Enemy Contact

Jack Ryan, Jr. #12

by Mike Maden

Jack Ryan, Jr.’s race to stop an international criminal conspiracy is intertwined with the fate of an old friend in this blistering entry in the #1 New York Times bestselling series.The CIA's deepest secrets are being given away for a larger agenda that will undermine the entire Western intelligence community. Director of National Intelligence Mary Pat Foley wants it stopped but doesn't know who, how or why.Jack Ryan, Jr., is dispatched to Poland on a different mission. The clues are thin, and the sketchy trail dead ends in a harrowing fight from which he barely escapes with his life.If that's not bad enough, Jack gets more tragic news. An old friend, who's dying from cancer, has one final request for Jack. It seems simple enough, but before it's done, Jack will find himself alone, his life hanging by a thread. If he survives, he'll be one step closer to finding the shadowy figure behind the CIA leak and its true purpose, but in the process, he'll challenge the world's most dangerous criminal syndicate with devastating consequences.

Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Audiobook, Mystery, Action, Adventure, Mystery Thriller

478 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 11, 2019

About the author

I grew up working in the canneries, feed mills and slaughterhouses of California’s San Joaquin Valley. A lifelong fascination with history and warfare ultimately lead to a Ph.D. in political science focused on conflict and technology in international relations. Like millions of others, I first became a Tom Clancy fan after reading The Hunt for Red October, and began my published fiction career in the same techno-thriller genre, starting with DRONE and the sequels, BLUE WARRIOR, DRONE COMMAND and DRONE THREAT. I’m honored to be joining “The Campus” as a writer in Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan, Jr., series.

Reviews

[Nick Brett · Rating 1 out of 5]

We now have more (16) “Tom Clancy” books written by other authors than we did the man himself (13). Towards the end of the author’s own works there was a real dip in quality, his last three were pretty awful. Since his sad demise, Mark Greaney rescued the franchise for a while but now it has slipped back as various authors try to replicate a formula, not often successfully.
Here it is Mike Madden’s turn to make a hash of it. It starts out okay with a blend of violent world events and President Ryan having issues with a US Senator who is undermining a key policy. Ryan sends his secret organisation The Campus to look into things. Jack Ryan Jr is sent to Poland and gets into all sorts of trouble before all the plot streams eventually bump into each-other in a way that is just not credible.
As with previous books, despite him using his real name, nobody associates Ryan jr with Ryan Sr, not even to comment on the similarity in the names. No of course not.
Jr kind of blunders around Poland eating nice meals and learning lots about the history of Poland, it a pretty dull big chunk of the book to be honest. The author also treats us to his political views through the voices of his characters, “what is the point of NATO”, “why should the US fund everything”, “the EU and the Euro doesn’t really work” and so on. Again, doesn’t work.
There is a bit towards the end of the book (Minor spoilers here) where Jr climbs a mountain in the Peruvian Andes on a side quest to fill a promise to someone. But guess what? Not only does he climb up with a pair of dress shoes on and no all-weather gear, but at the top he finds a familiar bad guy and a link to the mission he was on. How lucky was that? Just not credible.
All in all a pretty poor entry to a series that is hardly worth the effort anymore.

[Tim · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pretty decent story in the manner of Tom Clancy, while being interesting throughout. 7 of 10 stars

[Mike Reinking · Rating 2 out of 5]

First two thirds of the book were entertaining but muddled. And if I wanted to know all about Polish history, I would read a specific Polish history book. Way too much verbiage on stuff that didn’t move the story forward. The conclusion was an absolute train wreck. I feel cheated of the time I have spent reading this book. Jack Jr. is an idiot who gets lots of people killed in these books. Aaarrgh!

[Opa · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really feel cheated by this Clancy book written by Mike Maden. It was like he phoned it in from a travel agency in Poland. It wasn't interesting. It wasn't clever. It was totally incongruous. The storyline bounced around as some amateur writer might submit for his first novel. All the plots then come magically together in the last 10 pages. In one scene Maden leaves his hero Jack Ryan Jr. floating alone helplessly in the freezing ocean describing him losing his will to live and then immediately ends the chapter. The reader has to wait for two more chapter of insignificant action in other parts of the world before he tells you that a boat magically appeared and saved our hero. The Clancy family should be ashamed for letting Maden ruin the Clancy legacy. The publisher should be embarrassed.

