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Tom Clancy's Op-Center #4
Acts of War
Syrische terroristen verwoesten een dam in Turkije, waarmee ze de drinkwatervoorziening in hun eigen vaderland in gevaar brengen. Dit lijkt een waanzinnige actie, maar is feitelijk niets anders dan de eerste stap in een weloverwogen plan: het uitlokken van totale oorlog in het Midden-Oosten.
Maar wat de terroristen niet weten, is dat in Griekenland sinds kort een Regional Op-Center actief is. Dit ROC is een mobiele versie van het permanente crisismanagementscentrum en een immer waakzame en onfeilbare bron van informatie. Het heeft precies in de gaten wat de Syrische rebellen in hun schild voeren.
Maar de terroristen hebben toch meer in hun mars dan verwacht. Ook zij hebben hun methoden om geheime informatie te bemachtigen. En het ROC - dit nieuwste speeltje van de VS - is een niet te versmaden hoofdprijs...
Maar wat de terroristen niet weten, is dat in Griekenland sinds kort een Regional Op-Center actief is. Dit ROC is een mobiele versie van het permanente crisismanagementscentrum en een immer waakzame en onfeilbare bron van informatie. Het heeft precies in de gaten wat de Syrische rebellen in hun schild voeren.
Maar de terroristen hebben toch meer in hun mars dan verwacht. Ook zij hebben hun methoden om geheime informatie te bemachtigen. En het ROC - dit nieuwste speeltje van de VS - is een niet te versmaden hoofdprijs...
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First published March 28, 1997
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews
February 22, 2013
As there are no negative reviews so far, I'll give my reasons for disliking the book (spoiler warning).
1) The countless bad and downright baffling decisions made by supposedly intelligent characters. Amongst others;
Exhibit A. When captured, General Rodgers calls the ROC to his location, handing terrorists an immensely valuable piece of military hardware. He does manage to give a covert warning to his team that the terrorists will try to ambush and capture the ROC, so why doesn't he give a covert warning for his team to evacuate/hide instead ? He's captured in friendly territory, his captors are not motorized (one motorcycle for 3 terrorist and 2 hostages) and there is a team nearby that can track you effortlessly using satellite. He's going to get rescued, as long as he doesn't let that surveillance equipment be risked in a half-baked rescue attempt.
Exhibit B. The Israeli soldier when captured. He knows the following; The Kurds have highly sophisticated surveillance equipment. The Kurds know someone was trying to send a message from close to their cave. The Kurds managed to track him effortlessly, even without visual contact. It's a safe assumption that they know he tried to send that message and escape them, at the very least they do not trust him. If, in such a case, a terrorist gives him a gun and tells him to go and shoot hostages, there is a rather big chance that this is a test and there is something wrong with the gun. Don't use it to try and shoot terrorists.
Exhibit C. Actually, nothing was wrong with the gun, it was only missing it's first bullet. (So the gun wouldn't obviously weigh less.) Let's recap again. You steal an immensely valuable piece of equipment and take 6 Americans hostage, there is a non-trivial chance the USA will be coming to get that back. You then intercept a message being sent out from near you base of operations. You track the person sending that message as he tries to escape using infrared and capture him (he pretends to be a Kurdish sympathizer). YOU THEN GIVE HIM A FUNCTIONING, LOADED GUN TO SEE IF HE BETRAYS YOU! You are saved by the fact he only tries to shoot you once.
2) Deus-Ex-Machinas. I count at least 3 times when one of the good guys is seconds from being shot when the cavalry arrives.
3) This might go under point 1), but there is a huge plothole where the terrorists first learn that the man they captured is a general (he was pretending to be an archaeologist) and are later surprised that the van the general's team is travelling in (which is filled to the brim with computers) is in fact not a mobile archaeologist's office, but a mobile surveillance post. It seems the writer just forgot that the terrorists already knew that they had captured soldiers.
1) The countless bad and downright baffling decisions made by supposedly intelligent characters. Amongst others;
Exhibit A. When captured, General Rodgers calls the ROC to his location, handing terrorists an immensely valuable piece of military hardware. He does manage to give a covert warning to his team that the terrorists will try to ambush and capture the ROC, so why doesn't he give a covert warning for his team to evacuate/hide instead ? He's captured in friendly territory, his captors are not motorized (one motorcycle for 3 terrorist and 2 hostages) and there is a team nearby that can track you effortlessly using satellite. He's going to get rescued, as long as he doesn't let that surveillance equipment be risked in a half-baked rescue attempt.
