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Combat Vol. 2
Combat 2, a selection of stories (originally published in: Combat, a 10 novella 2001 anthology, edited by Stephen Coonts) from authors whose novels define the military fiction genre , come together to reveal how war will be fought in the 21st century. A landmark work, depicting war as it is and soon will be--the shape of war to come with the down-and-dirty "groundpounders" of the U.S...about the men and women willing to put their lives on the line for freedom.
Contents:
al-Jihad / novella by Stephen Coonts: ...the unlikely partnership between an ex-Marine sniper and a female pilot who team up to kill the terrorists who murdered their parents.
Inside Job [Harve Rackham] / novella by Dean Ing: ...unites a private investigator, a bounty hunter, and an FBI agent who together uncover a shadow of terrorism that looms over America and threatens thousands of lives.
Skyhawks Forever / novella by Barrett Tillman: ...a group of retired fighter jocks go in for one last mission, battling enemy jets over the skies of California.
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Contents:
al-Jihad / novella by Stephen Coonts: ...the unlikely partnership between an ex-Marine sniper and a female pilot who team up to kill the terrorists who murdered their parents.
Inside Job [Harve Rackham] / novella by Dean Ing: ...unites a private investigator, a bounty hunter, and an FBI agent who together uncover a shadow of terrorism that looms over America and threatens thousands of lives.
Skyhawks Forever / novella by Barrett Tillman: ...a group of retired fighter jocks go in for one last mission, battling enemy jets over the skies of California.
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352 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published February 18, 2002
11 people are currently reading
115 people want to read
About the author
Stephen Coonts
181 books761 followersStephen Coonts (born July 19, 1946) is an American thriller and suspense novelist.
Coonts grew up in Buckhannon, West Virginia, a small coal-mining town and earned an B.A. degree in political science at West Virginia University in 1968. He entered the Navy the following year and flew an A-6 Intruder medium attack plane during the Vietnam War, where he served on two combat cruises aboard the USS Enterprise (CVN-65). He accumulated 1600 hours in the A-6 Intruder and earned a number of Navy commendations, including the Distinguished Flying Cross. After the war he served as a flight instructor on A-6 aircraft for two years, then did a tour as an assistant catapult and arresting gear officer aboard USS Nimitz (CVN-68). His navigator-bombardier was LTjg Stanley W. Bryant who later became a Rear Admiral and deputy commander-in-chief of the US naval forces in Europe.
After being honorably discharged from duty as a lieutenant in 1977, Coonts pursued a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree at the University of Colorado, graduating in 1979. He then worked as an oil and gas lawyer for several companies, entertaining his writing interests in his free time.
He published short stories in a number of publications before writing Flight of the Intruder in 1986 (made into a movie in 1991). Intruder, based in part on his experiences as a bomber pilot, spent 28 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists in hardcover and launched his career as a novelist. From there he continued writing adventure-mysteries using the character from his first book, Jake Grafton. He has written several other series and stand-alone novels since then, but is most notable for the Grafton books.
Today Coonts continues to write, having had seventeen New York Times bestsellers (out of 20 books), and lives in Las Vegas, Nevada with his wife and son.
Taken from Wikipedia
Learn more about Stephen Coonts on the Macmillan website.
Coonts grew up in Buckhannon, West Virginia, a small coal-mining town and earned an B.A. degree in political science at West Virginia University in 1968. He entered the Navy the following year and flew an A-6 Intruder medium attack plane during the Vietnam War, where he served on two combat cruises aboard the USS Enterprise (CVN-65). He accumulated 1600 hours in the A-6 Intruder and earned a number of Navy commendations, including the Distinguished Flying Cross. After the war he served as a flight instructor on A-6 aircraft for two years, then did a tour as an assistant catapult and arresting gear officer aboard USS Nimitz (CVN-68). His navigator-bombardier was LTjg Stanley W. Bryant who later became a Rear Admiral and deputy commander-in-chief of the US naval forces in Europe.