[Cynthia · Rating 1 out of 5]

It was after I started to read this book, that I decided to check my comments in regards this author's "take" on the Ryan series. I wish I had checked before I started! What a waste of time! Unless Clancy's estate decides to hire another author, I am through with this series.

Maden is a horrible writer. Case in point: the story-line regarding his friend who has cancer and makes a dying request of Ryan, Jr., to sprinkle his ashes on a mountain in Peru!!!! With friends like that, how needs enemies?

And, toward the end of the book, he describes a computer tech as having a "baby bump." Oh, please, spare me from writers such as this. By the way, the "baby bump" was immaterial to the story. Holy Crap!

I think Ryan, Jr. is a disaster, and should be fired from the Campus. He is incredibly incompetent.

[Rusty Burlingame · Rating 1 out of 5]

The Tom Clancy books written by Marc Cameron and Mark Greaney have been so good that I have read their own series of books. The Mike Maden books, however, have been terrible.
His previous Clancy book, Point of Impact, read like a book of travels around Bosnia. This one reads like travels around Poland. Nothing of interest happens for the first 300 pages of this 450 page book. Characters drive around the major cities of Poland, walk around, eat Polish food, and talk about Poland and Polish history. Then the book pulls up stakes abruptly and switches to something completely unrelated.
Tremendously disappointing.

[Paul Vandenberghe · Rating 2 out of 5]

Way too scattered, with massive coincidences that carry no credibility. Also, what’s the deal with the strange obsession with food; it felt at times like a yelp review.

[Darth Dragonetti · Rating 3 out of 5]

Tom Clancy Enemy Contact is a 2019 publication, and is the fifth book in the Jack Ryan Jr. series. It was penned by author Mike Maden.

The meandering plot of Enemy Contact begins with a bang, but quickly becomes convoluted. Jack Jr. visits a friend on his deathbed, who has a personal request for Jack. Jack makes plans to honor his friend's request, but is sidetracked by a mission from Gerry Hendley. President Jack Ryan Sr. has a hinky feeling about a powerful U.S. Senator who has torpedoed his plan to build a U.S. military base in Poland. Jack Sr. thinks the Senator may be crooked, but with no concrete evidence, he turns to Hendley and the Campus for assistance. Jack Jr is then sent to Poland in an effort to dig up more information about the Senator. Meanwhile, a mysterious agent is selling U.S. intelligence to the highest bidder in what could be the largest breach of the intelligence community to date. Will Jack Jr. be able to unravel the mysteries and survive the shadowy agents who aim to keep him from his objectives?

The plot of Enemy Contact is extremely relevant in today's world of technology. The ideas put forth about cloud servers and other cutting edge pieces of technology are very compelling; in fact, I recently saw a news article about this very subject. However, the plot became too murky for me to understand the finer details of what was going on. While the attempt at creating a Clancy-esque plot was noble, it came across as muddy and convoluted rather than as intricate. Also, once again, we get the Rick Steves treatment from Mike Maden. Jack's trip to Poland turns into a historical sight-seeing lesson, with side trips to great restaurants, and visits to places that don't pan out, and merely take up space on a page. Oh, and I almost forgot! Jack's tour guide is another attractive woman who--surprise!!--seems romantically interested in Jack. While I could excuse these plot devices in the last two Maden novels, at this point it's getting ridiculous. I was also left shaking my head at some absurd coincidences in the story, particularly on Jack's journey to fulfil his friend's request.

While the plot of Enemy Contact leaves much to be desired, its characterization (particularly as it relates to Jack Jr.) is more solid. Enemy Contact, more than any other novel, really bares Jack's soul to the reader. In previous novels, Jack is able to slough off some of the rough things that have happened to him. But in this novel, Mike Maden takes Jack to some very dark places, and it's powerful to see the character developed through those traumatic experiences. I was hoping Jack's relationship with Liliana's family might turn into something, but alas, it is just one more plot device lost in the morass of the rest of the novel. Other than Jack, the novel introduces too many minor characters, adding to the confusion of the plot. I also don't know that having a weird transgender character adds much to the story, though the character was minor.

