What do you think?
Rate this book
Brotherhood of War #9
Special Ops Part 2
W.E.B. Griffin is the commander in chief of American military fiction, the man Tom Clancy calls "a storyteller in the grand tradition." Special Ops, a riveting thriller about Cuban revolutionary Che Guevara and the men who desperately hunted him down, revisits the popular Brotherhood of War series for the first time since 1988, reuniting fans with many of Griffin's favorite characters. Heaped with excitement and startling historical detail, Special Ops is for newcomers and seasoned Griffinites alike; it's another winner from this time- and battle-tested veteran.
8 pages, Audio Cassette
First published January 15, 2001
493 people are currently reading
848 people want to read
About the author
W.E.B. Griffin
351 books1,300 followersW.E.B. Griffin was one of several pseudonyms for William E. Butterworth III.
From the Authors Website:
W.E.B. Griffin was the #1 best-selling author of more than fifty epic novels in seven series, all of which have made The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly, and other best-seller lists. More than fifty million of the books are in print in more than ten languages, including Hebrew, Chinese, Japanese, and Hungarian.
Mr. Griffin grew up in the suburbs of New York City and Philadelphia. He enlisted in the United States Army in 1946. After basic training, he received counterintelligence training at Fort Holabird, Maryland. He was assigned to the Army of Occupation in Germany, and ultimately to the staff of then-Major General I.D. White, commander of the U.S. Constabulary.
In 1951, Mr. Griffin was recalled to active duty for the Korean War, interrupting his education at Phillips University, Marburg an der Lahn, Germany. In Korea he earned the Combat Infantry Badge as a combat correspondent and later served as acting X Corps (Group) information officer under Lieutenant General White.
On his release from active duty in 1953, Mr. Griffin was appointed Chief of the Publications Division of the U.S. Army Signal Aviation Test & Support Activity at Fort Rucker, Alabama.
Mr. Griffin was a member of the Special Operations Association, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, the Army Aviation Association, the Armor Association, and the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) Society.
He was the 1991 recipient of the Brigadier General Robert L. Dening Memorial Distinguished Service Award of the U.S. Marine Corps Combat Correspondents Association, and the August 1999 recipient of the Veterans of Foreign Wars News Media Award, presented at the 100th National Convention in Kansas City.
He has been vested into the Order of St. George of the U.S. Armor Association, and the Order of St. Andrew of the U.S. Army Aviation Association, and been awarded Honorary Doctoral degrees by Norwich University, the nation’s first and oldest private military college, and by Troy State University (Ala.). He was the graduation dinner speaker for the class of 1988 at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
He has been awarded honorary membership in the Special Forces Association, the Marine Corps Combat Correspondents Association, the Marine Raiders Association, and the U.S. Army Otter & Caribou Association. In January 2003, he was made a life member of the Police Chiefs Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey, and the State of Delaware.
He was the co-founder, with historian Colonel Carlo D’Este, of the William E. Colby Seminar on Intelligence, Military, and Diplomatic Affairs. (Details here and here)
He was a Life Member of the National Rifle Association. And he belongs to the Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Pensacola, Florida, chapters of the Flat Earth Society.
Mr. Griffin’s novels, known for their historical accuracy, have been praised by The Philadelphia Inquirer for their “fierce, stop-for-nothing scenes.”
“Nothing honors me more than a serviceman, veteran, or cop telling me he enjoys reading my books,” Mr. Griffin says.
Mr. Griffin divides his time between the Gulf Coast and Buenos Aires.
Notes:
Other Pseudonyms
* Alex Baldwin
* Webb Beech
* Walker E. Blake
* W.E. Butterworth
* James McM. Douglas
* Eden Hughes
* Edmund O. Scholefield
* Patrick J. Williams
* W. E. Butterworth
* John Kevin Dugan
* Jac
From the Authors Website:
W.E.B. Griffin was the #1 best-selling author of more than fifty epic novels in seven series, all of which have made The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Publishers Weekly, and other best-seller lists. More than fifty million of the books are in print in more than ten languages, including Hebrew, Chinese, Japanese, and Hungarian.
Mr. Griffin grew up in the suburbs of New York City and Philadelphia. He enlisted in the United States Army in 1946. After basic training, he received counterintelligence training at Fort Holabird, Maryland. He was assigned to the Army of Occupation in Germany, and ultimately to the staff of then-Major General I.D. White, commander of the U.S. Constabulary.
In 1951, Mr. Griffin was recalled to active duty for the Korean War, interrupting his education at Phillips University, Marburg an der Lahn, Germany. In Korea he earned the Combat Infantry Badge as a combat correspondent and later served as acting X Corps (Group) information officer under Lieutenant General White.
On his release from active duty in 1953, Mr. Griffin was appointed Chief of the Publications Division of the U.S. Army Signal Aviation Test & Support Activity at Fort Rucker, Alabama.