After being honorably discharged from duty as a lieutenant in 1977, Coonts pursued a Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree at the University of Colorado, graduating in 1979. He then worked as an oil and gas lawyer for several companies, entertaining his writing interests in his free time.
He published short stories in a number of publications before writing Flight of the Intruder in 1986 (made into a movie in 1991). Intruder, based in part on his experiences as a bomber pilot, spent 28 weeks on the New York Times bestseller lists in hardcover and launched his career as a novelist. From there he continued writing adventure-mysteries using the character from his first book, Jake Grafton. He has written several other series and stand-alone novels since then, but is most notable for the Grafton books.
Today Coonts continues to write, having had seventeen New York Times bestsellers (out of 20 books), and lives in Las Vegas, Nevada with his wife and son.
Taken from Wikipedia
Learn more about Stephen Coonts on the Macmillan website.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 15, 2019
A collection of three authors who try to illustrate how war might be fought in the 21 century. The stories are diverting but nothing really memorable. Okay for reading before you go to sleep.
January 17, 2021
Okay, so, about my grading system. It's a little inconsistent. I feel like a one star review is the worst I can give an actual book, but a two star book ISN'T BAD. Just okay.
"Nice. Nice. Not thrilling, but nice."
Three stars is a bit of alright, then. Four is QUITE good, or a personal favorite and five is a goddamed classic, something rare and exceptional. In past I've given fours to "pretty good"s but from now on I'm going to try to remain more consistent.
Accordingly, the last Combat would rate a two, and this a three.
So! Combat #2. Sounds like a comic book. And in a way, it sort of is. There are 10 stories in the collection, six of which I have now read so far. I'll go over more common threads when I find the last book and read it, but it's interesting to note that nearly all of these stories have China as the enemy. Like a full on shooting war enemy. Invasions and nukes and everything. Our number one trading partner China. The China that owned a LOT of America. Dangerously large, U.S.S.R. 2.0 China. Fun pulp, from simpler times.
...Because all these stories were written before 9/11. *shudder*
I was surprised that that Arab terrorists were only the bad guy in one story until I realized this book was published in 2000. Crazy.
Anyway, THE STORIES.
First up is a tale by the editor (and one of my very favorite writers) Stephen Coonts.
I finished the book yesterday (January 14, 2021) but I actually started it the 6th, right after I wrote my report on Combat #1, and I read this story. It's a really interesting comparison to the last story in the last book, with macho posturing I found irksome. This story has a lot of similarities on the surface. Super tough guy, getting on in years, getting called into the fray after years of stepping back.
But instead of the President "You're my only hope"-ing him, Coonts' character is a lot more realistic. He's broke, and he needs money. He's still dangerous, but in the real world, that doesn't mean as much it used to. The stakes are more realistic, too. Coonts' story is more about a woman's need for revenge and the guy questioning his own motives for being there, as opposed to single handedly sneaking in and out of Taiwan and saving the world before dinner and killing, like, a bunch of dudes... and a submarine.
The protagonist was more like a character Harrison Ford would play; Indiana Jones rather that James Bond. The story was better, the writing was effortless, and I really wish I had saved it for last. Instead, I didn't read the next story for over a week. Just a great story. Also, the only dude who thought that Islamic terrorists might be worth writing about. Coonts alone bumps this collection up to a three star rating.
The second story by Dean Ing was also good, and an interesting change of pace. It was a detective yarn; near-future near-noir set in San Francisco. It was pulpy and slow, rolling at a comfortable pace until it finishes with an exciting Macgyver-esque climax.
The last one by Barrett Tilman was quite the page turner, largely because it had like four page chapters. It was a fast paced fighter pilot story, that was written by someone who REALLY likes fighter novels. The jargon and terminology was ridiculous, and if Stephen Coonts and Larry Hama hadn't taught me so much I'd have nearly no idea what was happening. Still, it was engaging, and moved at a break-neck pace. A nice switch up from the last one.
Looking forward to the next collection!
Recommended if you enjoyed the first one!
"Nice. Nice. Not thrilling, but nice."
