Sam Hunter's Blog
July 16, 2017
Point of Contact by Mike Madden – review
[image error]Mike Maden has picked up the gauntlet from Grant Blackwood and published his first novel in the Jack Ryan Jr. series – Point of Contact. Let me say right of the bat to all Clancy fans who worry about new authors stepping in to keep the series going – you don’t have to worry. Point of Contact is familiar in all the ways you want it to be and fresh in ways the series needed. Maden could make an audit exciting – and that’s actually exactly what he did. What should have been a routine audit of a tech company, he packed so full of action, danger, thrills, and national security implications, that I was glad to have the hardcover book in my hands. A paperback would have burst at the seams.
“If history teaches us anything, it’s that human morality follows technology, and not the other way around.”
Clancy novels have always been on the edge of technological development but the above quote from Point of Contact tells me that Maden has an even keener eye for how technology is shaping the battlespace – especially now the battlespace is rarely a conventional one. In a world of increasing connectivity, we can all be targets and morality certainly isn’t acting as a limiter for those who would seek to subvert technology to damage and influence our society.
It’s not surprising that Maden has such a grip on the influence of technology. He’s the author of four novels in his own techno-thriller series – Drone, Blue Warrior, Done Command, and Drone Threat. And he brought some interesting concepts related to drones into Point of Contact. He says on his website that he’s had a lifelong fascination with warfare. This led to his Ph.D. in political science, which was focused on conflict and technology in international relations. I can’t think of a better set of qualifications to take to the keyboard for the Jack Ryan Jr. series.
Potential spoilers ahead!
Point of Contact gets off to a great start with the North Korean threat and its ongoing missile tests, including the North’s acquisition of MIRV technology (Multiple Independently targetable Re-entry Vehicle). I felt this was extremely current (and Clancyesque), given the tension that is presently building between the Trump administration and North Korea after their most recent launches and claims of ICBMs. However, this didn’t feel like it was going over ground covered in Full Force and Effect. Maden made reference to the earlier novel in the series and skillfully drew a thread from it, which set up the foundation of Point of Contact. I also couldn’t help feeling like some foundations were being laid for a future novel in the series. Whether that’s the next one by Maden or the next book being released in November, Power and Empire, by Marc Cameron, who is picking up the pen from Mark Greaney.
Point of Contact involves the usual cast of characters but when it gets into the meat of the story it centers around Jack Jr. and the audit he’s undertaking with forensic accountant Paul Brown. Set in Singapore, all is not what it seems – either at the company being audited, or with Jack’s partner from Hendley Associates. Paul doesn’t know about Jack’s black side work but neither does Jack know about the secret mission Paul is on for the CIA. Or so Paul thinks.
Again, I felt Maden did a great job for Clancy fans by having echoes of the stock market disruption plot that was pivotal to Debt of Honor. Don’t get me wrong, this wasn’t a rehash – it’s an entirely new plot with different things going on – but when you read it you get a sense that Maden knows how to signal to fans that he’s building a novel which sits comfortably within the legacy of previous books in the series.
Maden knows the characters too. Jack’s past was mentioned a few times and I also felt he got in Jack’s head. Although, I wish sometimes Jack would stop being quite the renegade and keep the Campus in the loop more. I can’t help but thinking he’s always only one step away from doing something that will get him binned from the Campus for good, or cause a disaster. And all because he keeps wanting to go it alone. He’s been in trouble before for this so perhaps it’s time to see him evolve or bring it all down. I’m a John Clark fan so perhaps I can’t help but want Jack to be more like him – more by the book.
Jack has to use all of his skills to find the truth of what’s going down in Singapore, and to save both him and Paul from being killed. It was good to see Jack picking up new skills too. And as a student of Kali, I particularly enjoyed the knife fighting and use of a karambit. Maden got it spot on with just how dangerous knives are in a fight – even the victor in such a fight will come away injured.
[image error]There was a female interest in Point of Contact for Jack but I’m pleased to say it wasn’t quite the usual routine here. She stayed pretty hostile towards Jack almost throughout, and he rather skeptical of her. This kept tension in the story much more and away from the shallower, more typical scenario – guy meets girl, they become romantically involved, they work together throughout the story to save the day.
I won’t say much more about the rest of the story, other than it was a great read, was well written, and read faster for me than any previous Clancy novel.
I do want to talk about the future of the series though.
I’m worried the Campus is becoming too visible and that too many people know about it. At some point, Jack Sr. will no longer be president and that poses an extreme risk for the Campus and deniability of its ongoing operations, perhaps even for its existence. Will the series track current politics with the replacement of President Ryan with a Trump type character, who may seek to dismantle the work of his predecessor? As much as I like the Campus, perhaps its demise could be an extremely interesting storyline, both for the operators and for President Ryan. I know the Campus has a bunch of blank presidential pardons that might help the operators get off the hook but can Jack Sr. pardon himself?
Sometimes the best storylines come from being prepared to upset the status quo. The introduction of the Campus was great when it happened, as have been other sweeping changes to the series. I hope that as both Maden and Cameron get a couple of books under their belts they will not be afraid to do some brutal things to keep the series alive and kicking. Having read other reviews, I think this is what most readers are now looking for, a dynamic shift to the present series setup.
So, if you’re unsure about the latest book in the series – don’t be. Maden’s Point of Contact is a thrill. It’s current, and it keeps the tradition of the Clancy books going. I’ve rated Point of Contact five stars.
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