Rainbow Six (published in 1998) - Terrorist fighting unit - Authored by Tom Clancy

Tom Clancy was a best selling author who died in the year 2013, dying at the age of 66 years. He has written a number of best-sellers, mostly focusing on military and intelligence matters, writing with a lot of depth and yet making the novel interesting. The main character in his fiction is the conservative, deeply moral and family man Jack Ryan, yet another character who plays a notable role in many of his books is the more mixed character of John Clark. He is more of an action guy, who can kill on behalf of the country, and also where he feels he is in the right and acting as an avenging angel, such as 'Without Remorse' where he feels the impact of a drug-runner's syndicate and takes revenge on those who killed his girl-friend. The net result of all these murders was that he was deemed intelligent enough and skilled enough to become part of the CIA, and all the killing of drug-runners was more in tune with what the US was trying to do.
The problem when dealing with terrorism, especially in a continent such as Europe, is about the borders between different nation-states and no interaction between the different countries and their police forces / specialized units. There are a number of issues that come to the fore when trying to get cooperation between the different nations involved, so the premise of the book is a bit difficult to believe; the book presumes that various countries agreed to contribute personnel to a security force that could go across nations and fight terrorist incidents where they occur (although in an admission of the need to get approval, the (Rainbow Six - the name of the security force) needs to be called in by the nation involved).




Also, the incidents of terrorism that happen nowadays are not the bank robberies or kidnapping in high-profile incidents, but cases of bomb blasts and the like, where you either need a security force to prevent such incidents from happening, or a good investigating agency to go across borders and determine who actually carried out the incidents. However, if you leave these quibbles aside, the book presents the action of the acts of terrorism (including the reaction of this specialized force - Rainbow Six - which is headed by John Clark, he being the one who had proposed the formation of such a force to the President, one assumes that was Jack Ryan).
Tom Clancy was never fond of the environmental movement, and that comes out in several of his books, although this book takes the narrative much further, presenting a plan by some rabid environmentalists to create a bioweapon that would be launched during the Olympics, and would kill of most of the people currently present on earth (a few would remain who would either have natural immunity, or who were given the antidote). When Clark learns about his, what does he do ?

The Sum of all Fears (published in 1991) - Thermo-nuclear blast, authored by Tom Clancy

Tom Clancy was a bestseller author, who wrote with great authority on the military and on intelligence matters. However, even though he wrote expertly and with great detail on the matters that he wrote about, his books were not boring. Imagine a detailed description of how a hydrogen (thermonuclear) bomb works, imagine it written out in a novel, and imagine how scared you can be of the prospect that a physicist, with access to a core of plutonium, and without the support of a nation state, can construct a huge weapon that has the potential to destroy a city and also bring the major powers to war with each other. The detailed description of how a hydrogen bomb, with its fission and fusion steps, almost seems out of a physics book without the technical jargon that would be there in a textbook.
The book is the 5th in the series of books that had Jack Ryan as the character, and here he is in a senior position in the CIA, but unfortunately not on good terms with the National Security Advisor (Liz Elliott) because of some ego issues. Unfortunately for Ryan, this carries a lot of weight, because normally the NSA carries a lot of weight, but in this case, since the NSA is also having an affair with the President, it carries even more importance. By this time, Ryan is also well know within Congress since he was intimately involved with the going-ons in the previous book, Clear and Present Danger, which forced the moving aside of the then President and the coming into the Presidency of the current president, Robert Fowler.
The book starts with a new twist to the Israeli-Palestinian twist, whereby everybody normally knows of the public cycle of rock-throwing and retaliation, which can result in deaths, but don't cause any moral issues on a wide scale. However, the book takes a new tactic by the Palestinians, where they oppose the Israeli army through non-violent means, and are viciously attacked by a slightly deranged Israeli army commander. This sight, on view on TV screens, forces a changeover in the morality, since nobody can defend this action of killing peaceful protesters who were not attacking them. Israel stands on the verge of being isolated, and although this isolation has happened, a change in attitude in the US could be very significant.

A quick plan, started by Jack Ryan, goes through the various stakeholders including the Vatican, the Saudis, the Russians, and a potential peace is declared in the troubled areas of the Middle East, where a troika of different religious leaders administer the region. This causes havoc in the minds of terrorists, since the confrontation is their life blood, and they join forces with a German terrorist who was also finding safe sanctuary missing with the meltdown of the communist worlds of eastern Europe. This would not mean anything, but they have found a lost Israeli bomb in the Golan Heights, and that is seen as the basis for building a powerful bomb, that combined with other actions, will make it seem that this was done by the Russians and provoke a massive confrontation.
With the bomb having been made, it is sought to be exploded in Denver when the Super Bowl is happening, which would devastate the city and also take out senior administration officials who were there to take part in the game. Combine this with an attack supposedly by the Russians in Berlin on American forces, and a weakened and traumatized President, not getting good counsel, and the situation rapidly escalates. The Russians are blamed, and they are shocked to find that they are being blamed, with a battle happening in Berlin and some of their aircraft getting downed without warning near Libya. But if threatened, they have the potential to kill back in equal number. Ryan is getting some good intelligence, but will the President listen in time ? A gripping, although seemingly unrealistic novel.

