Author: Tom Clancy
Plot Synopsis
525 million people in the USSR and the USA live beneath skies full of potential. Specifically the potential of an unstoppable hail of nuclear warheads. Most feared of the launching sites are the quiet missile-armed submarines - able to tiptoe nearly unheard into the territorial waters just offshore major cities...The balance of terror is held by the frightening promise of retaliatory strikes. Designed to tip the balance in the favor of the USSR is the Red October, a revolutionary (pun not intended) new stealthy missile-armed submarine. The gloating of the USSR high command is cut short by a letter from Captain Ramius, commander of the Red October...
Brian's Review
In a world balanced on the edge of fireballs and radioactivity, it is a frightening prospect to think of the power of launching a nuclear attacks landing in the wrong hands. The Hunt for Red October conveys this fear rather well. This is Clancy's smash-hit first novel, and the resulting thirty years of accolades are well deserved. Personally, I highly enjoyed the character development, race-track plot, and careful attention to technical details. These highpoints became known as Clancy's trademark writing style. The protagonist of the novel, Jack Ryan, is everything you would hope a good American hero to be - a heroic individual who nonetheless does not stand alone on the battlefield. Nor is Jack perfect - Clancy expertly weaves in personality flaws, which makes relating to Jack easy.
Read it!
