“Threat Vector” by Tom Clancy and Mark Greaney – Warfare Evolution

When most of us think of warfare, we probably imagine ourselves dozens, hundreds, or perhaps even thousands of soldiers going head to head with each other, whether it’s with clubs and swords or tanks and machineguns.

Over the past few decades though, warfare has changed tremendously to the point where technology and intelligence dictate who the winner will be without question. As it happens, relatively little is written about this kind of warfare, the one fought behind closed doors at headquarters, and that’s exactly what we get with Tom Clancy's and Mark Greaney's Threat Vector, a novel with Jack Ryan as the main protagonist.

This time around, as Jack Ryan returns to the Oval Office a new threat arises: the Chinese Government finds itself forced to comply with the expansionist policies of General Su Ke Qiang, which leads to a declaration of war on Taiwan. Not content to sit idly by while such dramatic events occur, the United States Government comes to the protection of Taiwan, and that’s where things start to get complicated.

Apart from having launched a cybernetic attack on the United States, the Chinese have also developed a new type of anti-ship missile which could very well hamper the U.S.’ plans of retaining that island.

Jack Ryan and his Campus colleagues are then called in to defuse the situation and restore a balance to the world. I’ll be the first to admit not being a huge fan of Tom Clancy; while his stories always feel like they should be intriguing and important, I keep failing to entirely care about them.

Perhaps it is my fault, but his style of writing is more dry and somber, which is somewhat understandable considering most of his novels deal with the afore-mentioned type of subject.

However, if there is something I cannot fault him for, it’s making intelligence warfare feel somewhat exciting. I am aware that in real life things probably happen somewhat differently, but the way I see it, it truly takes a talent to make somewhat passive events suspenseful.

As for this particular book, I’d say I enjoyed it pretty well, even though I never really had trouble putting down the book. I read it at a pace of about one or two chapters per day… it was more of a distraction than anything else, but it was definitely worth the ride, with a story which actually managed to be interesting, partially because such a scenario wouldn’t be too far-fetched in today’s day and age (let’s hope it is though).

If you are a fan of Tom Clancy or novels about intelligence or strategy-based modern warfare, then I definitely recommend you take a look at this novel.

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Tom Clancy (April 12, 1947 – October 1, 2013) Personal site With numerous books, movies and even video games under his belt, Tom Clancy was one of the most accomplished writers out there, being specifically known for his enthralling and accurately-detailed military novels, such as The Sum of All Fears and The Hunt for Red October.

Mark Greaney Personal site Mark Greaney is the best-selling standalone author and co-author to numerous Tom Clancy novels. He made his debut with The Gray Man, instantly becoming a crowd favorite and spawning a series that is still going strong. His most well-known work as a co-author to Clancy is undoubtedly Threat Vector