Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: Combat, Vol. 1 by Stephen Coonts, Larry Bond, Dale Brown, David Hagberg ISBN: 0-8125-7615-2 Publisher: Forge Pub. Date: 07 January, 2002 Format: Mass Market Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.42 (12 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: 2 Direct Hits and 1 Huge Miss...Groundbreaking? Hardly
Comment: Few books live up to the hyperbole of their backcovers. The first installment of the Combat series edited by Stephen Coontz is no exception, "Groundbreaking Landmark" sounded suspicious...and the first story in the first volume, by Larry Bond, confirmed my suspicions. A huge fan of Bond's first novel, Red Phoenix, I've never been very satisfied with his subsequent material. This is probably the worst I've seen from him. A plot that's hardly engaging, card-board characters (with cheesy dialogue) that aren't the least bit interesting, and some of the poorest editing I've ever seen combine to make his installment a chore. At one point he refers Vietnamese flashpoints between the U.S. and China (that have no bearing on the story's plot) but offers no set up for them. We're just supposed to assume that the U.S. and China had been at odds over Vietnam for a long time...it made no sense. Bond's contribution was just dull dull dull.
Then we get to Dale Brown's installment, "Leadership Material". This one succeeds in many places where Bond's installment failed. Its characters are instantly likable. And, while the combat passages are brief, they are harrowing. I found the shennanigans that surround Air Force promotions boards (the primary plot devise herein) to be extremely entertaining - I doubt many others will, though - I'm going up against a board soon myself, it was nice to have an inside scoop.
The back cover of the book suggests it portrays war the way it is or soon will be. Brown's novel takes place back in the early 1990's...another strike against the jacket hype. Great story, though.
The story that will have the broadest appeal (its an absorbing read!) is the entry from the always-reliable David Hagberg. Hagberg (who recently wrote the novelization of the Terminator 3 film) has made a name for himself over recent years penning submarine thrillers. The brief installment in this series is part submarine plot and part espionage thriller. It may not be the most accurate but it is by far the most entertaining of the lot.
Brown's and Hagberg's work here are worth 4 or 5 stars. Bond's installment and the ludicrous hyperbole on the cover knock it down to three. I'd recommend it.
Rating: 4
Summary: Combat #3-Good War Stories!
Comment: Combat #3 offered up four good stories by four good authors.
The first story was written by Harold Coyle.He told of a special Army unit made up of cyber warriors. They are recruited to combat the growing attacks by hackers whocause online terrorism around the world. The next story is by Ralph Peters. His story takes place in the Balkan states. A U.S. Army observer is taken hostage by the people he is sent over to observe.James Cobb tells of a U.S. calvary unit that does combat with an Algerian recon division that is attempting to attack a helpless African country.R.J. Pineiro,one of the rising stars among today's authors tells of a Russian terrorist seizes a space station
equipped with nuclear warheads.It is up to Marine Diane Williams to stop him.Four good stories for the price of one. Read this. You will enjoy it.
Rating: 4
Summary: "Solid, Short Stories In Combat #1"
Comment: Not a single story here disappointed. To me, Dale Brown's "Leadership Material" was the best of the three. Loved how he intertwined the different personalities of Col. Norman and Major McLanahan. Norman, an Air Force accountant assigned to a promotion board, feels an outcast in the pilot-dominated world of the Air Force. Now his prejudices are coming out as he grades candidates for promotion from Major to Lt. Colonel. One of the the files he comes across is McLanahan's. On paper, he feels Mac is so woeful he should be thrown out of the USAF. But on the other side of the world, as the Gulf War winds down, McLanahan shows his skills and bravery as the Old Dog crew must stop an suped-up, stealthy Tu-160 Iranian bomber from sinking a US carrier.
"Lash-up" by Larry Bond was a pretty good story. Character development was decent. The interesting part was seeing how a newly formed group must overcome bureaucracy to come up with a space plane to neutralize a Chinese ASAT system destroying the GPS satellite network.
Really enjoyed the David Hagberg story "Breaking Point" where CIA DDO Kirk McGarvey must prevent an all-out war between China and Taiwan. Nice drama as McGarvey infiltrates Taiwan. Loved the captain of the Chinese Han-class sub. Very crafty guy with zero tolerance for mistakes who tries to foil America's plan.
 |
Title: Stephen Coonts' Deep Black by Stephen Coonts, Jim DeFelice ISBN: 0312985207 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: 06 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
 |
Title: Victory by Stephen Coonts, Ralph Peters, Harold Coyle, Harold Robbins, R. J. Pineiro, David Hagberg, Jim DeDelice, James H. Cobb, Barrett Tillman, Dean Ing ISBN: 0312874626 Publisher: Forge Pub. Date: 13 May, 2003 List Price(USD): $27.95 |
 |
Title: Fortunes of War by Stephen Coonts ISBN: 0312969414 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: 23 March, 1999 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
 |
Title: The Red Horseman by Stephen Coonts ISBN: 0671748882 Publisher: Pocket Books Pub. Date: 01 June, 1994 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
 |
Title: Final Flight by Stephen Coonts ISBN: 044020447X Publisher: Dell Pub. Date: 01 September, 1989 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
