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Admiral Arnold Morgan #3
Menace Invisible
The H.M.S. Unseen is one of the most efficient, lethal submarines ever built. But suddenly, on a training mission off the English coast, it vanishes, baffling military intelligence on both sides of the Atlantic, including National Security Adviser Admiral Arnold Morgan. A missing weapon is dangerous enough. But then the unthinkable begins to happen....Planes begin blowing up across the skies.Searching for answers, Morgan is convinced that only one man can be behind all these devastating his archenemy, the world's most cunning--yet reportedly dead--terrorist spy. Determined to stop his old nemesis, Morgan must use all his wits to find a madman armed with a powerful sub hidden somewhere in a million square miles of ocean. What Morgan doesn't know, however, is that the fanatical terrorist has a plan of his own, one that will bring these two intense warriors face-to-face--and only one will come out alive in one of the most chilling spy stories of the year.
384 pages, Paperback
First published April 7, 1999
99 people are currently reading
815 people want to read
About the author
Patrick Robinson
103 books341 followersPatrick Robinson was a journalist for many years before becoming a full-time writer of books. His non-fiction books were bestsellers around the world and he was the co-author of Sandy Woodward's Falklands War memoir, One Hundred Days.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews
March 25, 2010
Robinson is a master at creating a frightening and compelling plot. He excels at describing naval operations and military hardware and technology. However, in the midst of a fast-paced thriller he begins to suffer as he moves towards a conclusion. As in the first novel ,Nimitz, he begins to stumble forward like a runner who trips and runs forward without really regaining his balance.
Robinson also slips into silly and ignorant ideas as he writes. For example, he has his villain address a high ranking ayatollah as "old chap" which is entirely out of character. He describes a Kansas rancher as wearing spurs when the rancher had never been near a horse. To be fair the English author may think cowboys always wear spurs, obviously something he knows nothing or very little about.
Finally the author suffers from the curse of villain worship. He creates a bad guy who is so clever and skilled that he cannot stand to have him captured by some type of mistake or error. He also feels the need to grant the villain some form of honorable death.
As usual, this author grabbed on to me with a gripping story that was a real page turner for the first 2/3 Of the book but fell Flat in the last 3rd. The epilogue/conclusion was utterly stupid.
Robinson also slips into silly and ignorant ideas as he writes. For example, he has his villain address a high ranking ayatollah as "old chap" which is entirely out of character. He describes a Kansas rancher as wearing spurs when the rancher had never been near a horse. To be fair the English author may think cowboys always wear spurs, obviously something he knows nothing or very little about.
Finally the author suffers from the curse of villain worship. He creates a bad guy who is so clever and skilled that he cannot stand to have him captured by some type of mistake or error. He also feels the need to grant the villain some form of honorable death.
As usual, this author grabbed on to me with a gripping story that was a real page turner for the first 2/3 Of the book but fell Flat in the last 3rd. The epilogue/conclusion was utterly stupid.
October 30, 2025
It seemed to take a while to read this one - In and of itself, that's not a bad thing! The story, to a point, was good with the start and the middle being very enjoyable but the ending left me feeling a bit let down; I'd invested a lot of time in reading the book and to have an ending that left me feeling 'flat' struck me as almost unfair. It seemed rushed and a bit of a let down. Still, despite the ending, it was an enjoyable read and I'll persevere onto the next in the series.
August 29, 2021
Gripping Yarn
A really good story superbly written. I found it hard to put down, and the ending befitted the plot. Brilliant
A really good story superbly written. I found it hard to put down, and the ending befitted the plot. Brilliant
August 9, 2021
Brilliant book
This is the second in this series of books that I have read and they are outstanding, the authors knowledge of submarine warfare is first class as is his knowledge of the countries in his stories, I highly recommend these books to anyone interested in this subject and look forward to starting book three
This is the second in this series of books that I have read and they are outstanding, the authors knowledge of submarine warfare is first class as is his knowledge of the countries in his stories, I highly recommend these books to anyone interested in this subject and look forward to starting book three
September 7, 2025
A flawed and imperfect work of literature, but I suppose it would suit some audiences who want to read naval fiction from authors besides Tom Clancy or Stephen Coonts. The pacing is extremely irregular with some events (such as the early submarine hijacking) occuring in only a handful of pages and others that seem unimportant drawn out over long chapters. Most characters seem a bit too psychic to be believed - somehow the Americans guess the antagonist and his plan very early, despite no specific clues until the last 100 pages of the book.