Mr. Griffin was a member of the Special Operations Association, the Veterans of Foreign Wars, the American Legion, the Army Aviation Association, the Armor Association, and the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) Society.
He was the 1991 recipient of the Brigadier General Robert L. Dening Memorial Distinguished Service Award of the U.S. Marine Corps Combat Correspondents Association, and the August 1999 recipient of the Veterans of Foreign Wars News Media Award, presented at the 100th National Convention in Kansas City.
He has been vested into the Order of St. George of the U.S. Armor Association, and the Order of St. Andrew of the U.S. Army Aviation Association, and been awarded Honorary Doctoral degrees by Norwich University, the nation’s first and oldest private military college, and by Troy State University (Ala.). He was the graduation dinner speaker for the class of 1988 at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
He has been awarded honorary membership in the Special Forces Association, the Marine Corps Combat Correspondents Association, the Marine Raiders Association, and the U.S. Army Otter & Caribou Association. In January 2003, he was made a life member of the Police Chiefs Association of Southeastern Pennsylvania, Southern New Jersey, and the State of Delaware.
He was the co-founder, with historian Colonel Carlo D’Este, of the William E. Colby Seminar on Intelligence, Military, and Diplomatic Affairs. (Details here and here)
He was a Life Member of the National Rifle Association. And he belongs to the Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Pensacola, Florida, chapters of the Flat Earth Society.
Mr. Griffin’s novels, known for their historical accuracy, have been praised by The Philadelphia Inquirer for their “fierce, stop-for-nothing scenes.”
“Nothing honors me more than a serviceman, veteran, or cop telling me he enjoys reading my books,” Mr. Griffin says.
Mr. Griffin divides his time between the Gulf Coast and Buenos Aires.
Notes:
Other Pseudonyms
* Alex Baldwin
* Webb Beech
* Walker E. Blake
* W.E. Butterworth
* James McM. Douglas
* Eden Hughes
* Edmund O. Scholefield
* Patrick J. Williams
* W. E. Butterworth
* John Kevin Dugan
* Jac
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 65 reviews
March 11, 2011
"Special Ops" could easily have been the eighth book of the series and "The Aviators" could have been skipped altogether. In fact, Special Ops picks up almost immediately where "The New Breed" left off. Jack Portet had just finished helping the Belgian paratroopers liberate his family from Stanleyville in the Congo and was being reunited with Marjorie Bellmon. However, just because one crisis in the Congo was averted it doesn't mean everything had settled down. In fact new international intrigue is just about to start with the arrival of Che Guevara from Cuba in a hope to drive the fascist, imperialist, pigs out and bring communism to the people.
Honestly this book isn't really about Guevara much either - except as a way to document his overall ineptitude at being a guerrilla leader. Instead, I think, it is more of an opportunity to introduce Argentina, of all places, to W.E.B. Griffin's fans - a locale he revisits in some of the books in his other series dealing with the O.S.S. and the German's in WW2. About 1/5 of this story takes place in Argentina presumably to show the US intelligence gathering techniques which are used to track Guevara. Overall this book didn't really have much of a purpose in relation to the initial "Brotherhood of War Series" and I found it a general letdown as a sequel to "The New Breed."
The worst part of this book was the end of it. A huge portion of the story is told via memo's between the Special Forces detachment (17) in the Congo and Stanford Felter in Washington DC. It was as if even Griffin realized he didn't have a story to tell so he just gave up on it, went to the bank, and cashed his royalty check. Some people may appreciate the memorandum style but, for me, it was off-putting. Typically, in the series, when I saw the memo format I would just gloss over it. However, in this story you can't or you'll actually miss a large part of the story.
In other words this couldn't have been a much worse book to finish the series with (though, "The Aviators" would have been an even worse final book - I'll discuss that in it's own review). I realize he left a few things hanging at the end of "The New Breed" but the series would have been better off had he just stopped there.
Honestly this book isn't really about Guevara much either - except as a way to document his overall ineptitude at being a guerrilla leader. Instead, I think, it is more of an opportunity to introduce Argentina, of all places, to W.E.B. Griffin's fans - a locale he revisits in some of the books in his other series dealing with the O.S.S. and the German's in WW2. About 1/5 of this story takes place in Argentina presumably to show the US intelligence gathering techniques which are used to track Guevara. Overall this book didn't really have much of a purpose in relation to the initial "Brotherhood of War Series" and I found it a general letdown as a sequel to "The New Breed."
The worst part of this book was the end of it. A huge portion of the story is told via memo's between the Special Forces detachment (17) in the Congo and Stanford Felter in Washington DC. It was as if even Griffin realized he didn't have a story to tell so he just gave up on it, went to the bank, and cashed his royalty check. Some people may appreciate the memorandum style but, for me, it was off-putting. Typically, in the series, when I saw the memo format I would just gloss over it. However, in this story you can't or you'll actually miss a large part of the story.