I do appreciate the level of technical detail and research that went into the novel. That has always been a hallmark of the series, and Mike Maden continues to carry that mantle well.

The Tom Clancy franchise is close to loosing one of its biggest fans. I've stayed with the series for a long time, despite some of the warts that have been published over the years. However, I don't know how much longer I'll continue to put money down for absurd plots that belong in a Rick Steves travel guide. Putnam can afford the best writers in the biz, so it's time they get their butts in gear and get us great Clancy novels again. As for Enemy Contact, it doesn't come recommended. Avoid unless you are a serious Jack Jr. devotee, and even then you might think twice before picking it up.

[J.P. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I rarely write long reviews but will make an exception here. This book is truly awful - poorly conceived, poorly executed and poorly written.

“He couldn’t believe his luck.” A door was magically open and or intrepid intelligence agent didn’t think twice. Maden continued to have Jack acting like a lovesick teen, not a trained agent. And even if Jack’s vibe is that he’s an analyst first, agent second, he is better than this - when other writers are handling it.

Maden awakens echoes of past Clancy books for all the wrong reasons. His level of detail is like Clancy over describing military equipment in Debt of Honor, but to no purpose. He’s obviously trying to cover a lack of story with details to fill a word count. Jack’s work at the end of the book is like the original John Clark story in Without Remorse but, again, poorly written and executed. There’s no sense to anything Maden has Jack do.

I’ve debated whether to touch on the political overtones ... here’s the thing. Jack Ryan Sr. was a Reagan-era hero in a time when the good and bad guys were remarkable clear. When the USSR crumbled, Clancy adapted in Red Rabbit and China started coming into play. With multiple authors now, no one seems able to decide what the greatest threat is.

Having said that, Maden adds a mishmash of largely erroneous or irrelevant talking points that are no more true for the prevalence. Just because Trump doesn’t understand NATO funding doesn’t mean the same false information should be repeated here. His fascination and misunderstanding of trade deficits also appears. Then there is the basic idea that you only can be a patriot if your a strict nationalist.

The entire Clancy series has been based on America’s place in the world and Maden actively shreds the notion of that importance even while trying to write about it. It’s absolutely nonsensical.

Last note, equally nonsensical ... how in the hell do all these people meet someone named Jack Ryan and never make the connection to the president. Even if his face weren’t everywhere, if someone introduced themselves to you as Donald Trump (to be contemporary), you wouldn’t have a question?

This book leaves me at a crossroads. I can skip Maden’s and risk losing the continuity such that it is (his own continuity with the story established with other writers is loose at best) or save myself the aggravation of his increasingly poor takes on the Jack Ryan universe.

[Adam · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is bad on so many levels. JRJ is not a likeable protagonist, since his decision making at every level is so poor. This book is mostly a rambling lesson in Polish history and food, and the plot makes no sense. JRJ randomly, on a mountaintop in Peru, finds the brother of his enemy???? The NSA is completely incompetent, and not one, but two hackers have complete access to their intelligence network. I have read all of the Clancy books, and this one is the worst so far.

[Jamie Bowen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hmmm where do I start? First the plot. A number of seemingly random events take place across the world, but what links them is the intelligence needed to pull off the events, it seems impossible and very worrying for Western governments. Back in Washington, President Jack Ryan’s plans get scuppered when a senator who promised support turns and suddenly becomes a rival for the top job. The President senses something is wrong and asks the Campus to investigate, which means Jack Ryan Jr gets dispatched to Poland.

This is a solo Jack Ryan Jr novel, which Mike Maden seems to write, as before these don’t work and for me this is the worst novel in the Jack Ryan / Campus novels. They seem to want to turn Jack Ryan Jr into some James Bond character, where he always falls in love, he’s always trying to survive on his own, but unlike Bond he seems to be completely incompetent and how he survives is incomprehensible. And why does no one seem to link him that he’s the son of the President of the United States. It doesn’t feel right, and these stories are making a right mess of the character.

