Is any of Tom Clancy's novels good?

[AlphaIVT]

I have to get a reading book by tomorrow and I'm going to drop by the mall today to pick up a book. I'm thinking of getting a Tom Clancy novel, maybe Rainbow Six. Which other one's does he have that are good?

 

[Viper GTS]

My favorites are Patriot Games & Without Remorse. Rainbow Six had some good parts, but it's not one I plan on reading again. I've read PG & WR several times each, they're that good.

Viper GTS

 

[AlphaIVT]

Viper GTS
yup, lots of people recommend those two books on Amazon.com

Are all of his books centered around John Clark/ Jack Ryan character?

 

[Viper GTS]

For the most part, yes. The books are primarily centered around those two people. One of the other good characters is Domingo Chavez (Ding).

I'd start with Patriot Games if I were you. That's the first book in chronological order by story line, although it was actually second book written. It's probably his best book, too.

Viper GTS

 

[AlphaIVT]

Thanks. I guess i'll be picking up Patriot Games today

 

[loner]

Definitely Patriot Games. Then Hunt for Red October. It's so much better if you follow it in sequence!

 

[AlphaIVT]

Forgot this, Rainbox Six is totally different from the story lines in PG and The Hunt for Red October right?

 

[DirkBelig]

I liked Red Storm Rising. I haven't read any Clancy since I started "Clear and Present Danger". I just got too busy to read books.

 

[clintT]

without remorse ROCKS! it's the first book with clark in it!

 

[Viper GTS]

Without Remorse is definitely good. Think "pressure tank."



Viper GTS

 

[yllus]

I'm a fan of his Op-Center series myself. One of the books in that series is where I got the quote in my .sig from.

 

[Pacfanweb]

Red Storm Rising, Patriot Games, Without Remorse are my favorites. All are based on the "Jack Ryan" series of characters except Red Storm Rising, which is a stand alone.

 

[toph99]

Net Force was a good book.... and Rainbow Six i enjoyed immensly. i like the Op-Center books too, they have good characters

 

[Fandu]

The Hunt for Red October is my favorite Clancy novel, I also liked Red Storm Rising. Rainbow Six was sure interesting, and I'd like to read it again, but it is really is alot of filler inbetween the interesting stuff.

 

[Killfile]

Start off with Patriot Games. It's the first Jack Ryan novel and one of the best - and it's certainly not as long as the latest one The Bear and the Dragon - which is so long your descendents may have to finish it for you ...

 

[AlphaIVT]

I just came home from Walden Books and got Patriot Games and Rainbow Six. Can't wait to read them, and cool they have profanity in them also

 

[duragezic]

I've read The Hunt for Red October and Rainbow Six. Both were great. Couldn't really pick a favorite of those though.

 

[Soulflare]

My favorite is "Red Storm Rising" and my least favorite of the eight
or so books I've read would have to be "Sum of All Fears", talk about
a cheesy Hollywood ending. I would also have to recommend Tom's
recent e-book, "Rogue Spear", it may only contain a few paragraphs
of story but the action makes up for it.

 

[clintT]

viper GTS
Without Remorse is definitely good. Think "pressure tank."

hehehehe now that is the way to torture somebody! :Q

my personnel fav is the bang stick, VERY COOL!

 

[zippy]

Yeah, I'd start with Patriot Games. I'm on page 590 of 897 of Rainbow Six now...I skipped the rest...oh well. The chronological order only matters for like 3 books in the Jack Ryan/Clark series it seems to me...they really introduce the characters anew for each book...if he didn't, he wouldn't sell many books.

 

[montanafan]

Another vote for Red Storm Rising. I haven't seen anyone else mention it, but I kind of liked Executive Decision as well.

 

[JohnGalt]

rainbox six is weak.

 

[reitz]

Any book written by Clancy himself is good, but I don't believe he actually writes any of the text for the Op Center series. I tried reading two of them; they were allright, but the writing style is very different from his other books. My bet is that he helped come up with the idea, and was paid a modest sum just to stick his name on the covers.

Like others have suggested, read Patriot Games first.

My favorite is Sum of All Fears.


Edit: Whoa, when did the member statuses change?

 

[Pocatello]

Red Storm Rising, think "tank rush".

 

[denali]

The ones that he writes are much better than the Op-Center and Net-Force books they suck. The last several all have the same basic plot including "The Bear and the Dragon" which I finished last week. As for my favorites having read them all when they released and each one multiple times except the latest, I'll list several.

Hunt for Red October
Without Remorse
The Cardinal of the Kremlin

It's interesting that the ones I like the best are mostly his older books. Of the newer books I really like the ending of "Debt of Honor" and have often wondered what would happen to the country if that really happened, might not be such a bad thing.

Some of the things I like about the books are that you can follow the characters from one book to another. However I don't like the fact that none of the main characters die, and the good guys always win.