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Jack Noble #0.5

The Recruit

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In late summer of 1994, Jack Noble, a former All-American quarterback, is in the middle of the toughest event he's ever taken part in. Marine Corps Recruit Training.

After eight weeks he's managed to make enemies of every drill instructor and every recruit in his platoon.

Then on one particularly humid South Carolina day, an odd sequence of events changes everything.

25 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 13, 2012

766 people are currently reading
594 people want to read

About the author

L.T. Ryan

164 books1,451 followers
L.T. RYAN is a USA Today and Amazon bestselling author. The new age of publishing offered L.T. the opportunity to blend his passions for creating, marketing, and technology to reach audiences with his popular Jack Noble series.

Living in central Virginia with his wife, the youngest of his three daughters, and their three dogs, L.T. enjoys staring out his window at the trees and mountains while he should be writing, as well as reading, hiking, running, and playing with gadgets. See what he's up to at ltryan.com.

BOOKS IN THE JACK NOBLE SERIES
The Recruit (prequel short story)
The First Deception (prequel)
Noble Beginnings
A Deadly Distance
Thin Line
Noble Intentions
When Dead in Greece
Noble Retribution
Noble Betrayal
Never Go Home
Noble Judgment
Never Cry Mercy
Deadline
End Game

BOOKS IN THE BEAR LOGAN SERIES
Ripple Effect
Blowback
Takedown
Deep State (coming January, 2020)

BOOKS IN THE CLARISSA ABBOT SERIES
Beyond Betrayal

BOOKS IN THE MITCH TANNER SERIES
The Depths of Darkness
Into the Darkness
Deliver Us From Darkness (coming soon)

Social Media Links

Facebook (L.T. Ryan): facebook.com/LTRyanAuthor
Facebook (Jack Noble Page): facebook.com/JackNobleBooks/
Twitter: twitter.com/LTRyanWrites
Goodreads: goodreads.com/author/show/6151659.L_T...

Contact L.T. Ryan at contact@ltryan.com
About the Author
L.T. RYAN is a USA Today and Amazon bestselling author. The new age of publishing offered L.T. the opportunity to blend his passions for creating, marketing, and technology to reach audiences with his popular Jack Noble series.

Living in central Virginia with his wife, the youngest of his three daughters, and their three dogs, L.T. enjoys staring out his window at the trees and mountains while he should be writing, as well as reading, hiking, running, and playing with gadgets. See what he's up to at ltryan.com.

Social Media Links

Facebook (L.T. Ryan): facebook.com/LTRyanAuthor
Facebook (Jack Noble Page): facebook.com/JackNobleBooks/
Twitter: twitter.com/LTRyanWrites
Goodreads: goodreads.com/author/show/6151659.L_T...

Contact L.T. Ryan at contact@ltryan.com

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Community Reviews

5 stars
990 (44%)
4 stars
662 (29%)
3 stars
382 (17%)
2 stars
93 (4%)
1 star
81 (3%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 106 reviews
Profile Image for Tim.
2,521 reviews329 followers
November 6, 2020
Excellent short intro story. I look forward to the whole novel. 8 of 10 stars
Profile Image for Susan Kennedy.
272 reviews9 followers
October 28, 2018
A Short... really short story. This is Jack Noble as a marine recruit. The DI's give him a really hard time, they get Bear to fight him, Bear loses and the DI's go after Bear. Jack goes to help Bear and that is how they meet. This is the beginning. The very beginning... very short beginning.

It wasn't a bad short, just really extremely short. It could have been expanded a bit I think.
Profile Image for Stacey B.
471 reviews209 followers
August 11, 2021
23 pages.
Good story.
A recruit going through training in the Marines is not well liked by his platoon and is abused by his CO.
One night he overhears some conversation and decides he has had enough, landing in the office
of the Brigadier General in handcuffs.
Profile Image for Natalie  H.
3,802 reviews30 followers
June 2, 2023
June 2023
Audiobook edition
31m (1.3x speed)