The Campus novels work best when all the cast of characters are involved, on rare occasions solo novels have been good but on the whole they are a waste of time, no character development just seemingly filler books before a Christmas big story blockbuster.

This book felt very preachy in terms of its politics as well, touching on Brexit, NATO and Climate Change Denial. The plot itself promised so much but having created it, the book just becomes obsessed with Jack Ryan Jr and his bungling mission. The finale yet again seems to come so quick, I had to go back and read it again to see if I missed something. Very unsatisfactory.

I’ve bought all the Jack Ryan Universe novels, they used to be the best spy novels around but sadly the series has been getting worse recently. I’ve reviewed my recent ratings for the last 4 books and the highest has been 3 stars. I’m almost at the point now of giving up this series, but having invested so much time in these characters I live in hope that the next novel will be a good one.

[Ryan Mac · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay, I mean it this time--I'm done! The Jack Ryan Jr. books are just not that good. This one had some very uneven pacing with a huge detour covering Polish history and food. The setup for the story wasn't bad but pacing and some ridiculous actions taken by Jack made it hard to finish this one. And the ending, really? Okay, I'm done. I'll give the Campus books another try but solo Jack is a hard pass.

[Jim McCulloch · Rating 2 out of 5]

The rear cover blub from New York Journal of Books says, "Takes off like a Navy fighter shot off a catapult." I found it to be more like an old and overweight Piper Cub struggling to take off from a high altitude airport and then barely staying in the air for most of its flight.

The first 400 pages are essentially a boring, meandering travel log of Poland. Rather hard to stay with because of the confusing plot and general boredom. Finally, a page of action.

It then shifts to South America for a personal matter Jack Jr. felt he needed to take care of. To this point and up until nearly page 500, Jack Jr. reminds me of a snowflake computer game millennial action figure. Then he miraculously turns into something that makes Rambo look like a sissy. Just as far fetched, also.

Despite my overall disappointment, I stuck with it to the end if for no other reason than to see how it would end.

[Ryan Hillis · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not Impressed.

[Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

So we meet again the Iron Syndicate, a group of organized crime responsible for many global misdeeds. Jack Jr. spends most of this book as a glorified tourist, sampling Poland's various culinary delights. Jack Sr. is still POTUS; hasn't he been president for a really, really long time??!! I can't really divulge any more info without giving away key elements of the book. If you are reading the series, then by all means, pick this one up. Overall, a worthy effort.

[Jeroen · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Jack Ryan/Jack Ryan jr. series has been hit and mis, especially since the departure of Mark Greaney. The first few books were simpler than what you'd expect from Tom Clancy but the complexity and scope grew when the new characters of the Campus were better established. These days the books alternate between Jack Ryan jr solo adventures and missions for the full Campus. This book falls into the former category and suffers for it, as have previous solo adventures. Jack Ryan jr clearly has not learned enough to go on solo missions, and the fact that he is still alive is only due to luck and coincidence.
This book is full of plot holes and unnecessary exposition. There are two plot strands, both of which had great potential to set-up adversaries for the future, but the book fails to deliver on that.
My primary issues with the story:
1. President Ryan allows Arnie van Damme to investigate a political matter, but he is not allowed to use federal resources and it should not be allowed to tie back to the white house. So obviously Arnie reaches out to Gerry Hendley, who puts Jack Ryan jr on the case. Because, they won't be able to tie Jack Ryan jr to the White House. This does not make sense because if Jack Ryan jr is found out, it will tie back to Jack Ryan sr, and in a way that likely looks worse.
2. Jack Ryan jr has to be stealthy to investigate as this can't tie back to the white house, so Gerry gets a foreign agency involved, and worse Jack Ryan jr just walks up to the people he is investigating and tells them his name. The investigation is more running around and chatting to suspects than real investigation. It is even more eating and drinking than real investigation.
3. No-one seems able to make the link between Jack Ryan jr and President Jack Ryan. Not even the foreign agent who is helping or one of the main bad guys to whom he even gives his full name as John Patrick Ryan. These people should not be so clueless that they don't know who the President of the Unites States is. At the very least someone should mention it or make some joke about it.
One of the people does seem to acknowledge knowing Jack, saying something like "nice to see you again", but nothing is done with this. Before that, Jack Ryan jr came to the conclusion that they likely would not have met, and afterwards he does not wonder why the other person said this or where they'd met before. The foreign agent also does not ask Jack about this, which I found weird. But perhaps they were both pre-occupied with thoughts of food (see the previous and next point).
4. The investigation in Poland is badly handled by Jack jr, and is full of exposition about Poland, Polish food and Polish history. In a good Tom Clancy's novel such exposition would have been interesting (which it is) without distracting from the plot (which it does).
5. Too much coincidence. I won't provide details here as that may spoil someone else's reading pleasure, but too many things happen by luck or coincidence which makes for a very unsatisfactory resolution for the reader, with a lot of potential for future stories likely squashed. There is one possibility that might redeem this, but only time will tell.
6. More of a side note, as it does not necessarily relate to this novel specifically but it feels like the two authors who alternate the stories don't seem to communicate much and don't seem to have an agreed development of the Jack Ryan jr character in mind. In other novels with the Campus Jack is competent and a valued member of the team but in this novel he seems far from competent (see point 2), and they also do not seem to agree on Jack's relationship with women, turning him into James Bond light with an interest in a different woman in each book.