Three stars is a bit of alright, then. Four is QUITE good, or a personal favorite and five is a goddamed classic, something rare and exceptional. In past I've given fours to "pretty good"s but from now on I'm going to try to remain more consistent.
Accordingly, the last Combat would rate a two, and this a three.
So! Combat #2. Sounds like a comic book. And in a way, it sort of is. There are 10 stories in the collection, six of which I have now read so far. I'll go over more common threads when I find the last book and read it, but it's interesting to note that nearly all of these stories have China as the enemy. Like a full on shooting war enemy. Invasions and nukes and everything. Our number one trading partner China. The China that owned a LOT of America. Dangerously large, U.S.S.R. 2.0 China. Fun pulp, from simpler times.
...Because all these stories were written before 9/11. *shudder*
I was surprised that that Arab terrorists were only the bad guy in one story until I realized this book was published in 2000. Crazy.
Anyway, THE STORIES.
First up is a tale by the editor (and one of my very favorite writers) Stephen Coonts.
I finished the book yesterday (January 14, 2021) but I actually started it the 6th, right after I wrote my report on Combat #1, and I read this story. It's a really interesting comparison to the last story in the last book, with macho posturing I found irksome. This story has a lot of similarities on the surface. Super tough guy, getting on in years, getting called into the fray after years of stepping back.
But instead of the President "You're my only hope"-ing him, Coonts' character is a lot more realistic. He's broke, and he needs money. He's still dangerous, but in the real world, that doesn't mean as much it used to. The stakes are more realistic, too. Coonts' story is more about a woman's need for revenge and the guy questioning his own motives for being there, as opposed to single handedly sneaking in and out of Taiwan and saving the world before dinner and killing, like, a bunch of dudes... and a submarine.
The protagonist was more like a character Harrison Ford would play; Indiana Jones rather that James Bond. The story was better, the writing was effortless, and I really wish I had saved it for last. Instead, I didn't read the next story for over a week. Just a great story. Also, the only dude who thought that Islamic terrorists might be worth writing about. Coonts alone bumps this collection up to a three star rating.
The second story by Dean Ing was also good, and an interesting change of pace. It was a detective yarn; near-future near-noir set in San Francisco. It was pulpy and slow, rolling at a comfortable pace until it finishes with an exciting Macgyver-esque climax.
The last one by Barrett Tilman was quite the page turner, largely because it had like four page chapters. It was a fast paced fighter pilot story, that was written by someone who REALLY likes fighter novels. The jargon and terminology was ridiculous, and if Stephen Coonts and Larry Hama hadn't taught me so much I'd have nearly no idea what was happening. Still, it was engaging, and moved at a break-neck pace. A nice switch up from the last one.
Looking forward to the next collection!
Recommended if you enjoyed the first one!
July 7, 2020
Does not live up to 1 & 3. Probably should not have been included in series as don't match techno thriller genre, IMHO. Very disappointed in this expensive e-book.
FYI. You can now purchase the whole series in one book, Combat for the same price as each individual volume of series. That was not available when I began reading the series.
BTW. I highly recommend 1&3. So get the whole collection!
FYI. You can now purchase the whole series in one book, Combat for the same price as each individual volume of series. That was not available when I began reading the series.
BTW. I highly recommend 1&3. So get the whole collection!
September 9, 2017
Well. The problem is that I read this book too late. 15 years ago it was up to date and it was possible to believe it.
Now it's completely outdated and more military and cultural references are just plainly wrong. The use of computers and so on it really off target!
Now it's completely outdated and more military and cultural references are just plainly wrong. The use of computers and so on it really off target!
November 20, 2015
"Combat Vol. 2" review
By
Michael Estes
Combat Vol. 2 features three stories told by different authors telling what they each believed the future of war would look like. The first story is "Al-Jihad" by Stephen Coonts. The story follows a former sniper who is hired by a former female helicopter pilot to help avenge her family. The second story is "inside job" by Dean Ing. That story follows a bounty hunter who is hired to help two of his old friends investigate a possible terrorist cell. The third and final story is "Skyhawks forever" by . It follows some military pilots who after a failed experimental aircraft test must go to war.
