Cold War (Tom Clancy's Power Plays, Book 5)

I picked up this book because I'm a Tom Clancy fan since the Jack Ryan days, and needed to pass some time....not usually a ficiton reader, I've always managed to admire Clancy's use of his knowledge of intelligence and military operations and hardware to weave a compelling story. "Cold War" is a book I picked up hurriedly expecting it to be on the topic of the actual Cold War, which it is not, it is set in Antarctica--but after the first few pages of initial disappointment, it becomes another Tom Clancy page-turner, which is what I'd hoped for. I cannot say for sure how much involvement Mr. Clancy had in the actual writing or story plot and direction (he is NOT listed as an author or writer--but this could easily become another great movie with a good scriptwriter or two and CG budget....moving from continent to continent in a flash and keeping your attention whirling. Although that is conceptually a different idea from the novel, it gives you an idea of my reaction to this pocket book (which it truly is). I recommend it for the purpose I bought it--a timepasser...and a good one at that. It has all the elements you associate with Tom Clancy...

This book was simply awesome, Tom Clancy did it again. A beautiful idea with the the virus unleashed on the head of Uplink Technologies and how ricci and the rest of the team find the vaccine to save not only Roger Gordian but everyone else who has inherited the virus. a real page turner. Honestly I enjoyed this book and recommend it to anyone who likes Tom Clancy novels.

This is the biggest and best of the Power Plays series to date -- an intelligent, intricate, cutting-edge, genre-bending work of suspense that weaves different characters and plotlines into a fully realized masterpiece. I loved every word . . . and unlike one of the previous readers who commented negatively (and threw in an unannounced spoiler to boot, folks) read all of them rather than skim through half the book, which is a fundamental criteria for any worthwhile review. Or ought to be in a reasonable universe, I guess.

First off, with a book like this, who is the author? I assumed it was Clancy, but now I am not so sure. What does it mean when two other men are the "creators" of a thriller? Did they come up with the concept and the first listed person is the actual author? If so it is very difficult to know who to give praise or critism to, or maybe that is the idea? I have enjoyed Clancy's books for several years. They make a good intelligent change of pace from my usual readers diet of science, education, ethics, mysteries, and history. He is a good writer even though I think he churns out the books too fast. However, since I am not sure who wrote this book, I don't know to whom to give the credit.The near completion of the human genome and the emergence of diverse infectious diseases which are new to us make for plenty of possible and scary scenarios. Obviously this group of men has tapped into this large reservoir. The problem is when someone who does not have the science background reaches for a book like this, and it is a middle of a series...the authors make assumptions about what the reader knows about genetics and disease, and where they have come in in reading the series. For me it wasn't a problem because I worked on HIV and am working on the ethical implications of the Human Genome project for the disabled. However, most of the people who I know who read this type of book for pleasure, would have definite problems following the back-and-forth writing of the plot, and a lot of the genetic information is going to seem very improbably to those who do not read Science on a regular basis. This is a good book, with a good plot and decent characterization. The science is pretty good, and I hope the authors don't give the wackos out there any new ideas. Probably not...like I said, this is currently an area of immense concern and immense discussion. This is definitely more intelligent writing than say Robin Cook (who started this genre), but it is not easy reading for those who are looking for something that does not require a few active brain cells (which I sometimes want too!) Karen Sadler, Science Education, University of Pittsburgh

Bio-Strike was a great book. It tied in all the important material. I definitely reccommend it to anyone that is in for an adventure. But read them in order or you will be lost. Jerome used great suspense and action to making this a great story and plot.