Although the novel had great potential it did not live up to its four or five star potential, and given the points above it even failed to live up to three stars. It's main saving grace for me is the IC cloud subplot, but unfortunately that did not have a satisfactory conclusion either. But still, two stars as the IC cloud provided some suspense and intrigue that made me want to continue reading.

[Elizabeth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think at this point I read these books out of habit and because I can’t ever quit a character. Generally I’ve found the Jack Ryan, Jr novels less enjoyable than the newer Jack Ryan (post Tom Clancy) novels but okay. I felt like this one had some abrupt transitions as well as endings.

[Sarah Connolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

The technical elements of the book were well done, as expected. I’ve even come to really enjoy the various parts of the world that these books explore (I’m putting Poland on the bucket list after this book).

That being said - can we please have a Campus book that doesn’t involve Jack getting involved with some woman? It’s unnecessary, annoying, and his inner monologues about these women are often horribly narcissistic, bordering on the offensive. It’s just not needed. The other Campus members were woefully absent from this book - is much rather the pages be spent on them than yet another ungettable girl. Ugh.

[Greg Rumpel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a decent read but I have to say that I think it's time to look to other characters in this series to make it fresh. Use Ding, Midas..Dom etc and work a story around them. In other words change the direction to be more of a Campus series...because Jack Ryan Jr & Sr as well as John Clark have had a good run but its getting old.
Love the cast of characters, I think the authors that have taken over the Clancy universe should focus the next novel on them and turn this series around.
Just a thought, anyone agree ?

[SteVen Hendricks · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Review - ...I really enjoyed this Tom Clancy novel by Mike Maden despite the Tom Clancy ‘purists’ who felt Maden missed the mark on this particular book. Maybe I’m bias because I absolutely love the Jack Ryan, Jr. series and all the action that Jack Jr. brings. My only complaint is there isn’t enough of the old Clancy John Clark character in these new novels. Great action-thriller in my opinion!

[Pierre Tassé (Enjoying Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was slow to start and a little confusing but once it got started and we started to understand the characters it took off. I had a hard time to put it down and it lived up to its intent. I was taken for a ride and enjoyed the time. Some endings leave you hanging or wondering, I am happy/glad that this one doesn't.

[Adrian Ramos · Rating 3 out of 5]

I miss the real Tom Clancy. Decent book but was far too outrageous in coincidences of Jack Jr exploits. Trouble follows Jack Jr and a girl always gets killed. How much trouble can he get into in Poland, then in South Africa then in Peru? He’s kind off a dipshit.
Jack Ryan Sr taking heat and fighting back with opposition Senator. I loved that part. 3rd book I’ve read in last 3 months centered around China’s political and industrial shenanigans.

[Robert F. Sterner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love Tom Clancy books - another great Jack Ryan Jr story. Worth the read!