In other words this couldn't have been a much worse book to finish the series with (though, "The Aviators" would have been an even worse final book - I'll discuss that in it's own review). I realize he left a few things hanging at the end of "The New Breed" but the series would have been better off had he just stopped there.
August 18, 2012
No-one expects war novels to be great literature but one does expect them to be written to a professional standard. Anyone who buys a war novel by a professional writer and 'recognised' author of these sorts of books, such as W.E.B. Griffin, does expect two qualities to feature in the text: the first is that the book is entertaining and the second is a certain level of competence when it comes to using words. Special Ops has neither--and the reading, and paying, public certainly deserve better.
In Special Ops, the plot and the storyline are long, dragging, and convoluted without being suspenseful or interesting. This together with all the comings and goings of the characters who almost to a man and woman know each other or have been associated with each other in some way previously in their service careers, coincidentally and unbelievably, make the story slow going. (I never realised that the United States Army was such a small world.)
And if the plot and plan of the novel weren't long and drawn-out enough, Griffin adds insult to injury by writing in a tediously verbose way. He says in ten words that which could have been easily said in six, or even less. And with this Griffin throws in some very trite lines, adding a certain immaturity and silly schoolboy naivete to the book which it could well do without. Another aspect of the book's language is that Griffin sometimes uses expressions that weren't in widespread use in 1964/65 in the US, or anywhere else, but became current after the 1960s, that is during the 1970s and 80s. Some of the characters utter lines in dialogue that sound as if they came from the mouths of adolescents in the 1980s or 90s rather than from full-grown men and women in the early to mid-1960s.
In particular, the portion where he ignorantly takes the description of a Precision Approach RADAR (PAR) approach in The Aviator's and just decides to substitute ILS (Instrument Landing System) everywhere PAR was used in the original. Trouble is, PAR is a talk down approach and ILS is a self contained approach but he leaves all of the PAR talk down dialog in the story. Maybe minor to some but so frustrating to me. Why change the original when there was nothing wrong with it. Does Butterworth IV really think he knows better? Don't bother with this one, let "The Aviators" be the end of the Brotherhood of War.
Foremost, to anyone who has been in the military is the use of an incorrect phoenic alphabet. Next, anyone who has flown or has read anything about flying knows that runway numbers are derived from compass headings and therefore couldn't include a runway 37 as listed in one of the novels. Another reference to "Kennedy" airport in 1959 is just plain dumb. Idlewild was not renamed until 1963. Also in the 1959 time frame was a reference to a "Visa" card. First of all the initial visas were called BankAmericard and they didn't come along until the mid to late '60's.
I found more tedious descriptions of dinner party menus, polo matches and honeymoon arrangements than discussions of tactical/operational issues. And how many Special Forces operators on assignment are billeted in luxury suites, attended by personal servants with their wives and children vacationing by the pool?
All in all, this book is not a good book: it is too poorly written, tells a slow and not very credible story in too many words, and is simply tiresome to read. I see that others in some reviews of this book have come to these same or similar conclusions. This is unsurprising: the book's flaws are quite clear. I've given it a two-star rating, and that's being generous.
In a few years' time, I may read another of Griffin's books, just for the sake of comparison, as anyone who has written as prolifically as W.E.B. Griffin must have written a good book or books somewhere along the line (and Griffin probably has). But after just wading through some 773 pages of unremitting tedium of Special Ops (once I start a book I finish it) it will certainly be a while.
In Special Ops, the plot and the storyline are long, dragging, and convoluted without being suspenseful or interesting. This together with all the comings and goings of the characters who almost to a man and woman know each other or have been associated with each other in some way previously in their service careers, coincidentally and unbelievably, make the story slow going. (I never realised that the United States Army was such a small world.)
And if the plot and plan of the novel weren't long and drawn-out enough, Griffin adds insult to injury by writing in a tediously verbose way. He says in ten words that which could have been easily said in six, or even less. And with this Griffin throws in some very trite lines, adding a certain immaturity and silly schoolboy naivete to the book which it could well do without. Another aspect of the book's language is that Griffin sometimes uses expressions that weren't in widespread use in 1964/65 in the US, or anywhere else, but became current after the 1960s, that is during the 1970s and 80s. Some of the characters utter lines in dialogue that sound as if they came from the mouths of adolescents in the 1980s or 90s rather than from full-grown men and women in the early to mid-1960s.
In particular, the portion where he ignorantly takes the description of a Precision Approach RADAR (PAR) approach in The Aviator's and just decides to substitute ILS (Instrument Landing System) everywhere PAR was used in the original. Trouble is, PAR is a talk down approach and ILS is a self contained approach but he leaves all of the PAR talk down dialog in the story. Maybe minor to some but so frustrating to me. Why change the original when there was nothing wrong with it. Does Butterworth IV really think he knows better? Don't bother with this one, let "The Aviators" be the end of the Brotherhood of War.