The Cardinal of the Kremlin (published in 1988) - A spy novel authored by Tom Clancy

Tom Clancy, who died recently, was a prolific writer of fiction, but the gripping kind. His novels were long, the books thick, but they were very detailed, and for his fans (of which I am one), they were hard to put down. Unlike many other novelists who would write with the concept of the CIA being a bad force, Clancy was more of a fan of the intelligence agencies, and specifically of the CIA (but not every officer of the CIA). His favorite was a reflection of how he himself was - conservative, high on morals, and hard working, able to do the right thing when it was required rather than backing down. And this was another novel in the earlier life of Jack Ryan, the character he created, a former marine who entered the CIA as a sort of reaction to terrorists attack on his family and who was not very fond of the politics inside the agency. By reading his novels, you would feel that you know what happens inside the agency, making it seem more humane.
The Cardinal of the Kremlin was another spy story, set within the environment of non-violent conflict between the Soviet Union and the United States. They would spy on each other, try their hardest to keep on evolving new technologies to outdo each other, and also when required (in an extreme case) conduct actual physical operations in each other's territory although this was limited since an all out conduct of physical operations in each other's territory that involved kidnapping or murder would become horrendous very soon, in a game of catch-up. The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan had already happened and the fight-back by the Mujhaideen, supported by the US and Saudi Arabia was already on to oppose this invasion. Both countries were also in the midst of using laser research to develop high-energy weapons, to also conduct anti-satellite operations. But the most important element in the book was the 'Cardinal', one of the most important Soviet military agents who was controlled by the CIA and revealed a lot of super-secret military information.



The book deals with the life of 2 men - Jack Ryan, who is in the CIA and moving up in the agency. His role in the 'The Hunt for Red October' has earned him laurels. The other person who the books deals with is Colonel Mikhail Semyonovich Filitov, code name 'Cardinal', who is a decorated soldier and a war hero, and also the aide to the Soviet defense minister. In his position, he is invaluable to the CIA, but the passing on of documents is also an invitation to being revealed. Either somebody on the other side can reveal it, or counter-intelligence agents can figure out that information is being leaked, and that will meet that sooner or later the agent will be found out. In most countries, spying is deemed as treason, and is rewarded with execution, so the other country will try desperately to get their spy out. That is what happens in this case; the Cardinal is caught (but so important is his status and being a war hero, that the though of torturing him to get him to confess his crimes is fraught with danger, with the Soviet army reluctant to let their hero be tortured). And with the loss of the Red October submarine in the previous novel, and a few more cases, Ryan is able to force the hand of the KGB chief and present him no option but to defect. And then there is the case of the rival laser research and kidnapping and attack on installations ? For all this, you will have to read the book.

Red Storm Rising (published in 1986) - Authored by Tom Clancy, a conflict between NATO and Warsaw

Tom Clancy (1947 - 2013) was an author who wrote a number of gripping novels taking the intelligence agencies and military and wrote novels around these, involving a number of different countries. In some cases, the level of details was such that it surprised even experts. For example, when his first novel, 'The Hunt for Red October' came out in 1984, it was a big hit and the details of nuclear submarines was a surprise to everyone (with one person even wondering how the Government allowed a novel with such details to be published). Over a period of time, his novels, which initially focused on confrontation with the Soviets at an intelligence and military level, moved to new challenges, including reconciliation and support with the Russians and conflict with the Chinese (somewhat warped, and maybe even racist to some level - The Bear and the Dragon), and with more and more focus to conflict with Islamic terrorism (and the haunting depiction of the crashing of a full size commercial jet into the US Congress in the year 1994 - many years before the terrorist strike of 2001). For his fans, his novels were well researched novels, with a lot of details about how the intelligence agencies of the US Government worked, particularly through one of his chief characters - the honest and moral, and conservative Jack Ryan. For the generation who have been born after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, a novel about a clash between the huge Warsaw Pact and NATO forces in Europe would seem so old word, but this novel is a fascinating reading about how the policy making works in a restricted government - where the leaders think that whatever they say will happen. And the details of the military action are also great. Of course, most of Clancy's novels are gripping, but they are thick and take their own time to read (and read with great care).



