2.5 stars
When life is hectic and I want to be engrossed in a good story, I always reach for my favorite book genre, the geopolitical thriller. This novel is the thirty-seventh book in the Jack Ryan series, which commenced with the 1984 novel “The Hunt for Red October” by the late Tom Clancy. As a reader of many Ryan novels, I have come to expect each novel to have a complex story involving several subplots that are plausible based on the current geopolitical events and that also describes in detail the latest military and covert operational technology. For those reasons and my respect for author Marc Cameron, who authored the above average 2022 Ryan novel “Red Winter,” I was excited to read this novel.
This novel explored the aftermath of the events that unfolded in the 2021 Ryan novel “Chain of Command” by Cameron. In particular, the United States government focused on learning more about and destroying the Camarilla group, a private security force consisting of former special operations officers primarily from Central and South America that were hired on behalf of nefarious groups to achieve certain political goals. The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), acting through a subgroup called the Windward Station, was sent to Venezuela to hunt down and implement the targeted killing of Joaquin Fernando Gorshkov, who was believed to be a leader of the Camarilla group and alleged to be responsible for the murder of innocent people. Through the use of micro drone technology, the Windward Station was successful in its mission only to learn later that the real leader of the Camarilla group was Joaquin’s older sister, Sabine Gorshkova. Sabine vowed revenge on the United States for killing her brother by ordering the assassination of Mary Pat Foley, the Director of National Intelligence, and her husband, Ed Foley, the former head of the CIA.
Concurrently with Sabine’s desire for revenge, Felix Moncado, the primary economic advisor to President Botero of Panama, was devising and coordinating Operation Jamaica. The goals of Operation Jamaica were to stage a coup to oust President Botero and his vice president, to declare martial law in Panama, and to have Russians, who were coordinating with Moncado, to intervene militarily to restore peace in Panama and thus vastly diminish United States influence in Panama. Moncado enlisted the assistance of Commissioner Javier Guerra of the Panama National Police and several of his subordinates to assist with plotting and implementing the coup. President Botero sensed growing unrest and turmoil in Panama so he requested that US President Jack Ryan make a brief stop to Panama City to show solidarity with President Botero while President Ryan was in route to a larger regional summit in Argentina. Botero believed President Ryan’s visit would strengthen his standing with the Panamanian people and quell domestic unrest. Does Sabine succeed in assassinating either or both Foleys? Does the desired result of Operation Jamaica happen? Does President Ryan decide to visit Panama and what are the implications of any visit?
Though most of the Ryan books are standalone that can be enjoyed without reading prior books in the series, I recommend reading “Chain of Command” prior to reading this novel. I had not read “Chain of Command” and was able to follow the events in this novel, but I think the context of “Chain of Command,” particularly how the events in that novel impacted First Lady Cathy Ryan and President Ryan, would have been helpful to understand some of the decisions made by the United States in this novel. Some reviewers note that Ryan novels authored by Tom Clancy are too long, there are too many complicated (and often unrelated) subplots, and the level of technical detail is mind numbing with much ink spilled to describe an aircraft or recent tradecraft technology. In contrast, this novel shared none of those characteristics and went too far in the opposite direction. This book had easy-to-follow subplots, little technical details, and very short chapters. For readers like me who enjoy complicated geopolitical thrillers, this novel was a disappointment considering that the complex historical relationship between the United States and countries in Central and South America could have formed the basis of a much more compelling and engaging read. There were missed opportunities to explore the history and topography of interesting places like Panama, Colombia, and Venezuela where various scenes in the novel took place. The subplots were plodding throughout and the ending wrapped up everything neatly in the last few pages. After finishing the novel, I felt as though I had just watched the 1986 movie “The Delta Force” with Chuck Norris as it had similar themes and much build up only to have an unsatisfying ending. Even author Stephen King, who is known for not having good endings to his otherwise engaging novels, would be disappointed with how this novel ended. On a positive note, The Campus (a private organization that is hired by the United States government to conduct covert operations outside of official governmental channels and is featured in many Ryan novels) hired two interesting new recruits, Steven “Chilly” Edwards and Amanda “Mandy” Cobb, both of whom either personally or through relatives had connections to prior books in the Ryan series. Hopefully, both those recruits will have larger roles in future books in this series.
Cameron is a good author, but I recommend taking a pass on this novel and reading his Ryan novel “Red Winter” instead.