Foremost, to anyone who has been in the military is the use of an incorrect phoenic alphabet. Next, anyone who has flown or has read anything about flying knows that runway numbers are derived from compass headings and therefore couldn't include a runway 37 as listed in one of the novels. Another reference to "Kennedy" airport in 1959 is just plain dumb. Idlewild was not renamed until 1963. Also in the 1959 time frame was a reference to a "Visa" card. First of all the initial visas were called BankAmericard and they didn't come along until the mid to late '60's.
I found more tedious descriptions of dinner party menus, polo matches and honeymoon arrangements than discussions of tactical/operational issues. And how many Special Forces operators on assignment are billeted in luxury suites, attended by personal servants with their wives and children vacationing by the pool?
All in all, this book is not a good book: it is too poorly written, tells a slow and not very credible story in too many words, and is simply tiresome to read. I see that others in some reviews of this book have come to these same or similar conclusions. This is unsurprising: the book's flaws are quite clear. I've given it a two-star rating, and that's being generous.
In a few years' time, I may read another of Griffin's books, just for the sake of comparison, as anyone who has written as prolifically as W.E.B. Griffin must have written a good book or books somewhere along the line (and Griffin probably has). But after just wading through some 773 pages of unremitting tedium of Special Ops (once I start a book I finish it) it will certainly be a while.
November 12, 2022
The first fifteen percent of this novel follows very closely the action that was already related in The New Breed and The Aviators and that was a very sad mistake on the part of Griffin. Many of the lines and descriptions are exactly the same and since I’ve been reading the books in quick succession, that almost deterred to me from finishing this final book in the series. I pushed on because I have an eight-book investment already, and I’m glad I did, but the first chapters tried my patience.
The plot of the story is a U.S. special operation to try and deal with Che Guevara by humiliating him and therefore breaking his effectiveness as a communist leader (as opposed to simply killing him and turning him into a martyr). The majority of the focus is on Che Guevara’s attempts to destabilize the Congo. As is usual for Griffin, most of the book is about military politics and the behind the scenes actions necessary to support a special operation in the fields. A significant subplot is the need to keep the operation secret, something endangered both by tragic accidents in the field and by self-important military officers who have a hard time accepting that there is something they don’t have a need to know.
This is the last of The Brotherhood of War series and it’s significantly longer than the other books. It’s not, unfortunately, the strongest of the novels and the ending very much has an ‘I need to wrap this up’ feel to it.
The plot of the story is a U.S. special operation to try and deal with Che Guevara by humiliating him and therefore breaking his effectiveness as a communist leader (as opposed to simply killing him and turning him into a martyr). The majority of the focus is on Che Guevara’s attempts to destabilize the Congo. As is usual for Griffin, most of the book is about military politics and the behind the scenes actions necessary to support a special operation in the fields. A significant subplot is the need to keep the operation secret, something endangered both by tragic accidents in the field and by self-important military officers who have a hard time accepting that there is something they don’t have a need to know.
This is the last of The Brotherhood of War series and it’s significantly longer than the other books. It’s not, unfortunately, the strongest of the novels and the ending very much has an ‘I need to wrap this up’ feel to it.
April 12, 2018
This review will be for the entire series and this final book as well.
This series, well I loved it. Absolutely loved it. One of the best I've read in a very long time. My favorite character was Craig Lowell. I loved how he didn't allow other characters in the books to make him feel bad on being rich. I loved how he came off as a good guy trying to help others with his fortune. I also loved how his character was flawed at times and how he had a knack for messing his life up which showed him even being rich as also human. I was not happy with how his story-line ended, and the low-life broad he hooked-up with at the end of the series, given his lovely wife Isla in the beginning of the series. What a blow on his son at the end of the series. Lowe's father-in-law from his first wife and his story-line. Yet, the author kept Craig's character true to form. His character's ending was bittersweet.
All of the characters in this series are memorable, fully fleshed out, and brought to stunning life. I won't soon forget them. Bellmon, Hanahrann, The whole family of Lowes. Stanford with his family and life as general council to the president(s), Mac and his wife Roxie and so many others. I'd love to see this series turned into a mini-series or on one of the major cable networks.
I was shocked the author added the epilogue for the main characters at the end of book six. This is why Craig's character at the end of book 9 and his epilogue didn't co-inside to me as they should have. The last scene we get with Stanford and Craig was harsh and I was left with the feeling on not knowing if they remained life long friends. I found that disappointing.
The books also show how the good ol' boy system was is in play and political politics within the Army and also other branches. The author is well versed in this time period of history and his knowledge of this time outstanding. The lingo of this time period is spot on and I feel many who didn't like these books or rated them lower just didn't get the lingo of this era. My own generations' lingo was different from my grandparents and parents (WWII gen.) I feel this is why they didn't like the books. The books are spot on with this era. Being a baby-boomer myself it was like a walk down memory lane and hearing my elders discuss: WWII, Korea, and Nam. These books give the reader an authentic look into this era of American/Military and World history and if this is for you, these are a must read. The books take us through WWII all the way to Vietnam and the beginning of special forces being developed and how that came about and U.S. Army Calvary going from horses still used in WWII to becoming Airborne and the fight between the Army and the Air Force over that. They also include characters from other foreign armies and how even the U.S. Army might have dealt with them and their officers and enlisted men/women. There was romance in the books as well and how being in the Army affected those relationships: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Marjorie Bellmon in book 9 annoyed the heck out me.
