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3.9 AVERAGE
3.9 AVERAGE
I didn’t really get into this until about the last 15% of the book. If you are into submarines, naval war strategy and such, this will be the book for you. I’m not, so the very detailed descriptions both went over my head and got tedious.
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
As with all long books, this 100% could have been shorter and would have been better for it.
The writing in this is surprisingly good, especially for the genre (military fiction/thriller?) - I can see why this was successful/is popular. The military references are...sort of explained but not that well for a non-knowledgeable person to really get it. I also found that there were just too many principal characters to keep track of who was who and what they did on all of the subs. It also ends rather abruptly.
Obviously this was written in the 80s so the tech references are kind of hilarious (there is a whole plot point about a guy needing time on a super computer to do calculations that I'm pretty sure my phone has enough power to do these days lol).
The writing in this is surprisingly good, especially for the genre (military fiction/thriller?) - I can see why this was successful/is popular. The military references are...sort of explained but not that well for a non-knowledgeable person to really get it. I also found that there were just too many principal characters to keep track of who was who and what they did on all of the subs. It also ends rather abruptly.
Obviously this was written in the 80s so the tech references are kind of hilarious (there is a whole plot point about a guy needing time on a super computer to do calculations that I'm pretty sure my phone has enough power to do these days lol).
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Heavy on the propaganda, has political and social framings I just don’t enjoy, and overall follows - in my taste - a little too many people.
Parts of this book are incredibly entertaining and have great character work and depth, while other parts just drag on and are incredibly boring.
I found the patronizing way this book narrated on about people who were growing up and socialized through propaganda kind of ironic and not very self-aware.
The Hunt for Red October (the movie) has been one of my favorite pieces of media for more than a decade now - I watch it every New Years Eve, a little tradition that has yet to get old. I consider that movie as one of the most well written movies I’ve ever seen, which is why I was interested in reading the book it was based on. Overall the movie improved on the book by concentrating on fewer characters, putting some of events closer together and streamlining the entire story. The book gave me depth and inner thoughts of characters, especially Ramius, I really enjoyed and that added a lot.
This is a very detailed and fascinating book. It is not the movie, but different. It is far more realistic, and also has far more specific details than the movie could ever hope to have. Unfortunately, it also has wooden characters and dialog (which is why I only give it four stars). It moves quickly, and the tension is palpable.
Very intriguing story, but I got bogged down in all the technical details (which was quite extensive). The writing style of this book just isn't my cup of tea. The story itself and the characters are solid and engaging, but the flow of the narrative is often lost due to tangents about every little mechanical detail that do nothing to further the story and are unnecessary. When I want to read an abundance of tech jargon, I read manuals, not novels.
Conversely, my husband loved it all the more for this very reason (he is a military/history/tech junkie). To each their own.
Conversely, my husband loved it all the more for this very reason (he is a military/history/tech junkie). To each their own.
adventurous
challenging
informative
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
He did SO MUCH research for this, jeez, the amount of detail was crazy. This is absolutely not my kind of book, but it is an incredibly well done story.
Truly engaging story. Narrator is the best I've listened to yet. Encourage everyone to dive into Jack Ryan's world.
Listened using Chirpbooks.com.
Listened using Chirpbooks.com.
I decided to reread this, after recently rewatching the film. It still holds up. A solid story.