Red Storm Rising does not have any association with Jack Ryan, one of the few of Clancy's novels that do not have any association with his chief character. It starts out with a terrorist strike by independence seekers from Azerbaijan who destroy a huge oil production facility, with this single striking causing a massive blow to the ability of the Soviet Union to generate oil - and this affects their production facilities, their farm production and their military. One option is to get cooperation from the West and seek their help - but internal politics plays a key role in moving the politburo away from this option and instead launching an all out attack on the NATO forces across Europe so as to prevent them from mobilizing in support of a Soviet drive to attack across Iran and seize the Persian oil field. The concept being to somehow show that there was an attack on the Warsaw Pact and this would force the Soviet Union to retaliate and hold NATO in Europe and keep them busy. And why would this work ? The Warsaw Pact had a much larger number of tanks and military equipment than NATO, but the quality of forces is a different matter.
However, NATO learns of these plans and on the first day of the offensive, manage to get their superior aircraft to slow down the Russian advance by destroying enemy aircraft and key infrastructure such as bridges. Soviet planners expected a slow advance through Germany and were willing to take losses, but were also able to surprise their NATO opposites through seizing Iceland, and also using some tactical efforts to attack some NATO naval vessels.
However, things start to reverse with the grounding of the force based at Iceland and re-taking of Iceland by the US Marines. And then a quick attack places NATO forces behind the front of the Soviet army and then the forces also learn knowledge about the dire fuel status of the Soviet armies and they destroy some of their fuel supplies, in a prelude to the general attack against the Soviet army forces. But such an offensive might force the Russians to go nuclear. What happens next ?

Flesh and Blood (published in 2001) - Authored by Jonathan Kellerman

Flesh and Blood is a first person account by Dr. Alex Delaware about Lauren Teague whom he treated as a child, before her father intervened and stopped the treatment. Lauren was a typical fifteen year old; trouble being her middle name, her tantrums, misdemeanors and attitude are what got her to therapy (she tried her damndest to worm her way out of it) - although two sessions hardly amount to that!
Ten years later, Alex receives a call from Jane Abbot - Lauren’s mother. Alex is a little wary and cautious as he remembers how much Lauren hated his interference in her life (he however finds out that the kid actually admired him a lot, and wanted to be a therapist like him when she grew up - surprising that he made such an impact in just two visits!). He is also aware that the young woman is stripping for a living, he saw her at a bachelor’s party six years after she left therapy. Lauren even visited Alex at his office, and told him she is happy with how things are, and that she’s doing well for herself - another four years have passed since they met last.
A riot of thoughts runs through his mind as he wonders why Jane is calling about her daughter. The frantic mother tells the doctor that Lauren is missing; she seems to have just vanished into thin air - the police seem distanced and uncooperative, and she seeks his help to locate her daughter. Milo Sturgis, Delaware’s friend and LAPD detective helps Alex find Lauren - sadly her body is in a dumpster, hogtied and shot. Who could’ve wanted the girl dead - a list that is possibly hundreds of names long-crops up. Lauren’s high-end services as an escort and prostitute could have earned her some jealous peers or even obsessive clients. Her own father Lyle Teague is a negative and dark presence in her life, she never wanted anything to do with him - but could he have detested her enough to have murdered her?



Andy, Lauren’s homosexual roommate is also questioned, but he seems to know next to nothing about her life. Then there’s Gene Dalby (her friend and professor at college). Finally what does Dr. Benjamin Drugger, director of the women’s motivational facility have to do with Lauren - were they lovers? On further investigation, it appears that one Shawna Yager, another student of the same college where Lauren was, had also disappeared a year ago - could this be related?
Even though Sturgis has told Delaware that Lauren had a record for prostitution, Alex is not willing to accept that her life as a sex worker had anything to do with her death. Although prostitution sounds like a dirty and dark business (and it is, beyond doubt) - Lauren was not really part of the cesspool, yet there must be more to her life, she was a great student, with good grades, studying to be a psychologist. Neck-deep in brothel madams and porn - Alex is set to redeem the dead woman’s honor.
The story is slow paced yet riveting, the cast of characters is interesting, including a Hugh Heffner type porn tycoon! The uninteresting bit is about Alex and Robin’s blow-hot-blow-cold relationship which seems to interest no one, not even them - so much so that Robin chooses to take a holiday without Alex. Kellerman’s fifteenth Delaware novel, and he manages to get it bang on every time - the narrative flows easy, blending in with the much loved Detective Delaware’s tenacity and talent.