I know many from the reviews didn't like the top secret memos and Army orders for characters. Book 9 was especially bad for this and also the layout design on this was changed from previous books and not a good choice. This didn't annoy me to greatly, and gave me an idea on what these might have officially looked like. I know in the last book its basically this type of thing. But, you're a spy or doing ops, this is the way folks during that time would have communicated back then. The electronic era was just being born at this time and also special forces being formed. All in all, very much worth the read of the entire series and my time. I'm on to the authors Marine Series and already loving this one as well. This series in my opinion takes a deeper look into this era than Band of Brothers did which was about one unit. These books involve the U.S. Army as a whole and it's hierarchy.
This series, well I loved it. Absolutely loved it. One of the best I've read in a very long time. My favorite character was Craig Lowell. I loved how he didn't allow other characters in the books to make him feel bad on being rich. I loved how he came off as a good guy trying to help others with his fortune. I also loved how his character was flawed at times and how he had a knack for messing his life up which showed him even being rich as also human. I was not happy with how his story-line ended, and the low-life broad he hooked-up with at the end of the series, given his lovely wife Isla in the beginning of the series. What a blow on his son at the end of the series. Lowe's father-in-law from his first wife and his story-line. Yet, the author kept Craig's character true to form. His character's ending was bittersweet.
All of the characters in this series are memorable, fully fleshed out, and brought to stunning life. I won't soon forget them. Bellmon, Hanahrann, The whole family of Lowes. Stanford with his family and life as general council to the president(s), Mac and his wife Roxie and so many others. I'd love to see this series turned into a mini-series or on one of the major cable networks.
I was shocked the author added the epilogue for the main characters at the end of book six. This is why Craig's character at the end of book 9 and his epilogue didn't co-inside to me as they should have. The last scene we get with Stanford and Craig was harsh and I was left with the feeling on not knowing if they remained life long friends. I found that disappointing.
The books also show how the good ol' boy system was is in play and political politics within the Army and also other branches. The author is well versed in this time period of history and his knowledge of this time outstanding. The lingo of this time period is spot on and I feel many who didn't like these books or rated them lower just didn't get the lingo of this era. My own generations' lingo was different from my grandparents and parents (WWII gen.) I feel this is why they didn't like the books. The books are spot on with this era. Being a baby-boomer myself it was like a walk down memory lane and hearing my elders discuss: WWII, Korea, and Nam. These books give the reader an authentic look into this era of American/Military and World history and if this is for you, these are a must read. The books take us through WWII all the way to Vietnam and the beginning of special forces being developed and how that came about and U.S. Army Calvary going from horses still used in WWII to becoming Airborne and the fight between the Army and the Air Force over that. They also include characters from other foreign armies and how even the U.S. Army might have dealt with them and their officers and enlisted men/women. There was romance in the books as well and how being in the Army affected those relationships: the good, the bad, and the ugly. Marjorie Bellmon in book 9 annoyed the heck out me.
I know many from the reviews didn't like the top secret memos and Army orders for characters. Book 9 was especially bad for this and also the layout design on this was changed from previous books and not a good choice. This didn't annoy me to greatly, and gave me an idea on what these might have officially looked like. I know in the last book its basically this type of thing. But, you're a spy or doing ops, this is the way folks during that time would have communicated back then. The electronic era was just being born at this time and also special forces being formed. All in all, very much worth the read of the entire series and my time. I'm on to the authors Marine Series and already loving this one as well. This series in my opinion takes a deeper look into this era than Band of Brothers did which was about one unit. These books involve the U.S. Army as a whole and it's hierarchy.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 16, 2015
I gave this book a chance, I really did, but I found it so bloody boring that I just gave up after 130 pages (which is a lot more than I'd usually give most books!).
It's part of a series, apparently the last one, and in it US Special Forces serviceman Jack Portet has just finished helping Belgian paratroopers liberate his family from Stanleyville in the Congo and is being reunited with his fiance, Marjorie Bellmon. Why his family is in Stanleyville, I'm not sure if we're ever told. It's a big mystery to me. And Marjorie is the daughter of a general, which makes Jack being a sergeant a bit of a problem. However, the main plot of the book is supposed to be about the arrival of Che Guevara from Cuba in a hope of driving the fascist imperialists out and bring communism to the people of the Congo. Yep. This is taking place in 1964, btw.