Exhibit B. The Israeli soldier when captured. He knows the following; The Kurds have highly sophisticated surveillance equipment. The Kurds know someone was trying to send a message from close to their cave. The Kurds managed to track him effortlessly, even without visual contact. It's a safe assumption that they know he tried to send that message and escape them, at the very least they do not trust him. If, in such a case, a terrorist gives him a gun and tells him to go and shoot hostages, there is a rather big chance that this is a test and there is something wrong with the gun. Don't use it to try and shoot terrorists.
Exhibit C. Actually, nothing was wrong with the gun, it was only missing it's first bullet. (So the gun wouldn't obviously weigh less.) Let's recap again. You steal an immensely valuable piece of equipment and take 6 Americans hostage, there is a non-trivial chance the USA will be coming to get that back. You then intercept a message being sent out from near you base of operations. You track the person sending that message as he tries to escape using infrared and capture him (he pretends to be a Kurdish sympathizer). YOU THEN GIVE HIM A FUNCTIONING, LOADED GUN TO SEE IF HE BETRAYS YOU! You are saved by the fact he only tries to shoot you once.
2) Deus-Ex-Machinas. I count at least 3 times when one of the good guys is seconds from being shot when the cavalry arrives.
3) This might go under point 1), but there is a huge plothole where the terrorists first learn that the man they captured is a general (he was pretending to be an archaeologist) and are later surprised that the van the general's team is travelling in (which is filled to the brim with computers) is in fact not a mobile archaeologist's office, but a mobile surveillance post. It seems the writer just forgot that the terrorists already knew that they had captured soldiers.
May 9, 2018
Decades of repression by several nations has led to a unprecedented unification of militants looking to create a nation for the Kurds and their plan is so audacious that it could result in a war ranging from the Arabian Sea into Eastern Europe and possibly the fracturing of NATO, Op-Center must manage to contain this crisis even as members of their own team are held hostage. Written by Jeff Rovin, but named for Tom Clancy, Acts of War is the fourth book of the Op-Center series which sees a well-planned attack by Kurdish militants send Turkey and Syria on the verge of war as the action spans from Eastern Turkey to the streets of Damascus and the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon.
A four-man team of Syrian Kurds cross into Turkey, attack the Turkish guards then are able to commander a military helicopter that they use to destroy the Ataturk Dam. Nearby General Mike Rodgers heads a small team testing the first Regional Op-Center—ROC—that will allow for better crisis management, deciding to scout the attack on the Dam with a Turkish liaison officer, they are captured by three of the Kurds which leads to the capture of the ROC when they attempt to rescue the duo. Meanwhile the strike of the Dam has cause Turkey to mobilize it’s forces south to the Syrian border, the Syrian mobilize theirs to the north, Iraq begins making moves towards Kuwait, and other nations begin stepping up their military including Greece which might ally itself with Syria. With a possible general war in the Middle East about to break out the President sends Op-Center head Paul Hood to Damascus to negotiate with Syrian President. Hood sends Op-Center’s military team, Striker, to Israel so as to set up a rescue of the capture ROC before the President decides to destroy it and the hostages in a missile strike before the Kurds can use US intelligence for the rest of their plan, including a coordinated attack in the heat of Damascus which puts Hood in the crossfire. Through both luck and the calling in of various favors around the region, Op-Center is able to resolve the crisis before it escalates into general war but not without a price.
Released in 1997, Acts of War used the volatile political landscape of that time—and save the good relationship between Israel and Turkey of now—as the setting for this action thriller. Unfortunately a lot of the book comes down to the stupidity of General Mike Rodgers’ essentially boyish need to be a cowboy instead of an actual military officer and then his actions against the Kurds while being a hostage the endangered all the other hostages before murdering a Kurd who tortured him after he had been captured by Striker. The positives of the book such as the well thought out plan of the Kurdish militants to create a general war, the Israeli spy of Druze descent who scouts the Bekaa Valley and helping the now Brett August lead Striker team’s action in combat, and the analysis the various nightmare scenarios of a general war in the Middle East are all outweighed by everything dealing with Rodgers, including a Presidential pardon for killing said Kurd with no ramifications like say retiring, negates everything.