Dr. Death (Published in 2000) - Authored by Jonathan Kellerman

The Humanitron had taken fifty lives. And now, its final victim was the inventor of the pieced together death machine - Dr. Eldon Mate aka Dr. Death, but the IV bottles with potassium chloride and thiopental hooked to his arms are just a cloak behind which the actual cause of death is hidden. Injury to the head, castration - in fact, the doctor was bled through eight cuts. Macabre.
No secret that many would’ve kicked their heels up in joy at the news of Mate’s death, actually, there were many you’d suspect wouldn’t mind murdering the man or getting someone else to do it for them - the Church, supremacists, proponents of religious & moral conservatism - the list is endless. For his part, Eldon has many shades to his character - his surname for instance , could vulgarly be translated to mean the obvious, however, ‘mate’ in Spanish also means ‘to kill’ (he is survived by his widow, who being of Latin origin may have given him this useful insight into the nomenclature of his name!). All said and done, Eldon is far from likeable, as his post-life profiling reveals - he willingly assists anyone for any reason, walking the tight rope between morality, ethics and just pure thrill for kill.
The man of the hour is Alex Delaware, who makes his fourteenth appearance with Sturgis - the two team up to create a profile of the killer as well as set out to map the road taken by him or her that led to the horrific death of Eldon Mate. However, the two friends experience a slight turbulence, as Milo is offended that Alex should invoke doctor-patient secrecy and sanctity, by not giving him details of his dealings with one of the ‘travelers’ (as the incumbents awaiting death were referred to) relatives. Joanna Doss, the late wife of Richard Doss, a real estate developer, was one such traveler who was brought on board by her daughter Stacy. Joanna was being suffered immensely before she sought Eldon’s help - unbeknownst to Richard. The impropriety of discussing his patient’s revelations weighs heavily on the relationship which Milo and Delaware have shared for years.



The other suspect is an obsessive FBI Agent, Leimart Fusco, who has been trailing the suspect of many euthanasia-related deaths in healthcare facilities, and several other ‘mercy killers’, one of whom has a taste for psychopathic geometrical carving of corpses, who would vie for Eldon’s shoes are also suspect. Even his own son - who was abandoned, and lives on the fringes of society is on the list. The interesting aspect of the story is the network Kellerman creates while building up to the climax, while many readers have found it somewhat disappointing, one appreciates the effort taken to build the crescendo.
Kellerman brings in Detective Petra Connor who has a cameo appearance (her own novels being Survival of the Fittest, Billy Straight). His writing is short and layered at the same time - the average person has no difficulty understanding the shades, without any intellectual maneuvering to do. Implied inspiration from the real life Dr. Death - Dr. Jack Kevorkian – this thriller is a must, great weekend read, difficult to put down!

The Clinic (published in 1997) - Authored by Jonathan Kellerman

Heart, groin, back, cold rage, class snobbery, sexual intimacy, criminal confidence - just some of the dirt that gruesome knife slashes can throw up. As Alex Delaware tries to unravel the motive behind Hope Devane’s murder, he is intrigued that someone would want to kill the feminist-badge totting hardliner in so gruesome a manner. No doubt Hope has rankled a number of men with her extreme take on suffragists and their role in making society what it is today, that men were responsible for the martyrdom of femdom featured regularly in her talks and writings.
Delaware is able to make a connection that it has to be someone close to Hope who has killed her; a random murder wouldn’t have been so suggestive and message-rendering as hers. Her husband Phillip seems to have accepted her fame and popularity with studied ease, could he have a motive? Could the nameless, faceless person, who read her bestseller “Wolves and Sheep”- about how women are victimized by men, have had a motive? Could someone from the date-rape panel at her college been responsible? Could the suspicious character at the ob/gynae clinic be a killer?
But despite the male basher attitude that Hope had, she actually enjoyed the company of men and was friendly to quite a few of them - a fact that Delaware discovers along the way. And in doing so, has a couple of red herrings he has to deal with - the relationship Hope shared with her doctoral supervisee Casey Locking, the specialist in fertility from whom she received a huge amount of money for consultation, her private life, and the links she may have had with a mafia boss and Vegas showgirl. From one positive break to a claustrophobic dead end, Alex and Milo begin to understand why the case has been classified as cold.




Hope Devane’s list of enemies which seemed nonexistent at first is now peppered with suspects, after all the tough lady had rubbed so many people the wrong way; its almost as if she wished to master the whole control through psychology strategy - right from setting up inquisition style interpersonal conduct committees to extreme male bashing - could the lady have had it coming - obviously?
The Delaware - Sturgis friendships have been a regular feature over the past ten books, and it is refreshing to note that the two are given yet another opportunity to bond with each other. We witness the LAPD detective gently persuading college girls and arm twisting lawyers, undercover role as a soap producer or cruising in his Porsche: Milo-a-plenty. We would have liked to see Robin feature more often, her presence humanizes Delaware, and he seems a believable creation!
The novel is signature Kellerman, written in the typically and intentionally face paced, short sentenced style that the author is know by; the element of surprise in the book is the fact that this time, there isn’t really a sub plot to throws you off scent - he gets straight to the murder in the very first chapter, and all forty one chapters are racy, heart thumping and adrenalin pumping windows into clues that get you closer to nabbing the killer.