Aside from mistakes made in the book that other people have pointed out, like Kennedy Airport being named such in 1959 when it wasn't named that until 1963 and Visa cards mentioned in the late '50s when they didn't come into existence for another decade, I was quite simply just bored. I never knew that everyone in the military knew everyone else. General So and So? Oh yes, I know him. His daughter is my son-in-law's best friend's neighbor. General Such and Such? Know him too. We served together 30 years ago. Different units, but I've heard of him. Geez. So many dinner parties. So many wedding and honeymoon arrangements. So many vacation arrangements. Don't these people ever freakin' DO anything? Could they be any more boring? I know this has a good rating on Goodreads, so I know I'm in the minority, but I guess I just didn't get it. I don't see what's so great about this book. Maybe if I had labored through the whole thing, I would have ended with a different perspective, but I just couldn't do it. Not recommended.
It's part of a series, apparently the last one, and in it US Special Forces serviceman Jack Portet has just finished helping Belgian paratroopers liberate his family from Stanleyville in the Congo and is being reunited with his fiance, Marjorie Bellmon. Why his family is in Stanleyville, I'm not sure if we're ever told. It's a big mystery to me. And Marjorie is the daughter of a general, which makes Jack being a sergeant a bit of a problem. However, the main plot of the book is supposed to be about the arrival of Che Guevara from Cuba in a hope of driving the fascist imperialists out and bring communism to the people of the Congo. Yep. This is taking place in 1964, btw.
Aside from mistakes made in the book that other people have pointed out, like Kennedy Airport being named such in 1959 when it wasn't named that until 1963 and Visa cards mentioned in the late '50s when they didn't come into existence for another decade, I was quite simply just bored. I never knew that everyone in the military knew everyone else. General So and So? Oh yes, I know him. His daughter is my son-in-law's best friend's neighbor. General Such and Such? Know him too. We served together 30 years ago. Different units, but I've heard of him. Geez. So many dinner parties. So many wedding and honeymoon arrangements. So many vacation arrangements. Don't these people ever freakin' DO anything? Could they be any more boring? I know this has a good rating on Goodreads, so I know I'm in the minority, but I guess I just didn't get it. I don't see what's so great about this book. Maybe if I had labored through the whole thing, I would have ended with a different perspective, but I just couldn't do it. Not recommended.
July 10, 2020
This book annoyed me. The first third or so is lifted, nearly verbatim, from previous tales in this series. They may be foreshortened some or had a few pages tacked on but a lot was lifted, word for word.
The majority of the story was good! We're back in the Congo this time disrupting and interdicting the efforts of Che Guevara to take over and turn the region communist. There's some tense action. Soldiers being faced with orders they disagree with. I found this part of the book engrossing.
The last part of this story is told almost exclusively but not entirely, in ALL CAPS military dispatches. These are scattered throughout the book and while informative are quite dry and the all caps I found annoying.
Throughout this series Griffin has woven real world events during WW2, Korea, Vietnam and finally the cold war with his own fictional characters and situations.
I was torn between two and three stars for this book. The beginning and end leave a lot to be desired but the escapades in Africa and elsewhere are entertaining.
The majority of the story was good! We're back in the Congo this time disrupting and interdicting the efforts of Che Guevara to take over and turn the region communist. There's some tense action. Soldiers being faced with orders they disagree with. I found this part of the book engrossing.
The last part of this story is told almost exclusively but not entirely, in ALL CAPS military dispatches. These are scattered throughout the book and while informative are quite dry and the all caps I found annoying.
Throughout this series Griffin has woven real world events during WW2, Korea, Vietnam and finally the cold war with his own fictional characters and situations.
I was torn between two and three stars for this book. The beginning and end leave a lot to be desired but the escapades in Africa and elsewhere are entertaining.
October 5, 2022
* Did not finish*
I spent three weeks trying to read this. I barely got a third of the way through.
Perhaps the slowest moving in this series.
I just got to the point I didn't care what happened next.
Maybe someday down the line I'll try again.
I spent three weeks trying to read this. I barely got a third of the way through.
Perhaps the slowest moving in this series.
I just got to the point I didn't care what happened next.
Maybe someday down the line I'll try again.
December 8, 2018
The ninth installment of ‘The Brotherhood of War’ series. Let’s hope it’s the last. To be blunt (and unkind), I actually wish this one had never been written. This one was a chore to get through and paled in comparison to its predecessors.
As I recall, Griffin intended to finish this series a few books ago, or at least that’s what I thought when he included a ‘Where are they now?’ coda at the end of one of these installments. Apparently, though, he had more story to tell, so the books kept coming. This was the only one of the series that I give a ‘thumbs down’ to upon reflection. Why? Several reasons. The main reason, however, is that I might just be tired of the series. There’s only so much you can read about the same group of people without feeling that enough is enough. A good analogy, for me at least, are the ‘Star Wars’ movies. No matter how well done the last couple of movies have been, I couldn’t help the feeling that I had seen all of it before. The same is true with these books.