The author also goes out of his way to disparage liberal or progressive 'Straw Men' at several points in a way that doesn't really seem to help with the plot. A generous reading is simply that the author is building jingoist characters to justify a few of the more extraordinary actions later on in the story. The commentary is not always distracting, but it is laid on pretty thick - one terrorist target was a leftist and it's implied that this isn't too much of a loss - so best advice is just to either enjoy or read past it depending on your values.
The few characters in the book are repeatedly built into heroes and reused again and again to keep the cast small and their superpowers wide-ranging. It doesn't help much with the suspension of disbelief and sometimes blurs the line between naval fiction and fantasy.
Altogether, 'HMS Unseen' is an alright read, but doesn't measure up to other work in this genre. It's a bit too fantastic and the writing is too scattershot to really hit the right tone and pacing.
The author also goes out of his way to disparage liberal or progressive 'Straw Men' at several points in a way that doesn't really seem to help with the plot. A generous reading is simply that the author is building jingoist characters to justify a few of the more extraordinary actions later on in the story. The commentary is not always distracting, but it is laid on pretty thick - one terrorist target was a leftist and it's implied that this isn't too much of a loss - so best advice is just to either enjoy or read past it depending on your values.
The few characters in the book are repeatedly built into heroes and reused again and again to keep the cast small and their superpowers wide-ranging. It doesn't help much with the suspension of disbelief and sometimes blurs the line between naval fiction and fantasy.
Altogether, 'HMS Unseen' is an alright read, but doesn't measure up to other work in this genre. It's a bit too fantastic and the writing is too scattershot to really hit the right tone and pacing.
June 1, 2022
Efficient techno thriller in the vein of Tom Clancy. Enjoyable enough but these books all have the same characters of ultra efficient US Admirals and right wing agendas. Was good to see (spoiler alert) that the US Government is realistically portrayed as doing whats expedient. Overall forgettable though and one where I'm not bothered about reading the other books in the series.
February 3, 2021
Fast read....Arnold Morgan is his usual cantankerous but likable self. I counted only 35 GD's & 26 F.cks!
March 8, 2018
The third in this series and perhaps the best. Very intricate storyline that is also plausible. I very much enjoyed the author interview at the end of the audiobook as well, some good insights.
September 16, 2018
Very exciting story; thoroughly enjoyed it!
November 13, 2018
Fun thriller with a lot of surprise and great characters.
September 12, 2019
An excellent novel about modern naval warfare. The antagonist from the first novel in the series reappears and causes a great deal fo drama for Morgan and the US and the UK.
July 14, 2020
A very good book, continuing the saga of the terrorist Ben Adnam. The book seemed stretched out a bit by overly building out the character details of minor characters.
July 21, 2023
This book was published in 1999 and nominally takes place starting in 2004. As might be expected with this timeline, many of the details were overtaken by events: in addition to the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, the author refers to the then unknown causes of the crashes of TWA Flight 800 (spark in an empty fuel tank that caused an explosion) and USAir Flight 427 (taken down by a rudder jackscrew problem that was extremely difficult to diagnose.) Since the plot revolves around terrorism, this is significant and should be born in mind when making a decision to read it.
A major part of the techno-thriller genre is its attention to details. Tom Clancy famously caused investigations into the details of his books because they regularly revealed things that military people thought were secret. While I'm willing to make allowances for things the author couldn't have known, there are many details that the author both could and should have known. A few of the major things that broke my suspension of disbelief:
* The KC-135 is closely related to the Boeing 707, not the "military version of the DC-10".
* The 'U'-class submarines are not the only diesel-electric submarines that the UK has ever built. In fact (virtually?) every submarine in WWI and WWII was a diesel-electric design. The major advantage of modern diesel-electric subs is that they can react their diesel fuel without conventional combustion, so don't need to surface to run the diesel.
* "Air Force 1" is a call sign, not an airplane. It is used by any USAF aircraft carrying the president of the US. Similarly, "Air Force 2" is the call sign of an aircraft carrying the Vice President but not the President. There is no such thing as "Air Force 3".
* Adding a very large openable pressure compartment with sensitive electronics outside the pressure hull of a submarine (a major plot point) would be extraordinarily difficult. The increased buoyancy would be very difficult to handle without fundamental re-engineering. Further, any such compartment would be very difficult to add while maintaining the navigation properties, and even more the quietness, of a sub.
* Any even vaguely competent passive sonar operator would be completely unable to miss the sound of a RHIB crossing the surface nearby.
According to the author, his technical advisor was Adm. Sandy Woodward (of Falkland Islands War fame). I don't see much excuse for missing these sorts of details.
Leaving aside the technical issues, the protagonist of this book is the principle terrorist involved in the plot. He is the primary focus character and the primary viewpoint character throughout. While there might be a place for such a book, it was not at all what I was expecting from previous books in the series.
And the ending of the book was deeply disappointing in pretty much every way. I won't say more for fear of spoiling the book, but it was both contrived and incompatible with the character of the protagonist as it had been established previously (including in this book.)
In an interview at the end of the audiobook, the author claims not to write multiple drafts of his books. The author should really have written a second draft of this book.
The chapter-by-chapter writing here is good enough to keep this from getting a rating of '1'. but there are enough other issues to keep me from rating this any better than '2'. This is a very sad continuation to a series that started quite well. Unfortunately for me, I purchased both this book and its sequel at the same time, but that may end up being just a sunk cost. At this time, I have no interest in reading any more in this series.
A major part of the techno-thriller genre is its attention to details. Tom Clancy famously caused investigations into the details of his books because they regularly revealed things that military people thought were secret. While I'm willing to make allowances for things the author couldn't have known, there are many details that the author both could and should have known. A few of the major things that broke my suspension of disbelief:
* The KC-135 is closely related to the Boeing 707, not the "military version of the DC-10".
* The 'U'-class submarines are not the only diesel-electric submarines that the UK has ever built. In fact (virtually?) every submarine in WWI and WWII was a diesel-electric design. The major advantage of modern diesel-electric subs is that they can react their diesel fuel without conventional combustion, so don't need to surface to run the diesel.
* "Air Force 1" is a call sign, not an airplane. It is used by any USAF aircraft carrying the president of the US. Similarly, "Air Force 2" is the call sign of an aircraft carrying the Vice President but not the President. There is no such thing as "Air Force 3".
* Adding a very large openable pressure compartment with sensitive electronics outside the pressure hull of a submarine (a major plot point) would be extraordinarily difficult. The increased buoyancy would be very difficult to handle without fundamental re-engineering. Further, any such compartment would be very difficult to add while maintaining the navigation properties, and even more the quietness, of a sub.
* Any even vaguely competent passive sonar operator would be completely unable to miss the sound of a RHIB crossing the surface nearby.
According to the author, his technical advisor was Adm. Sandy Woodward (of Falkland Islands War fame). I don't see much excuse for missing these sorts of details.
Leaving aside the technical issues, the protagonist of this book is the principle terrorist involved in the plot. He is the primary focus character and the primary viewpoint character throughout. While there might be a place for such a book, it was not at all what I was expecting from previous books in the series.
And the ending of the book was deeply disappointing in pretty much every way. I won't say more for fear of spoiling the book, but it was both contrived and incompatible with the character of the protagonist as it had been established previously (including in this book.)
In an interview at the end of the audiobook, the author claims not to write multiple drafts of his books. The author should really have written a second draft of this book.
The chapter-by-chapter writing here is good enough to keep this from getting a rating of '1'. but there are enough other issues to keep me from rating this any better than '2'. This is a very sad continuation to a series that started quite well. Unfortunately for me, I purchased both this book and its sequel at the same time, but that may end up being just a sunk cost. At this time, I have no interest in reading any more in this series.
December 26, 2017
Ugh ! What a book. Dont read it. Here's why:
The cover picture tells you that this book has a plot that involves shooting down planes using missiles from a submarine (so thats not a spoiler). It starts off very promisingly, with an Iraqi agent who is to be murdered per Saddam's orders, escapes and then, makes a plan to extract revenge. From then, the plot descends to earth as rapidly as a shot-down passenger liner. As far as spy thriller writers go, Robinson is NOT John Le Carre. The plot is incredible (how easy it is to hijack and steal a British Navy Submarine !), and gets even more incredible as it goes along. Plot and character development are spotty; much attention is given to the diet of the protagonists (the vintage of wine, what brand sherry, how well cooked the steak was, etc) that it became an irritating distraction. Oddly enough this attention to cooking was paid only to the meals eaten in Scotland [part of the story occurs there], so I guess it does not matter what the characters eat in Iraq or in the US. Also thrown into the book, with no clear advantage to the story, is the author's dislike for the "liberal and left-wing US media". At the end, I had to skip pages to reach the end, so I could feel that I had not wasted all my time - I just HAD to find out what happened, so as to achieve closure. And, yes, this book ended as inanely as it lived.
The cover picture tells you that this book has a plot that involves shooting down planes using missiles from a submarine (so thats not a spoiler). It starts off very promisingly, with an Iraqi agent who is to be murdered per Saddam's orders, escapes and then, makes a plan to extract revenge. From then, the plot descends to earth as rapidly as a shot-down passenger liner. As far as spy thriller writers go, Robinson is NOT John Le Carre. The plot is incredible (how easy it is to hijack and steal a British Navy Submarine !), and gets even more incredible as it goes along. Plot and character development are spotty; much attention is given to the diet of the protagonists (the vintage of wine, what brand sherry, how well cooked the steak was, etc) that it became an irritating distraction. Oddly enough this attention to cooking was paid only to the meals eaten in Scotland [part of the story occurs there], so I guess it does not matter what the characters eat in Iraq or in the US. Also thrown into the book, with no clear advantage to the story, is the author's dislike for the "liberal and left-wing US media". At the end, I had to skip pages to reach the end, so I could feel that I had not wasted all my time - I just HAD to find out what happened, so as to achieve closure. And, yes, this book ended as inanely as it lived.
September 6, 2025
Romanzo militare avventuroso ambientato nel mondo dei sommergibili.
Il personaggio del terrorista mi è sembrato l'unico ad essere reso con una certa profondità (e infatti mi sono trovato quasi a tifare per lui), mentre gli altri risultano spesso macchiettistici. Ho trovato particolarmente irritante l'ammiraglio Morgan, che sembra non riesca ad esprimersi senza anteporre l'aggettivo "fottuto" a ogni nome. Grazie Patrick, abbiamo capito che è un uomo rude e sanguigno, magari nelle prossime pagine puoi trovare anche altri modi per dimostrarcelo.
In effetti i dialoghi, specialmente quelli dei personaggi "occidentali", sono abbastanza cringe o, più propriamente detto, «percepiti come ridicoli e imbarazzanti da chi osserva o ascolta».
Sui dettagli tecnici non mi pronuncio, non avendo fatto neanche il servizio di leva. Altri recensori hanno rilevato delle imprecisioni anche gravi e non fatico a crederlo, però si tratta di un libro nel complesso molto fantasioso perciò lasciamo da parte il fact checking per questa volta.
Il personaggio del terrorista mi è sembrato l'unico ad essere reso con una certa profondità (e infatti mi sono trovato quasi a tifare per lui), mentre gli altri risultano spesso macchiettistici. Ho trovato particolarmente irritante l'ammiraglio Morgan, che sembra non riesca ad esprimersi senza anteporre l'aggettivo "fottuto" a ogni nome. Grazie Patrick, abbiamo capito che è un uomo rude e sanguigno, magari nelle prossime pagine puoi trovare anche altri modi per dimostrarcelo.
In effetti i dialoghi, specialmente quelli dei personaggi "occidentali", sono abbastanza cringe o, più propriamente detto, «percepiti come ridicoli e imbarazzanti da chi osserva o ascolta».
Sui dettagli tecnici non mi pronuncio, non avendo fatto neanche il servizio di leva. Altri recensori hanno rilevato delle imprecisioni anche gravi e non fatico a crederlo, però si tratta di un libro nel complesso molto fantasioso perciò lasciamo da parte il fact checking per questa volta.
June 8, 2020
Decided to give this a 4 star instead of 3. The author has a straightforward storytelling style. This makes the book very readable. Certainly much much better than the mess in those overhyped John le Carre books. On the downside, many parts are draggy although not arbitrarily so. You can skip one or two pages and miss nothing. But if you are fascinated by details such as operational procedures of submarines, it is quite educational. Also, you don't find women being used as sex objects supplying sex that so many writers find obligatory to increase their page count. Refreshing.
The ending, however, is an anticlimax. It is hardly credible for such a cunning protagonist. The author could have changed some unnecessary wordiness to spin a thread leading to the ending and make it more credible.
Recommended for light reading.
The ending, however, is an anticlimax. It is hardly credible for such a cunning protagonist. The author could have changed some unnecessary wordiness to spin a thread leading to the ending and make it more credible.
Recommended for light reading.
February 21, 2017
* The follow-on to Patrick Robinson's Kilo Class, this book is not for everyone as it requires of the reader a certain understanding of maritime terms and world navigation. That said, Unseen will take you on a head-spinning international tour with an explosive climax.
* Follow the Morgan series into #4, U.S.S. Seawolf
* Follow the Morgan series into #4, U.S.S. Seawolf
May 10, 2020
It is very rare for me to actually 'give up' reading a book bit I very nearly did with this. An average book was spoiled by some compulsion of the author to add completely unneeded detail : such as the street names of a car journey. Some silly mistakes and factual inaccuracies were annoying.
A fact checker and good editor would really have helped.
I would buy another of his works from a charity shop but would not pay the full price for a copy.
Having said this I have read and enjoyed his later works much more.
A fact checker and good editor would really have helped.
I would buy another of his works from a charity shop but would not pay the full price for a copy.
Having said this I have read and enjoyed his later works much more.
March 3, 2021
Patrick Robinson is one of my favorites when it comes to the technical side of submarine warfare and the intrigue he brings into the world of espionage. And while I enjoyed H.M.S. Unseen overall, I did not care for how Robinson ultimately characterized Adnam, making him out to be this "perfect" spy, even when he was lost in the darkness of his own mind. I quite understand the direction Robinson took Adnam on in bringing him to the states, which was his only option to exact revenge on those who betrayed him, but he didn't deserve an honorable death (I secretly wish he never died and came back in future novels.)
I wish he would've pit all three countries against each other and Adnam at the end. What a climax that would've been!
As always, Arnold Morgan is one of my favorite characters ever created and I can't wait to continue the series.
Worth the read but I feel it's importance is just to further Morgan's story in future novels.
I wish he would've pit all three countries against each other and Adnam at the end. What a climax that would've been!
As always, Arnold Morgan is one of my favorite characters ever created and I can't wait to continue the series.
Worth the read but I feel it's importance is just to further Morgan's story in future novels.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 9, 2017
I would say 3.5 stars. Better than 3, not deserving of 4.
This is my second Patrick Robinson book, and while I enjoyed it and recommend it, it does get tend to get even more political than most military writers. Also, both Robinson books I've finished seem like they wrap up too fast. It's like he reaches a max limit of pages from his editor and just wraps it up.
Still, overall, a solid read. Arnold Morgan is quite entertaining.
This is my second Patrick Robinson book, and while I enjoyed it and recommend it, it does get tend to get even more political than most military writers. Also, both Robinson books I've finished seem like they wrap up too fast. It's like he reaches a max limit of pages from his editor and just wraps it up.
Still, overall, a solid read. Arnold Morgan is quite entertaining.
May 9, 2018
Probably best to suspend your critical faculties and just enjoy the ride in Patrick Robinson's books. it requires of the reader a certain understanding of maritime terms and world navigation. The plot proves, just as did the 60s movie, "The Mouse that Roared", that the best thing to do is to go to war with the US. Then, they'll make up nicely. Cdr Ben Adnan does exactly that in this submarine spy thriller. The plot is a little bit light on the characters, except Adnan. Could it happen? Maybe.
February 16, 2021
Clever, detailed spy story (perhaps too detailed for me). Written in the 1990s, told in the "future" of 2006, follows a Middle East spy who changes alliances and sets out to exact some ugly vengeance against his home country as well as England and America. Keeps you on the edge of your seat but I sometimes struggled with all of the military details, times and location plus the name and story behind every possible character in the book. Definitely recommend!
July 30, 2020
It’s really hard to rate these books. They are well written (and you can tell the author knows his subject matter), However the storylines get a little absurd. I really don’t see the American government forgiving a terrorist that killed as many as the character Benjamin did. But we nice against, this book was well written just like the previous two in the series.
April 3, 2022
Top class reading
Once again Patrick Robinson has excelled his writing .From the start of the story it was a fast paced storyline which did on occasion drift back to previous books but didn't dwell on the older book . Well written exciting book and can't wait to read the next one
Once again Patrick Robinson has excelled his writing .From the start of the story it was a fast paced storyline which did on occasion drift back to previous books but didn't dwell on the older book . Well written exciting book and can't wait to read the next one
June 14, 2023
This is on me getting the 3rd book in the series at a book sale. I was able to pick up the series fairly easily, but as a submarine thriller, it was lacking. The plot was predictable and had very little action to be honest. The plot about Ben and his ex-girlfriend did not seem to make sense at all. Another challenging book with no real likable characters.
June 15, 2023
let’s keep political opinions and conspiracy theory nonsense out of fiction
The author should remember that readers buy books like this for a few hours of escapist action fiction not his right-wing political views and certainly not half baked nonsense about the Bermuda Triangle. The writing gets particularly clumsy when he writes about his political views.
The author should remember that readers buy books like this for a few hours of escapist action fiction not his right-wing political views and certainly not half baked nonsense about the Bermuda Triangle. The writing gets particularly clumsy when he writes about his political views.
September 18, 2017
OK, the unabridged version is a better experience than the abridged versions of the previous 2 books in this series, but still not giving human dimensions to any of the characters. The story arc seems to be an especially bloody long con, and our country just the last one deceived.
November 18, 2021
A good military thriller concluding the series which has the Iraqi military commander/terrorist attacking the USA and Britain using a stolen British submarine. The main characters are the same ones as in the previous Robinson novels in this series
August 21, 2022
Really 21/4 stars. Good action, cartoonish characters. You actually like the villain of the book & find yourself pulling for him. The protagonist is overblown and arrogant. Not a bad read if it’s all you have laying around the house.
September 12, 2022
Excellent read
Exceptional attention to detail and a very good story very well written, and in all events could happen for real at any time. More likely by the Chinese than from the middle east.
Exceptional attention to detail and a very good story very well written, and in all events could happen for real at any time. More likely by the Chinese than from the middle east.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 85 reviews