Acts of War, like several previous Op-Center books, has an intriguing plot idea that is undermined by poor writing though amazingly for different reasons than previous book. Yet this book is a rather frustrating and somewhat disappointing read, more so than Mirror Image, because it shows Jeff Rovin is knowingly doing bad writing on an element in one book when he’s showed before or shows later that he knows how to write good on that same element.
A four-man team of Syrian Kurds cross into Turkey, attack the Turkish guards then are able to commander a military helicopter that they use to destroy the Ataturk Dam. Nearby General Mike Rodgers heads a small team testing the first Regional Op-Center—ROC—that will allow for better crisis management, deciding to scout the attack on the Dam with a Turkish liaison officer, they are captured by three of the Kurds which leads to the capture of the ROC when they attempt to rescue the duo. Meanwhile the strike of the Dam has cause Turkey to mobilize it’s forces south to the Syrian border, the Syrian mobilize theirs to the north, Iraq begins making moves towards Kuwait, and other nations begin stepping up their military including Greece which might ally itself with Syria. With a possible general war in the Middle East about to break out the President sends Op-Center head Paul Hood to Damascus to negotiate with Syrian President. Hood sends Op-Center’s military team, Striker, to Israel so as to set up a rescue of the capture ROC before the President decides to destroy it and the hostages in a missile strike before the Kurds can use US intelligence for the rest of their plan, including a coordinated attack in the heat of Damascus which puts Hood in the crossfire. Through both luck and the calling in of various favors around the region, Op-Center is able to resolve the crisis before it escalates into general war but not without a price.
Released in 1997, Acts of War used the volatile political landscape of that time—and save the good relationship between Israel and Turkey of now—as the setting for this action thriller. Unfortunately a lot of the book comes down to the stupidity of General Mike Rodgers’ essentially boyish need to be a cowboy instead of an actual military officer and then his actions against the Kurds while being a hostage the endangered all the other hostages before murdering a Kurd who tortured him after he had been captured by Striker. The positives of the book such as the well thought out plan of the Kurdish militants to create a general war, the Israeli spy of Druze descent who scouts the Bekaa Valley and helping the now Brett August lead Striker team’s action in combat, and the analysis the various nightmare scenarios of a general war in the Middle East are all outweighed by everything dealing with Rodgers, including a Presidential pardon for killing said Kurd with no ramifications like say retiring, negates everything.
Acts of War, like several previous Op-Center books, has an intriguing plot idea that is undermined by poor writing though amazingly for different reasons than previous book. Yet this book is a rather frustrating and somewhat disappointing read, more so than Mirror Image, because it shows Jeff Rovin is knowingly doing bad writing on an element in one book when he’s showed before or shows later that he knows how to write good on that same element.
October 17, 2018
now i am hooked. This was such a great, easy and creative book. i was hooked after the first page.
The characters were easy to fall in love with and follow, along with the story. the author made the mental visions so easy and vivid of the surroundings and the characters actions felt so real.
i would highly recommend this author and this book.
The characters were easy to fall in love with and follow, along with the story. the author made the mental visions so easy and vivid of the surroundings and the characters actions felt so real.
i would highly recommend this author and this book.
March 16, 2012
Yet another great installment to the Op-Center Series. I really enjoyed this entire series, This book was another page turner.
December 13, 2013
Another fun and great story in the Op-Center Series ... Highly recommend this series if you have not already read it. If you have read it again!
September 2, 2021
Picking up the series again after many years of not having a library. Admittingly, I don't remember anything from the previous three works, I just know I read it. But I'm just continue like nothing happened.
Syrian Kurds band together to enact a terror attack against Turkey by blowing up a dam on the Euphrates River, a plan that would surely stop the drought in Syria. Nearby, Op-Center is testing a new piece of intelligence technology called the Regional Op-Center (ROC), a van full of surveillance equipment. After hearing word of the dam bombing, they move in to investigate and ultimately fall into the hands of the terrorists. With American hostages, a highly technological vehicle in the hands of terrorists, a dam blown up by an unknown culprit, and various Middle Eastern countries shuffling troops across the country, if the perpetrators aren't caught soon, it could become a full blown war.