Another factor is the length. This book is 780 pages in the paperback edition. Oy. On average, the other books were about 425-450 pages. The fact that this book was almost double in length wouldn’t be a hindrance if there had been a good story that needed more pages, but sadly, this isn’t the case. This was the most drawn out inconsequential plot of the whole series. I must confess, though, that once I got about 500 pages into it, I basically mentally checked out. In fact, I MADE myself read at least 10 pages of this book each day so I could eventually finish it. A wiser person would have simply put the book down. I wish I had such discipline.
As I’ve stated in my reviews of the other Brotherhood of War books (I’ve reviewed all on Amazon), these books don’t focus too much on the battlefield, yet give the reader a keen insight of the life of a soldier. We read of the politics, the friendships, the marriages – all through a soldier’s eyes. I would argue that a lot doesn’t happen in these books action-wise, but they’ve all been quite good. Until this one that is.
This book does have a plot, yet it’s incredibly thin and drab. It’s 1965, and Cuban Communist Guerilla leader Che Guevara is planning to go to the Belgian Congo to start an uprising in the unstable region in the hopes of bringing about a communist coup. When the American Intelligence uncovers this fact, a band of mercenaries is trained to be deployed to the jungle to stop him. Not ‘kill’ him, mind you, just ‘stop’ him. Killing him will have the opposite effect. He’ll die a martyr and will probably inspire communists to turn the notch up for their cause. So about 500 pages of this book is devoted to the training, deployment, and action towards this goal.
The story was just too boring and lost my interest. If you’re an OCD ‘completist’ such as I am, this book would probably be deemed ‘necessary’ for you, just so you can check it off a box and rest easily knowing that you’ve finished the series. For everyone else, I recommend skipping this one – even if you’ve enjoyed the rest of the books up to this point.
Such a fact makes me wish I didn’t suffer from OCD.
As I recall, Griffin intended to finish this series a few books ago, or at least that’s what I thought when he included a ‘Where are they now?’ coda at the end of one of these installments. Apparently, though, he had more story to tell, so the books kept coming. This was the only one of the series that I give a ‘thumbs down’ to upon reflection. Why? Several reasons. The main reason, however, is that I might just be tired of the series. There’s only so much you can read about the same group of people without feeling that enough is enough. A good analogy, for me at least, are the ‘Star Wars’ movies. No matter how well done the last couple of movies have been, I couldn’t help the feeling that I had seen all of it before. The same is true with these books.
Another factor is the length. This book is 780 pages in the paperback edition. Oy. On average, the other books were about 425-450 pages. The fact that this book was almost double in length wouldn’t be a hindrance if there had been a good story that needed more pages, but sadly, this isn’t the case. This was the most drawn out inconsequential plot of the whole series. I must confess, though, that once I got about 500 pages into it, I basically mentally checked out. In fact, I MADE myself read at least 10 pages of this book each day so I could eventually finish it. A wiser person would have simply put the book down. I wish I had such discipline.
As I’ve stated in my reviews of the other Brotherhood of War books (I’ve reviewed all on Amazon), these books don’t focus too much on the battlefield, yet give the reader a keen insight of the life of a soldier. We read of the politics, the friendships, the marriages – all through a soldier’s eyes. I would argue that a lot doesn’t happen in these books action-wise, but they’ve all been quite good. Until this one that is.
This book does have a plot, yet it’s incredibly thin and drab. It’s 1965, and Cuban Communist Guerilla leader Che Guevara is planning to go to the Belgian Congo to start an uprising in the unstable region in the hopes of bringing about a communist coup. When the American Intelligence uncovers this fact, a band of mercenaries is trained to be deployed to the jungle to stop him. Not ‘kill’ him, mind you, just ‘stop’ him. Killing him will have the opposite effect. He’ll die a martyr and will probably inspire communists to turn the notch up for their cause. So about 500 pages of this book is devoted to the training, deployment, and action towards this goal.
The story was just too boring and lost my interest. If you’re an OCD ‘completist’ such as I am, this book would probably be deemed ‘necessary’ for you, just so you can check it off a box and rest easily knowing that you’ve finished the series. For everyone else, I recommend skipping this one – even if you’ve enjoyed the rest of the books up to this point.
Such a fact makes me wish I didn’t suffer from OCD.
February 26, 2008
I've read all of this Griffin series, The Brotherhood of War. It follows a group of young lieutenants as they move up in the army ranks from just after WW II into the 60s. Someitmes there's a bit too much technical information for me, but the characters more than make up for it.
March 31, 2008
War Novel-during time of Cuban Revolution
May 10, 2021
Novel set in the Congo. Well written war book.
Book end of the Brotherhood of War.
Book end of the Brotherhood of War.
December 30, 2009
This series keeps you on the edge of your seat. read it years ago
Read
August 21, 2012Fantastic Read.
Read
October 9, 2012Excellent!
November 30, 2012
Stayed with it 'till the end and it was worth it.