"Al-Jihad" is the story of two people trying to take down a group of terrorists. The main character Charlie Dean is a former sniper, who is actually pretty believable. He is visited by the daughter of one of his military generals, Julie Giraud. She hires him to help take down her parents' killers. The story is very simple and doesn't go deeply into political information that people like myself are not very good at keeping up with. The twists in this story are decent and I give it a 8/10.
"Inside job" follows a bounty hunter whose name I couldn't find/remember, that is asked to join his old friends Quentin Kim and Dana Martin in their quest to stop a terrorist attack. The title pretty much tells you what the plot-twist is, so that kinda brings down the story a little bit. The villain of this story was very entertaining. I liked the main three characters relationship because it was very realistic, and so I give this a 7.8/10.
The final story "Skyhawks forever" shows that after a tragedy strikes a group of fighter jocks, they can still pull off one last mission. The main character Liv is compelling in her mindset of if something goes wrong. The fight in the skies takes up most of the story which is pretty great because it's fun to watch the chaos unfold. The other characters are interesting, but kinda one-sided. All-in-all it's a normal action thriller, that I give a 8/10.
As a collection these stories are pretty fun to read, even though I was in a hurry. The political matters get a little complicated at points, but I was able to figure them out eventually. The main characters are each very interesting. I would recommend this to people who love political action thrillers, around the age of 14 and up. The stories teams are very fluent playing off each other, even the villains, so my final rating for the collection is 8/10.
By
Michael Estes
Combat Vol. 2 features three stories told by different authors telling what they each believed the future of war would look like. The first story is "Al-Jihad" by Stephen Coonts. The story follows a former sniper who is hired by a former female helicopter pilot to help avenge her family. The second story is "inside job" by Dean Ing. That story follows a bounty hunter who is hired to help two of his old friends investigate a possible terrorist cell. The third and final story is "Skyhawks forever" by . It follows some military pilots who after a failed experimental aircraft test must go to war.
"Al-Jihad" is the story of two people trying to take down a group of terrorists. The main character Charlie Dean is a former sniper, who is actually pretty believable. He is visited by the daughter of one of his military generals, Julie Giraud. She hires him to help take down her parents' killers. The story is very simple and doesn't go deeply into political information that people like myself are not very good at keeping up with. The twists in this story are decent and I give it a 8/10.
"Inside job" follows a bounty hunter whose name I couldn't find/remember, that is asked to join his old friends Quentin Kim and Dana Martin in their quest to stop a terrorist attack. The title pretty much tells you what the plot-twist is, so that kinda brings down the story a little bit. The villain of this story was very entertaining. I liked the main three characters relationship because it was very realistic, and so I give this a 7.8/10.
The final story "Skyhawks forever" shows that after a tragedy strikes a group of fighter jocks, they can still pull off one last mission. The main character Liv is compelling in her mindset of if something goes wrong. The fight in the skies takes up most of the story which is pretty great because it's fun to watch the chaos unfold. The other characters are interesting, but kinda one-sided. All-in-all it's a normal action thriller, that I give a 8/10.
As a collection these stories are pretty fun to read, even though I was in a hurry. The political matters get a little complicated at points, but I was able to figure them out eventually. The main characters are each very interesting. I would recommend this to people who love political action thrillers, around the age of 14 and up. The stories teams are very fluent playing off each other, even the villains, so my final rating for the collection is 8/10.
September 14, 2009
This is a compendium of novelettes by Stephen Coonts, Dean Ing, and Barrett Tillman. The Coonts story was confusing and only fair. I enjoyed the Ing story the most because of its setting in San Jose, CA, and the Bay Area, but it had plot holes big enough to fly a helicopter through. The story by Tillman was so bogged down in detail and so incredibly boring that I actually gave up --- which I never do. Can't recommend this one.
February 3, 2014
Write a 100 page story. These three show it's harder for novelists than you would think.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews