the aisles! Brains would snap as audiences turned into sado-zombie death squads! Ahem...well, that was a bit scary. Perhaps this book should NOT be filmed. Still, it's a good read, and definitely not for the kids.

This book shows the reader exactly what combat in Vietnem was like. It was portrayed through the eyes of an SAS soldier sent on a top secret mission to assignate Gen. Giap. No details are held back, with all the gore involved with real war. There were no "John Wayne" heroes that saved the day, or bullet-broof Rambo's that came in guns blazing, just 7 dedicated soldiers all to achive the same mission objective. Fighting through Laos, Cambodia, China, and Vietnam this story shows what truly professional and dedicated soldiers can do. The realism of the novel was unbelievable, and I find it difficult to think of this as a work of fiction. In fact I am positive missions like this were attempted, with the same type of troops, support, and conditions. Because of the detail involved I belive that Rivers was part of a mission like this, and definitly a real special forces soldier. What I thought was amazing was the sheer perseverance of the men, and the realistic goverment reaction. The fact that the village turned on them was not coincidental, and the U.S. goverment probably set up the Pathet Latheo. I read this book five times, and each time was just as exhilerating, and I recomend it to anyone who is interested in war novels, and should be mandatory for all Special Forces and officers of the Army and Marines

This is positively the most exciting book on any operation in Southeast Asia I have read. It was recommnended to me by a friend who explained the book was declared a work of fiction because the publisher refused to publish it as non-fiction because there is no proof the operation exsisted. After reading the book, I have no doubt it has to be true. Gayle Rivers' first peson point of view is detailed and precise. His writing style make accounts of training, living in the jungle, and guerilla tactics used in the field come to life while at the same time give the words a flow that is easy to read. I highly recommend to anyone interested in works concerning the war in Southeast Asia but want something different than the typical line infantry, Ranger, SEAL, or Green Beret accounts to read this book then reread it again. For myself, I ask anyone with more information concerning The Five Fingers (authenticity of the story, other points of view, etc) to e-mail me.

I read this book when I was a teen in the early eighties...it blew my mind. Since then I have reread it several times. Each time I read it, I come to a different perception of the mission and the author. I have trouble believing this mission did not occur, even though it was presented as fiction. It is very graphic and hard core...no holds barred. It depicts the difference between the Green Berets and SAS. Green Berets are mainly trainers of indigenous peoples in guerilla warfare. SAS is a true clandestine surgical special forces unit. I think it should be required reading for any Army or Marine Corp Officer or for any SOF individual. I have always wondered who the author(Gayle Rivers) really was, if he was the real deal, etc. If anybody out there knows about this guy or if the mission actually occured, feel free to E-mail me. Very curious. This book epitomizes the SAS spirit and work ethos...unbelievable endurance combined with a focused, daring and imaginative aggressiveness. Forget about the Green Berets, the SAS is what impresses me. Gayle Rivers is a real soldier, self motivated and does not need a promise of promotion or "atta boys" to do excellent professional soldiering. His motivation comes from within himself. All he cares about is destroying the enemy high command. His whole focus in life is to succeed as a professional special forces operative and to destroy communism. If the US had more soldiers and Marines like Rivers, the military's problems would be gone. The US military should copy SAS selection techniques...forget about boot camp. SAS selection is a superior method of selecting soldiers. But it only works if the soldier is truly self motivated, as well as extremely physically fit