November 5, 2017
The "Brotherhood of War" series comes to a close with this novel. Griffin's characters are as vividly and humanely drawn as ever. The plot is interesting and usually well-paced. It is clear the author has full command of his subject. I enjoyed the book overall.
However, it seemed that the drive to propel the story forward wasn't altogether there. A large portion of the end of the book left the story to unfold in secret transmissions of information between men in the field and Sanford T. Felter, a longtime character whose brilliant career as a soldier took place mostly in a non-descript office in Washington, DC, as a special counselor to several American presidents.
Even so, I have learned a lot in the months I spent reading this series. Griffin's portrayal of military men, military wives, and the often differing priorities of people in administrative, field, and training divisions was enlightening. It was also a good opportunity to observe the development of a writer's craft and the natural arc of a multifaceted story populated by many memorable characters. Griffin's reputation as one of the elite writers of military fiction is well-deserved.
However, it seemed that the drive to propel the story forward wasn't altogether there. A large portion of the end of the book left the story to unfold in secret transmissions of information between men in the field and Sanford T. Felter, a longtime character whose brilliant career as a soldier took place mostly in a non-descript office in Washington, DC, as a special counselor to several American presidents.
Even so, I have learned a lot in the months I spent reading this series. Griffin's portrayal of military men, military wives, and the often differing priorities of people in administrative, field, and training divisions was enlightening. It was also a good opportunity to observe the development of a writer's craft and the natural arc of a multifaceted story populated by many memorable characters. Griffin's reputation as one of the elite writers of military fiction is well-deserved.
March 11, 2019
Another good one. Rehashed a lot of the previous book but then when in more depth and elaborated. One of my only things is for Mia goes a little too far with some of the young wives. What secret missions directly from the president are going to give that kind of latitude with the 21-year-old wives. Throughout the whole series all the wives talk to each other. When you’re having to worry about something else that has nothing to do with your mission always put you in harms way. With that being said, loved it and made for a great reading. Love the romance towards the end with George and the CIA Cecelia Taylor. This was good where they had a woman in a hi ranking position then actually could be legally involved with the mission.
February 7, 2017
Wow wasn't quite up to the rest of the series in my opinion.
And it takes you place right after 'New Breed' in the Congo, so essentially right along side of 'The Aviators'.
It follows the Special Ops following Che Guevara through his trying to revolutionize the African main land and how the American forces kept fouling up their attempts to spread communism.
Over all it's a lot slower than the last few books, and our favorite characters are more just background. Really had nothing to do with the Brotherhood of War that we've enjoyed through the rest of the series.
And it takes you place right after 'New Breed' in the Congo, so essentially right along side of 'The Aviators'.
It follows the Special Ops following Che Guevara through his trying to revolutionize the African main land and how the American forces kept fouling up their attempts to spread communism.
Over all it's a lot slower than the last few books, and our favorite characters are more just background. Really had nothing to do with the Brotherhood of War that we've enjoyed through the rest of the series.
October 26, 2023
Not that good
Obviously, this was written by the young Butterworth. Not his old man. Meandering, wordy, and repetitive. Changing the names of characters wives or loved ones, and changing backstory info that should be canon in a series such as this is something a good read through by a competent editor would have resolved. Small, but irritating things like this have cropped up throughout the series, and it takes away from the enjoyment on a re-read.
Obviously, this was written by the young Butterworth. Not his old man. Meandering, wordy, and repetitive. Changing the names of characters wives or loved ones, and changing backstory info that should be canon in a series such as this is something a good read through by a competent editor would have resolved. Small, but irritating things like this have cropped up throughout the series, and it takes away from the enjoyment on a re-read.
October 10, 2019
Top Secret?
Too many top secret messages in this book—it seemed
like it was just filler. Also too much repetition from the previous book. I didn’t feel that this book was up to W.E.B. Griffin standards.
Too many top secret messages in this book—it seemed
like it was just filler. Also too much repetition from the previous book. I didn’t feel that this book was up to W.E.B. Griffin standards.
May 24, 2022
About what we have in Air america, about civilian pilots and Che Guevara that wanted to overtake power in Congo. And with his left wing politics he has changed whole country into communist. Like terorists do.
abandoned
July 8, 2019too sloooooooooooooooooooooooow for me
Want to read
July 19, 2020elibrary
April 1, 2021
The final installment in the “Brotherhood of War” series. This one involved war in the Congo! Same great characters from the rest of the series. Felt a too long overall, and anticlimactic at the end.
September 23, 2021
Excellent Read
Very realistic back ground to write a interesting story that could have happened in real life. I could barely put the book down .
Very realistic back ground to write a interesting story that could have happened in real life. I could barely put the book down .
July 23, 2022
I am almost out of Griffin books to read: what am I gonna do???
Read
July 25, 2022loved it
December 27, 2023
Not my favorite of the books but a lot of good history information
February 4, 2017
Don't waste your money. For the most part, this is a reprise of "The New Breed."
Displaying 1 - 30 of 65 reviews