I don't have much comment pertaining to the book other than it's your standard militaristic novel. I have nothing bad to say about it, but not much that makes it stand out from others I've read. What kept this from being 5 stars was the climax. I do not understand why the USS Pittsburgh, who knew very well a Striker team was en route to capture the ROC, would fire a Tomahawk warhead at their men. I understand it's for just in case the Striker team couldn't capture the ROC and if they did, you'd just abort the missile but the Striker team is not going to back off. So why blow them up while they're in the middle of their mission? To me, that's a very irresponsible move to do against your own men. And for that, a star is dropped.
Syrian Kurds band together to enact a terror attack against Turkey by blowing up a dam on the Euphrates River, a plan that would surely stop the drought in Syria. Nearby, Op-Center is testing a new piece of intelligence technology called the Regional Op-Center (ROC), a van full of surveillance equipment. After hearing word of the dam bombing, they move in to investigate and ultimately fall into the hands of the terrorists. With American hostages, a highly technological vehicle in the hands of terrorists, a dam blown up by an unknown culprit, and various Middle Eastern countries shuffling troops across the country, if the perpetrators aren't caught soon, it could become a full blown war.
I don't have much comment pertaining to the book other than it's your standard militaristic novel. I have nothing bad to say about it, but not much that makes it stand out from others I've read. What kept this from being 5 stars was the climax. I do not understand why the USS Pittsburgh, who knew very well a Striker team was en route to capture the ROC, would fire a Tomahawk warhead at their men. I understand it's for just in case the Striker team couldn't capture the ROC and if they did, you'd just abort the missile but the Striker team is not going to back off. So why blow them up while they're in the middle of their mission? To me, that's a very irresponsible move to do against your own men. And for that, a star is dropped.
July 1, 2024
BORING! I usually love Tom Clancy novels, but this one has many chapters that are boring. NO one wants to read an political action thriller with people sitting around trying to decide what to do.
While the author writes authoritatively on the subjects presented as part of the plot, and writes well, the story gets bogged down in boring meetings of senior staff deciding on policy in a crisis situation. Some limited policy talk is interesting, but nobody wants to read about people attending a policy meeting that lasts an entire chapter, let alone multiple chapters interspersed. And NO ONE CARES about the minutiae of the rules of engagement for U.S. citizens and functionaries, which are laboriously read by one character while another of the characters is driving to rescue those that have been taken hostage.
While the author writes authoritatively on the subjects presented as part of the plot, and writes well, the story gets bogged down in boring meetings of senior staff deciding on policy in a crisis situation. Some limited policy talk is interesting, but nobody wants to read about people attending a policy meeting that lasts an entire chapter, let alone multiple chapters interspersed. And NO ONE CARES about the minutiae of the rules of engagement for U.S. citizens and functionaries, which are laboriously read by one character while another of the characters is driving to rescue those that have been taken hostage.
June 28, 2023
This book is very hard for me to read, because:
One - It's about torture, either: events leading to people people getting captured and tortured; people being threatened with torture; people dealing about other people being threatened with torture; people being tortured; people watching and reacting to other people being tortured; people worrying that other people might be tortured but were helpless to really do anything about it, etc.
Two - The continuous missteps by the Americans and the continuous lucky breaks on the terrorists
One - It's about torture, either: events leading to people people getting captured and tortured; people being threatened with torture; people dealing about other people being threatened with torture; people being tortured; people watching and reacting to other people being tortured; people worrying that other people might be tortured but were helpless to really do anything about it, etc.
Two - The continuous missteps by the Americans and the continuous lucky breaks on the terrorists
March 31, 2023
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1 star = Did not finish / did not like
2 stars = Had trouble keeping attention to finish
3 stars = Good enjoyable book. A great way to spend my time.
4 stars = Couldn't set the book down. Engaging. Great Book.
Will likely reread when more of the series is released.
5 stars = (4 stars) plus such a good book I will re-read it periodically.
___________________________________________
1 star = Did not finish / did not like
2 stars = Had trouble keeping attention to finish
3 stars = Good enjoyable book. A great way to spend my time.
4 stars = Couldn't set the book down. Engaging. Great Book.
Will likely reread when more of the series is released.
5 stars = (4 stars) plus such a good book I will re-read it periodically.
