Retreat, Hell (Corps (Audio))

Rating:
Summary: A little long on padding and short on story
Review: This is the 10th in Griffin's Marine Corps series and I've read them all along with another 10 or so of Griffin's other military novels. In portraying U.S. military culture, folkways, and technology he's unmatched.

"Retreat Hell" tells the story of the Korean War in the couple of months of 1950 while the North Koreans were on the run and it looked like the U.S. would have its troops "home for Christmas." The surprising intervention of hundreds of thousands of Communist Chinese soldiers was to set the US troops back on their heels and force a bitter, bloody winter retreat. This book tells the story of a CIA unit gathering evidence that the Chinese are going to intervene and the unwillingness of "El Supremo" (General Douglas MacArthur) to believe the evidence.

That sounds interesting and it is, but "Retreat Hell" is crowded with too much minutiae and too little story. Much of the book describes the preparation, distribution, and reading of memoranda, eating and drinking, and military machinations to steal men and material from each other. Endless and tiresome accolades are showered on the omnipotent hero, Major Kenneth "Killer" McCoy. Calling this a book about the Marine Corps is a stretch, as most of the book is about a CIA unit, politicians, and generals, including Harry S. Truman and the aforementioned El Supremo.

I like Griffin's books and this one has some nuggets of interest, but "Retreat Hell" doesn't have much of substance or story to recommend it.

Smallchief