Rating: 
Summary: Couldn't go deep enough
Review: Until now, my perception of ourt nation's militry submarine force has been one of deterrence - training for a never green-lighted nuclear mission. Even subs not armed with city-smashing ICBM's were purpose-built for WWIII: whether for subs armed with the cruise-missiles that preceded the age of ICBM armed subs, or when those subs took to sea, to hunt down those of the enemy while running interference with our own. Sontag & Drew paint a picture of a submarine war that was anything but stalled by mutual deterrence, detailing the submarine as an active agent of another kind: espionage. From the end of WWII until today, subs relied on an ever increasing array of surveillance equipment and the tenacity of their crews to extract intelligence coups ranging from secret communications links of the Soviet leadership to identifying the unique sonar charachteristics of Russian subs. "Blind Man's Bluff" is intriguing reading, a page turner, impossible to put down and left me wanting more. Unfortunately, that's also the book's weakness, and a history of an intelligence war that lasted for about half-a-century seems startingly incomplete. "Blind Man's Bluff" recalls Wolfe's "The Right Stuff", the history of US Aerospace from cracking the "sound barrier" to the last Mercury flight. Wolfe would've gone to the Lunar landings, but thought a 1000 pages a bit long. Like "Stuff", "Bluff' contains enough material for several books, but contents itself with 514 pages. Unlike the development of space-travel, bracketed by Chuck yeager and Apollo, the obvious milestones of submarine technology (nuclear power and the torpedo-shaped submarine hull) fall midway, while other historic points (loss and discovery of the USS Scorpion and the CIA's semi-successful efforts to raise a sunken Russian sub) seem anti-climactic. Between these historic points, there are many good stories (some that I've never heard of, others that are old, but seem better treated here) that nevertheless remain insufficiently connected by a well-defined theme or by historically recurring charachters as Wolfe had in "Stuff". Figures like Sergey Gorshkov (The Soviet Navy's widely aknowledged architect), Hyman Rickover (the so-called "Father of the Nuclear Navy") and John Craven recur thruought the book, but the author's don't adequately account for how these men or others account for the makeup and mission of today's navy. Instead, the details and people of the stories recounted in "Bluff" seem to go little farther than their own stories - like the troubled history of the Mk 37 Torpedo - it appears only as a possible explanation for the loss of the USS Scorpion. Similarly, the hurried and incomplete planning that sent Scorpion to sea at a time when overhauls were needed - exacerbating unsafe conditions thought endemic to Russian ships but unknown in our Navy - are unconnected to historic trends showing improved or decreased reliance on equipment, training, morale or logistics. Most glaring of all, the story seems to half-told in excluding the Russian side. While "Bluff" seems to tell the story of submarine espionage, it's not clear if the Americans were unique in using subs for spying or if the Soviets, who had the biggest nuclear powered fleet in the world, are still holding their secrets. Sontag and Drew hint at the offensive strategies of the Red Navy but never rule out whether Russian subs had attempted to match the intelligence-gathering efforts of the USN, or how successful they were. Russian sources are used, not to create an hypothesis of Soviet military tactics as much as to clarify what Americans know or did not - like the loss of an ICBM sub in 1986 or the near-loss of a cruise-missile sub after a collision with the attack sub, USS Tautog, or the suspicions held by Red Admirals following the loss of a missile-carrier in the Pacific in 1968. Sontag and Drew not only neglect to fully explore Soviet sub strategy thruought the cold war but fail to note it as an issue either. While America is the aknowledged cold-war victor, if Russian submarine history is as truly opaqe as "Bluff" allows, then it is the Russians who merit the accolades. As in WWII, the ultimate measure of success in submarine warfare is silence.
Rating: 
Summary: Happiest of the Lot
Review: If, as Carl Builder wrote in "The Masks of War" (Rand/John Hopkins University Press, 1989), the Navy is happiest when left alone, then submariners must be the happiest sailors in the Navy. "Blind Man's Bluff" was brought to my attention by a three-star Army general, stationed at the time in the Pacific. Pointing to the book on his desk, he muttered about sacrificing our security for the sake of profit. I picked up my copy at the very next bookstore. I wasn't disappointed. Sherry Sontag and her colleagues did a lot of spade work to uncover the stories about Cold War submarine espionage that they did. Not all submariners and former submariners were forthcoming, but enough were to provide ample detail for the many exciting and dramatic stories in the book. I particularly enjoyed accounts of Adm. Hyman G. Rickover's nuclear kingdom within the secret recesses of the Navy. It's fascinating that a man could hold such power and longevity simultaneously. When Sontag and company take the reader deep underwater, as they often do, the suspense is palpable and the pressure of the deep becomes real. Tapping into underwater communications cables in enemy waters while Soviet warships circle above is no mean feat. Those former members of "the silent service" who did grant interviews for the book may have had an occasional axe to grind, but overall I found "Blind Man's Bluff" more history than compromise of national security. It may be as close as we come to transparency when it comes to the world's second oldest profession coupled with the most modern technology. Enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: Just skimming the surface of submarining
Review: When I first found this book I was very excited to learn about the "real life stories of American submarine spying," unfortunately this book did not live up to its billing. I understand that writing a book about top-secret missions is a very difficult task, but the authors seem to have done a good job of researching, so their main problem was that it was not presented well. The book was very jumpy from one era to another, especially in the last couple decades of the Cold War, and I felt satisfied when the book moved onto a new story. All of the characters and missions are interesting, but I do not feel that I understand them or know them well. An earlier reviewer mentioned that this was much like a newspaper article, and I agree with that beacause you are given the facts, but none of the substance that really makes them absorbing. I am still interested in submarining, however, so I think this was a good starting place, but not complete enough to satisfy me.
Rating:
Summary: A Captivating Read
Review: Since there have been many comments on this book already, I'll be brief. As a professional historian, I was enthralled and captivated by this work. Despite what many claim are its inaccuracies, one gains insight into the larger picture of Cold War warfare. Therein lies the book's value.
Rating: 
Summary: easier to read this than to get details from a submariner...
Review: The 'Silent Service' is aptly named--they don't talk about it. It's for this reason we rarely hear how much guts it takes to perform submarine espionage. That is, until now. I picked this up and read it cover to cover, fascinated by the accounts (which seem well documented) of maritime espionage and hijinks in the Cold War. We don't often reflect that while a foreign frigate or bomber isn't just off the beach (or we'd see it), a foreign sub just might be. Apparently it's not so uncommon. Say what one will about the book; far as I can see, the one thing no one says is that it's a pack of lies. I got further confirmation when I asked one of my best friends, a former submariner, what he thought of it. His reply: "My only reply will *ever* be an enthusiastic 'no comment!'" Highly recommended for the authenticity and for the tribute it pays to people doing a dangerous job.
Rating:
Summary: Well-written, enthralling, and sobering
Review: I highly recommend the book--It is a (roughly) chronological history of submarine espionage, at least on the American side. It starts with the first troubled mission shortly after World War II and runs past the end of the Cold War. The stories are gripping, and would often be worth reading as fiction. It is amazing that they are fact. Some of the tales told are questionably related to the topic, such as the hunt for the US submarine Scorpion after it was lost, but even those are so interesting I will forgive the author for putting them in. If the topic interests you at all, I predict you will enjoy the book.
Rating:
Summary: Page turner
Review: If you have any interest in naval affairs, cold war espionage, governmental obfuscation -- or if you just want a good read, then this book is for you.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent overview of Cold War submarine operations
Review: This book is well-written and authoritative. Information about Cold War submarine incidents was "compartmentalized" -- only those immediately involved in a particular situation were allowed to know what happened. As a result, it's unlikely many former submariners are in a position to verify more than about 10% of the book from their own experience. Most of us weren't told what went on with the other boats. That's true in my case. Having said all that, what I did already know of in this book from my own Navy tour is accurately depicted in this book and the other stuff seems very credible.
Rating: 
Summary: Uneven!
Review: My favorite novels have involved the Cold War and Submarines. Mark Joseph's To Kill the Potemkin is by far my favorite. But Hendrick, Clancy, and Taylor are close seconds and I have read them all. With this in mind, I was very excited to read this book. However, I found the book incredibly uneven. Some chapters were great. Especially the chapter about the USS Scorpion, while other chapters were incredibly boring. So in short, this book is a mixed bag. The subject is very interesting. The information, especially the recently declassified stuff, is also mind blowing at times. But as a whole, the book is pretty boring in certain parts.
Rating:
Summary: Horrible games between superpower
Review: The book is real interesting and you won't put it down until finish. The "untold story" tells us that the superpowers are playing fire at the expense of those brave men who sometimes even didn't allowed to know how dangerous their missions were. After all, I show great respects to those men who had to tolerate the sub-standard living condition in a sub for months in order to finish their duty. A good book just if you like spy story.
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