[Simon Taylor · Rating 2 out of 5]

Enjoyed the booked, didnt enjoy the constant referencing of Audi! Half this book is describing the Audi Sat Nav, or how well the Audi drives. Very distracting!

[Paul Carr · Rating 3 out of 5]

Again, decent Jack Ryan material for those invested. An odd tangent and an seemingly unearned twist slow down the narrative toward the end.

[Max Wahoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book! Jack Ryan junior does it again, but it followed a similar storyline as the previous. However, the midway point gave a good twist that I really enjoyed.

[Denise Westlake · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jamie read it first- because library is closed, I'll read my first Clancy!

[Lumpy Dirtball · Rating 2 out of 5]

Terrible book. Story was all over the place. Pathways taken are essentially abandoned. Disparate events are left on subplot islands. It's almost as if 40% of the manuscript - not contiguous - were playfully deleted by a very naughty fairy wishing to vex the audience and embarrass the author. If that were so, it succeeded.

I've read all the Ryan books and this one added nothing whatsoever to the world/ characters. You can confidently skip it and miss nothing. If anything from this book matters in the next one, it wouldn't take more than a single page of total text to fill in any possible blanks. Given how these books work, I have no doubt everything you 'need' to know from this one will be sprinkled into the next one in a few of those expository 'recent background' paragraphs that you always see before the president speaks with an advisor, or before two campus members who haven't seen each other in a couple-few weeks sit down for a beer.


I gave it 2 stars because there were stretches I got into, bits that were interesting, and the writing itself was technically ok. But I'd save the money if I could rewind time.

I give 3 stars to 'decent' books; some people might enjoy it, especially if they're genre fans or like the author. But 3 stars also means you're not missing much if you skip it.

4 stars means a solid recommendation to all (most).

5 stars means I loved it. It really got me off.

1 star means it's garbage. Read at your own risk... of flushing some portion of your life forever down the toilet. Or it could mean I personally hated it. Maybe there was a gratuitous scene with animal cruelty, or rape. Things that set me off. I had to slam it shut, throw it away, and scrub my short term memory before the awful left a stench I couldn't remove.

So I guess it goes:

1) Hell no
2) Just, no
3) Meh, I guess I liked it
4) Good, solid stuff
5) Great and Groovy

(I suppose I mainly worked that out for myself, since I don't typically comment. Pardon the verbosity. I know you don't need to know all that)

[Wayne To · Rating 1 out of 5]

This one may be the worst post-Clancy book written to date. It's not bad if you're the person who likes stale conservatism, really bad history lectures, every conceivable racial stereotype (e.g., the handsome white protagonist, the sinister Frenchman, horny old Chinese man, the effeminate Asian American, the NPC African, etc...) and poor character development. But if you're an avid reader in the series, this book is true disappointment. The "surprise" ending made no sense whatsoever and all the conclusions to the book are hurried and hard-to-believe and all the plot lines are haphazardly woven like an amateur. Yet, of course, all of the loose strings (e.g., capturing Watson, killing the Czech, etc...) get magically tied up in the end.

The worst part is what they have done with Jack Ryan Jr.'s character--he is a man who cannot control his emotions, finds revenge as his only religion, and easily smitten by the first blonde that he meets. He has no personality beyond having a beard and John Clark's training. Junior is seriously the last man you'd want backing you upon an actual mission in the field.

Maden had a really good start with Point of Contact...but unfortunately, he's getting worse...

[Graham Page · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like to continue to read things in the "Jack Ryan-verse" and this one is pretty good. These books are a little scattered as far as timelines and adventures as there are still Jack Ryan Sr. and Jack Ryan Jr. books being put out by various authors all sanctioned by the estate of Tom Clancy who passed away several years ago.

This one has typical thriller page-turning action that starts with brief snippets of actions and then characterizations and detective work as the heroes and heroines track bad guys. I like these as they are relatively clean with regards to language and sex, and the stories are with characters that you have come to interact with through the years.

I like to escape into these especially on vacations as they are as good if not better than just watching movies and allow me to let my imagination soar as I sit by a fire, or rest in the sun by the pool, or sit and watch the world go by on a porch.