Special Ops (Brotherhood of War, Book 9)

The early 60's were a trying time in our country. Most of us are aware of Vietnam, but how many know about the events in the Congo? Griffin brings this little known saga to life as a U.S. Army Special Forces (Green Berets) team goes into the Congo to thwart the plans of Cuban terrorist Dr. Ernesto "Che" Guevara as he tries to expand communist influence into Africa.Fans of Griffin will see old favorites such as wealthy playboy Lt. Colonel Craig Lowell as he forges an alliance with Argentina through his skill on a polo field! Colonel Sanford Felter is, of course, the mastermind behind stopping Guevara. Former Congo pilot Jack Portet and his family as well as Captain Johnny Oliver are featured prominently as they team up to provide the air support for the Berets. We also find former minor characters thrust into major roles. Major George Washington "Father" Lunsford leads the intrepid group of Berets into the jungle and "Father" finds the love of his life in the arms of ebony beauty, Cecelia Taylor.But as always in a Griffin book, these events all swirl around the story of stopping Che Guevara and the final battle to drive him from the Congo is classic Griffin. As usual, my only complaint about a Griffin book is that he doesn't write enough of them fast enough.

Once again WEB Griffin has written a book I stayed up until 3 AM to finish. A very interesting story, with well developed personalities.If there is a down-side, it's that this is a continuation of a series of books that I haven't read in 10 years. I had only vague memories of those characters, but Mr. Griffin does a good job of prompting. (The Lieutenants -> The Green Berets)<p>I don't need reviews to know that I will love a Griffin book, but read the other series 1st. (Plus you will save money, as Special Ops should be in paperback by the time you finish: "The LT's, The Cpt's, The Maj's, The Col's, The Gen's, The Aviators, The Green Berets.")

As a GRIFFIN's books fan I felt compeled to by the new opus from the Brotherhood of War. Man was I right to by this great book ! I read all of GRIFFIN's books and was waiting for a new Corps issue but food this one by pure dumb luck in LA. I began to read it and since the first page I have disapeared from my house, spending hours of delight in my study. This book reffers to the efforts of the communists to take over the world by lighting bush fires in all the fragile democraties (beginning with Greece in the middle 40s and later Vietnam...) and trying to help the rebel native forces everywhere harm could be done to our interrests (directly or indirectly). This books shows how the United States Armed Forces (specifically the US Army Special Forces) tryied and obviously succeded (most of the time) in keeping the communist's forces to push the rebel forces in government seats. State of the art guerilla operations and intelligence use for a very modern warfare exemple. Let the others fight their own wars (with a little hidden help from friends) and be proud of their wins. Keep the boys home and safe. Unfortunatly keeping communists out of the picture never made the people of certain countries happier...Read this book and learn from the master.

Having been critical of some recent Griffin efforts, I wasn't sure what to expect here; rarely does an author reverse a downward trend. The master of military fiction is definitely back, doing everything well that he once did well.He already had a batch of great characters to work with here, but he takes time to introduce them for those new to this series (which we had all thought was over with years ago), so the book will stand alone well if need be. The premise is interesting even if one does know the ultimate historical outcome. The portrayal of LBJ, in particular, is marvelous. The action is exciting, both human and military, with a number of good old-fashioned Griffin 'senior officer annoyed rants', one of the things he's best at. Griffin has always been good about avoiding excessive ethnic stereotyping, and in a plot that includes strong African American, African and Hispanic characters this talent really shines through. If I could find a weakness to report I'd do so, but there aren't any.It may be that this book was a long-unpublished manuscript that was gussied up for print; it may also be that Griffin has completely corrected all the recent downward trends of his writing and is back with a vengeance. Either way, this one is his best effort in years--a keeper for sure.

In 1964 the CIA reports revolutionary Che Guevara plans to replace Belgium influence in the area with Cuban control as a first step in making the continent a Cuban landmass. On the advice of Colonel Sanford Felter, Commander of the Top Secret Special Operations unit, President Johnson wants Che stopped, but not killed, preferring an image of a bungler not a martyr.President Mobuto agrees to allow Felter's crack unit to complete the task of removing Che from the Republic of the Congo. With professionals like Lowell, Bellmon, Craig, Thomas, and new recruit Portet, the Americans succeed in their mission of kicking Che out of Africa. However, the versatile Che simply shifts continents to South America.It has been a dozen years since W.E.B. Griffin released a "Brotherhood of War" novel. Fans of the series and newcomers will agree that the wait for SPECIAL OPS was well worth it as this novel is a tremendous military adventure. The men of the Special Forces seem like real people with everyday problems as well as dealing with a deadly mission. The story line rings true because of the numerous historical tidbits circa 1964 and the political involvement of various leaders in what the crack unit is authorized to do or not do. Mr. Griffin has triumphantly brought back a winner that will send many a reader searching for the previous eight novels (aside to Putnam: think reprints).Harriet Klausner