Lock and Load! A Military History/Fiction Reading Room

This is a fan club for all of those who are interested in the military fiction. It will serve as a waypoint for newcomers to the genre as to who is good and who is not. Everyone is invited!


Since I am creating this thread I will pose the first topic for discussion:

Who are the best writers in this genre and what new book are you looking forward to?


My list for best authors:
Larry Bond (Early stuff, not The Enemy Within or Day of Wrath)
Tom Clancy
Stephen Coonts
Dale Brown

The book I am most looking forward to is Clancy's Red Rabbit. It is a tale of Jack Ryan's first mission in the CIA. (For those of you not familiar with the Ryanverse but saw Sum of All Fears, it is not accurate in the holding to Clancy's story).

Edit: Author's Requested Title Change

 

Larry Bond's Red Phoenix remains an excellent book in the genre, although it's a bit dated now.

 

I don't know, Korea is one of the "evil doers"

I thought the destruction of the Spruance class destroyer in that book was one of the most powerful scenes I had ever read. Then I remembered that my Brother-in-law was serving on one of them on West-Pac at the time. Made it even more scary!

I agree that Red Pheonix is an awesome piece of work. I wish Bond would start writing again.

 

I was going to suggest that you change the title, but I didn't want to sound rude. Good job.

 

It's not the Korea aspect that dates it, it's the inclusion of the Soviet Union. I thought the evolution of Lt. Little's character, Rhee and other characters were what turned the story from just another book into a classic of the genre.

 

Hey, it could be like the Simpsons episode in which in a meeting with of the UN, the Russian Ambassador accidentally says "Soviet Union" in reference to his country. When called on it, he presses a button and his country card in front of him flips to USSR and he says "fooled you" and laughs evilly.


I had actually forgotten about the USSR playing a role in that book.

 

Do the Rogue Squadron books count?

 

I like Mack Maloney.

Wingman Series
Chopper Ops
War Heaven
Thunder Alley
Starhawk Series

I also like the Henry Turtledove series.

Catch-22 is a classic.

 

Catch-22 is a classic.

Yes it is. It's one of the best black comedies I've ever read.

Anyway, though this is primarily a discussion of military fiction, I can't help but list excellent works of military non-fiction:

Hiroshima
Seven Roads to Hell
With the Old Breed

I've read all of them recently and enjoyed them greatly.

 

I like the "Area 51" series. It's kind of odd in that the first two books have the more realistic swearing Green Beret (dozens of "f-words" in one chapter), who doesn't let out one expletive from the third book on...

 

Discussion please guys.

 

The Brotherhood of War and The Corps series of books by WEB Griffin are absolute "must-reads" for anyone interested in military fiction. They are detailed and accurate portrayals not only of combat, but of the unique world that soldiers inhabit. They are on the Army's official recommended reading list for new second lieutenants.

Other authors I would recommend include Ed Ruggero (38 North Yankee, The Academy, Duty First) and Harold Coyle (Team Yankee,Bright Star, The Ten Thousand, Code of Honor). Both these authors do a fantastic job getting inside the heads of soldiers ranging from generals to privates. Coyle, especially, does well portraying young officers and the responsibilities and choices that our military system thrusts upon these young people who have fine training, but precious little real experience.

Clancy's books are entertaining, but except for The Hunt for Red October and Red Storm Rising, I haven't found his books that compelling as military fiction. His military characters tend to be completely noble and virtuous, without a lot complexity. That's a generalization, and I know some people will disagree. IMHO, he doesn't give us a real feel for soldiers and their mindsets.

 

Does this include historical fiction like the Shaara's?

I've been a huge Clancy fan, what is known about "Red Rabbit"?

 

From Amazon.com

Editorial Reviews
Book Description
Long before he was President or head of the CIA, before he fought terrorist attacks on the Super Bowl or the White House, even before a submarine named Red October made its perilous way across the Atlantic, Jack Ryan was an historian, teacher, and recent ex-Marine temporarily living in England while researching a book. A series of deadly encounters with an IRA splinter group had brought him to the attention of the CIA's Deputy Director, Vice Admiral James Greer-as well as his counterpart with the British SIS, Sir Basil Charleston-and when Greer asked him if he wanted to come aboard as a freelance analyst, Jack was quick to accept. The opportunity was irresistible, and he was sure he could fit it in with the rest of his work.

And then Jack forgot all about the rest of his work, because one of his first assignments was to help debrief a high-level Soviet defector, and the defector told an amazing tale: Top Soviet officials, including Yuri Andropov, were planning to assassinate the Pope, John Paul II.

Could it be true? As the days and weeks go by, Ryan must battle, first to try to confirm the plot, and then to prevent it, but this is a brave new world, and nothing he has done up to now has prepared him for the lethal game of cat-and-mouse that is the Soviet Union versus the United States. In the end, it will be not just the Pope's life but the stability of the Western world that is at stake. . . and it may already be too late for a novice CIA analyst to do anything about it. [/block quote]


It will be released on August 5, 2002.

And yes, any form of military books, fiction or true life is more than welcome.

 

Clancy is one of my faves.

DarthNut,
the nuttiest guy around.

 

Has anyone noticed the tendency of book publishers to attach reviewer's comments of a book above the title?

I can't remember who wrote the book, or what the title was, but the top of the book stated that this author "Out Clancy-ed Clancy. It was hideous. I didn't get more than probably 30 pages into it.

What other military authors are overated?

 

Don't read the Sixth Fleet series by David E. Meadows. Painful to sit through, I never even finished the first book.

 

Up

 

Clancy is one of the best. I'm thinking of reading some Stephen Coonts books, though. Any suggestions?

 

I enjoy Coonts. Start with Flight of the Intruder.
Stay away from Dale Brown. I got sick of his book Hammerheads when he had the Vice President of the USA OK military strikes against drug runners and their compouds.

Some of his stuff is too far fetched. His book the Tin Man is quie contrived. Man builds super suit, it is stolen, used for evil, and then a super big collosal show down between the original man in the suit and the person who stole it.

 

The other day I picked up a book by Dan Brown called "Warrior Class". I plan to read that after a few Clancy books I got.

DarthNut,
the nuttiest guy around.

 

Dale Brown has some rather good books under his belt - Flight of the Old Dog and Night of the Hawk(?) being probably the best. They work together very well. Brown's problme is that he relies too much on the nuclear card. IIRC, all but one of his books after Hammerheads had the bad guys using nukes. It got to be way too much for me, especially after the one where China lobs a dozen IRBMs at Guam for no really justified reason and has already nuked Taiwan into a wasteland.

 

I read Tom Clancy's Bear and the Dragon book, somewhat interesting, but had too much needless swearing and sexual inuendo.

 

Ok, I don't know what I was smoking. At the top I stated that Brown was in my top list of military writers, and then I state later that people should not read his writings.

I guess I just thought too much about his books Hammerheads, Day of the Cheetah, and the Tin Man. The Flight of the Old Dog was really good. I enjoyed that, I haven't read any of his recent stuff. I guess I need to make a used bookstore run.

 

As you probably figured out I meant Dale, not Dan Brown in the above post.

DarthNut,
the nuttiest guy around.