Breezing through these now given they're nice and short. To start with I thought this was going to be another miss. Military bullying and the characters all ganging up on Jack. I did like how it played out and Jack gaining a friend and partner. I did like the office scene where they were supposed to be in trouble. Wouldn't mind looking into this series.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Laur.
720 reviews126 followers
November 2, 2020
Audio Version: A 31 minute audio short story prequel to the Jack Noble series. My husband and I listened to this together, and enjoyed it thoroughly. We found it realistic and humorous at times. Love the author’s writing style. We’ll be listening to more of the series.
Profile Image for Jennifer.
910 reviews52 followers
January 29, 2023
Great beginning to a future series. I am looking forward to seeing what’s in store for Jack.
Profile Image for Erth.
4,636 reviews
October 26, 2018
This really short (I thought it could have been expanded a little bit - that's why Only 4 Stars..) story tells how Jack Noble met Bear, a man Jack would trust his life with...and has!
They were both Marine recruits, so they did their basic training at Parris Island, near Beaufort, South Carolina.
Upon first meeting the two did not get along but all that changes one night...(I don't wanna give anything away, so that's all I'll say about the plot).
The story is wonderfully written by L.T. Ryan, as are ALL the Noble stories, novellas, episodes, what have you...
One last suggestion:
IF you're planning on reading the Novel: Noble Beginnings, You should read The Recruit first...
It's NOT a requirement, But it does give some further insight into Jack & Bear's friendship...
I'm reading the Novel right now and will post a review when finished, but if the beginning is any indication, the book should be another great story about Jack Noble.
Profile Image for Cameron.
237 reviews7 followers
September 20, 2021
Nice short story. Really liked the author's style and speed.
Profile Image for SteVen Hendricks.
696 reviews32 followers
March 11, 2023
Audiobook Review - Jack Noble, a lowly Marine recruit - "The Recruit" - in boot camp, can't get anything right. He unintentionally puts his platoon in the position of paying for his mistakes. They aren't happy about it. So when retribution time comes, they are all for another recruit, Bear, to kick Jack's butt. There is only one problem, Jack isn't planning to take it. It doesn't help that their little "boxing" bout isn't the last hand to hand action they have that night. The Recruit is a prequel to the Jack Noble series by author L.T. Ryan. This story is just a little peek into how the Nobel/Bear partnership began. The writing is tight. Though it is only a short story, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The novella shows how the bond created during that night ends up being a strong one. I'm looking forward to reading about these two again. I highly recommend this little gem.
Profile Image for Sherman Darden Jr.
60 reviews
February 11, 2022
As someone who reads basically... A ton,
this was tough to get through. In a lot of ways it was like the amazon show full of parks and rec level of cringe where there should not have been.

Warning: typos left and right.

Noble starts out as an interesting character, becomes uninteresting towards the end for me.

Overall what kills this story is the lack of diversity. If this was made into a film Bear would be the one to be anything other than the norm.

Same old same old except the saving grace that is towards the end. Honestly, this story ends just when its getting good and it is not because of Noble.
503 reviews3 followers
September 22, 2018
I wanted to read this series and where better to start than with the Prequel. It is a short story about one day in Marine Boot Camp. I remember being knocked around in Navy Boot Camp in the 60's but that was mostly to get our attention and to get out heads out of our asses not vindictive like this appears. Not that boot camp was fun but I was in pretty good shape going in so the physical aspect affected me to a lesser extent than some of my fellow boots. Now 50 years later I remember it as more a Boy Scout Camp with shots. But the shots were really bad Yellow Fever and Cholera being my least favorite. Thinking I was going to be on a ship at sea I didn't see the point but later wandering around on the rivers of Vietnam it was probably a great idea.
Profile Image for MartyAnne.
486 reviews16 followers
September 20, 2018
Jack Noble is never one to hold back on his sarcasm, wit, and banter. His smart mouth, he is told, will get him killed someday. Maybe so, but Noble isn't about to hold back now. Even when he is in Basic training for Marines, when talking-back to a superior officer is really never a good idea. If his instructors don't succeed in silencing the backtalk, the men in his platoon just might, since they endure punishments for Jack's behavior as well. And then comes the night where it all catches up with him.

A nice background piece that I wish I'd read before Book 1.
#JackNoble #LTRyan #BearLogan #Military #Thriller
Profile Image for Dave.
747 reviews7 followers
January 6, 2020
1st, yes this is short, but it is a great introduction to the state of mind of Jack and Bear as they head to a new phase of training.
2nd, despite what Absurd experienced, there are some bad DI's in all the branches of the service. Some have been identified and prosecuted publicly, most are handled privately, if at all. I had a great DI, but he was new and junior to all the existing DI's and as a group they made our life hell to try to ruin his reputation. We were harrassed so many nights by them that our DI finally had to sleep in the barracks with us to stop it.
3rd, this is a great action series, I highly recommend it.
Profile Image for David Taylor.
1,542 reviews24 followers
May 23, 2023
Jack Noble origin story.

Listening to the audiobook version of The Recruit I was struck by how familiar certain elements were, and as the story progressed, I wondered if Noble was always going to be the bullied underdog. While this was a short story id didn’t lack for anything in terms of characters, action, or even story line. Furthermore, Dennis Holland does an excellent job delivering the story and bringing Jack Noble to life. I do believe I will be following the Jack Noble series in the future.
Profile Image for vivian.
270 reviews1 follower
September 28, 2018
Great short story

A chapter length of what happened to two boot camp recruits and a officer who changed their lives forever by instead of putting them in the bright on trumped up charges transferred them to a special unit that would train them to become a special ops team that would go under cover to rescue others out of countries that were legally not accessible to the USA and act as spies. An episode that created the beginning of their training.
Profile Image for RJ.
2,044 reviews13 followers
December 4, 2022
We’re introduced to Jack Noble, a former All-American quarterback, present recruit in the Marines, and currently getting his butt kicked by the Senior D.I.… Noble was rather difficult to deal with, getting the rest of his platoon in trouble along with himself and the D.I.s. Later, Noble helped one of his platoon getting beaten by the D.I.s. After disposing of the D.I.s, they were taken to the Commanding Officer’s office where they were given the choice to join an alphabet agency.
Profile Image for Jonnie.
819 reviews
February 15, 2023
I read Ripple Effect (a Bear Logan book) and decided to read the Noble series from the beginning. This novella is the first one in the series (although it wasn't the first one written). It gives the history of how Jack and Bear met back on Parris Island when they were Marine recruits. It gives the back story of how their relationship started. The writing is simple and uncomplicated, but the characters are well developed for a short story.
85 reviews1 follower
Read
May 31, 2020
Wonderful Book

This was a prequel to the Jack Noble books.
After reading this I knew I had to continue with book one of the series.
What a fabulous author!
I will definitely be reading more of this author's books.
I highly recommend this book and author.
I tried to give this 6 stars but it wouldn't let me.
Profile Image for Bill Hooten.
924 reviews6 followers
March 11, 2021
I have been looking at L. T. Ryan's "Jack Noble" series as something that I would like to tackle, but never quite got around to it. Well, Audible made this little short prequel available, and I listened to it this afternoon while I was out for my walk. I really, Really, REALLY like it, and there will be more Jack Noble books in my future.
3,099 reviews13 followers
July 17, 2022
It's a short intro to the Jack Noble series and while telling a very familiar story does at least manage to cover the basics.
Jack is in Marine Corps training under the eagle eye of sadistic Drill Instructor Sergeant Kaszlaski.
Kaszlaski gets his comeuppance on page thirteen - that's how short it is!
There's just enough content to whet my interest in reading on.
2 Stars.

418 reviews5 followers
August 11, 2023
Jack Noble history

First things first, this book is really short, around thirty pages, I think and it is also told from a first person perspective. This book tells a little history of Jack Noble, going to Marine Corps boot camp on Paris Island, which sets him and his partner up for their next adventure.

Profile Image for James Thomas.
426 reviews1 follower
June 3, 2024
This is the five-star rating system I use:

★★★★★ Great book! Can’t wait to read it again (and I will).
★★★★☆ Good book. I am glad I read this.
★★★☆☆ OK book. Nothing special but not bad.
★★☆☆☆ Not good. Why did I waste my time?
★☆☆☆☆ Lousy. I didn’t finish.

If for whatever reason, I go back and reread a good book, I will change the rating to five-star because I read it again.
Profile Image for CAROL VANATTA.
223 reviews4 followers
May 10, 2017
Left me hungry for much more

Being a huge fan of C G COOPER when he suggested reading the JACK NOBLE series
I jumped in.
The recruit is a great short story , too short , and left me curious for more.
I think you will enjoy this series too.
346 reviews14 followers
August 20, 2017
A terrific intro to the novels!

This is the first I have read of L T Ryan's work. I think it is a terrific short story giving readers a quick "before" look at his characters Jack and Bear. Definitely going on to book one -- right now!
Profile Image for Will Decker.
Author 23 books17 followers
January 8, 2018
Nice little short story that sets the stage for so much more to come. Having gone through recruit training, I only remember the weak being singled out for ridicule and worse. I never thought of Jack as weak, so I felt a slight disconnect there.
1,124 reviews3 followers
May 29, 2018
POTENTIALLY GREAT THRILLERS

Great story build up for potentially exciting series. How Jack Noble was introduced and defined as the main character was captivating. The addition of his supporting team member and description was very intriguing.
114 reviews1 follower
September 13, 2018
The Recruit

This is the perfect outline to a fantastic set of books. Start with this one and read the entire series. You will be more than satisfied and it always makes you anxious for the next book.
Profile Image for James M Davis.
7 reviews
September 2, 2019
This is a great start on a good action adventure story of Jack Noble.

L.T. Ryan has a way of telling a good story. You start reading and you are hooked on what will happen next. It is hard to put the book down because of the fast action of Jack Noble and partner Bear.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 106 reviews

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