___________________________________________
February 11, 2020
CC1
What an excellent series. The way these books reflect what is happening today is unreal. But Mike Rogers did the right thing. His resolve to sacrifice himself for the war on terror was just what we need today. Unfortunately we don't have the leadership for it. Great plot excellent reading truly 5 stars plus series. Thanks, Carl Clause
What an excellent series. The way these books reflect what is happening today is unreal. But Mike Rogers did the right thing. His resolve to sacrifice himself for the war on terror was just what we need today. Unfortunately we don't have the leadership for it. Great plot excellent reading truly 5 stars plus series. Thanks, Carl Clause
June 5, 2020
Another Tom Clancy classic , however i started this book thinking it would actually discus what constitutes as an act of war in the real world as that was the impression i got from the summary and the cover(i am a moron :p ) .but i still liked the story and the plot .and got over my disappointment fast .
i really don't have much to say except well yeah its another Tom Clancy novel.
i really don't have much to say except well yeah its another Tom Clancy novel.
July 20, 2023
Zeer spannend. Vlot geschreven. Het wisselen van standpunt vermoeit soms. Qua plot zijn er enkele zwakke punten die de geloofwaardigheid ondermijnen. Hoe kunnen 3 terroristen zomaar een hoogwaardig uiterst beveiligd operatiecentrum in handen krijgen? Gewoon door een kledingstuk in de uitlaat te proppen ?
April 12, 2024
More pretty good stuff, but it’s falling into a trap of trying to do too much with too many characters. I didn’t get the connection between Hood’s (the main character) plot and the group of hostages (the much better story). I’m also a little bored of these kinds of stories (middle eastern terrorist baddies). I hope the next book gives us something else!
November 10, 2024
Best of the Op-Center books so far but not a great, or fun read. The plot was slow, the overall idea was good but the continued minutiae of the dialogue and weapons/surrondings/clothing/ topography/etc was just draining. The ending did FINALLY set the stage for some ACTION. I guess I will read book 5 to see if that is actually the case. *fingers crossed*
July 16, 2017
Gets too complicated when trying to accurately describe middle eastern policies, which is a huge part of the book.
But overall still has the familiar, Op-Center feel, with nuggets of wisdom in form of quotes and actions by it's main protagonists, Hood and Rodgers.
But overall still has the familiar, Op-Center feel, with nuggets of wisdom in form of quotes and actions by it's main protagonists, Hood and Rodgers.
January 16, 2020
Como siempre Tom Clancy, no defrauda en el manejo de los temas de espionaje y contraespionaje. Sus descripciones de lugar y personajes son certeras, la trama es compleja porque no se deja a ningún personaje sin desarrollar en sus antecedentes y perfil. Sólida e interesante.
June 23, 2022
I can't believe Clancey had anything to do with this book. Its characters were stupid and the government was stupid. If this is what our intelligence community is like then heaven help us. Of course, it might explain 9/11.
June 25, 2017
Another one down. A little different than some of the others with Mike Rodgers' story arc. Should be interesting to see how he deals with the repercussions in the next one.
December 25, 2018
Me gustó mucho
February 16, 2019
Not the best book in the series, but not terrible.
May 14, 2019
Great story but narration sucked. Monotone voice made it painful to get through.
November 8, 2019
pretty exciting book. this was the first book that I read of the Op Center series, but I was able to keep up. I probably would have enjoyed it more if I had read 1-3 first, though.
January 25, 2020
Read this in paperback. Another great book in the saga of Op Center.
April 4, 2020
Slow start, quick ending. Still not entirely sure what I thought if this book.
Want to read
July 19, 2020elibrary
September 30, 2020
Not my favorite of this series. Still an interesting book and worth reading if you intend to read the whole series. Full review here: https://smolinskiblog.co/2020/09/30/o...
October 21, 2020
Good read
Ha f a Good experience. Thought it a little to detailed describing so e events and characters. I would recommend it if you enjoy political and military action.
Ha f a Good experience. Thought it a little to detailed describing so e events and characters. I would recommend it if you enjoy political and military action.
April 24, 2021
International intelligence and spies. Who doesn't like this kind of stuff?
May 1, 2021
A great adventure.
June 21, 2021
Clancy is the best at the Spy Capers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews