Rating: 
Summary: What a waste of time!
Review: Accurate history of Spain or not, this is a bad book. By the time I got to the third chapter, I was sorry that every character was not on the boat when it blew up. Tom Clancy is much too good an author for this kind of junk.
Rating: 
Summary: Regardless of praticality, it was a great read
Review: Although this wasn't the best book i have ever read, it was still fun. Who cares if Spain isn't really like that. The point is, the book is fiction. All these spaniards complaining about inaccuracies just don't quite get it. Just because a book portrays a location in a certain way does not mean thats how the place is. This book set up a different spain from reality, and used it to create a wonderful book to read. So, regardless of wether thats the way it really is or not (i'm guessing not), I very much enjoyed reading the book, Tom Clany is a great author, and all these people should concentrate on the incredible skill of the writers, not the "errors" which are not
Rating:
Summary: Thoroughly disappointing.
Review: An Op-Centre attempt to stop a new Spanish civil war from occurring, with its attendant bloodshed, betrayal, and other problems' seems to be an ideal setting for a tense action-packed read. However, this novel doesn't live up to it's cover blurb. The action sequences (for want of a better term) are a little disjointed and frankly unbelievable. The other scenes are lacklustre and boring. Balance of Power seems to be written to a standard formula which requires little imagination for the reader to absorb. The Op-Centre series, and this novel in particular, does not meet the expectations of Tom Clancy's fans. I suspect that Mr. Clancy regrets lending his name to this embarrassing series, which he probably no longer has creative control over.
Rating:
Summary: Insulting. A good example of how to desvirtuate reality.
Review: As an Spaniard, I was interested in this title for obvious reasons, but the truth is that I haven't been able to find my country anywhere in this book! It is a mediocre novel about an invented country, and I think the names should have been changed in order to increase its verosimilitude.
Rating:
Summary: The best of the Op Center books, but still waiting for R6
Review: As most Clancy fans will tell you, the Op Center books are not written by Clancy. As such, fans complain that the Op Center books are not up to the usual Clancy standards. However, I feel that this book is probably the best of the Op Center series. Delving into the internal politics of Spain is an interesting story, and the descriptive nature of the writing give a nice feel for the country. Clancy fans will like the Striker action sequences. All in all, if you like Clancy, you'll like the book. However, I'm really dying for Rainbow 6 to come out!!
Rating: 
Summary: A Best Sell, once I started couldn't put it down
Review: As usual Clancy keeps the reader in suspense till the last chapter. I am eagerly awaiting the next one although I know it will be a few months till it is published, and really look forward to Rainbow Six.
Rating:
Summary: Mr. Clancy, Do your homework!!
Review: Before reading this book, I was under the impression that being the successful writer he is, Mr. Clancy did his homework when describing life, politics and culture in other countries. I was extremely disappointed when I read this book. It seems to me like Clancy went to Banana Republic and decided that Spain and Spaniards use the same terminology and idioms as any Latin American nations. Hacienda!!! Mr. Clancy, nobody in Spain, no matter how much of a retrograde refers to their estate as a Hacienda. How about the term "cortacarros" !!! What the hell does that mean!! Did he make this up after an unsuccessful trip to the toilet? It would have been so easy for Clancy to get it right by sending a college student (or even me) on a short trip to Spain to find about about the society and culture of my beautiful country. Instead he decides to patronize and insult Spaniards with this cheesy book. I think it is a good rule of thumb for other people who like me have hours to kill on planes to abstain from reading books by their favorite "cheesy book" authors when they openly talk about anything you may have any kind of intimate knowledge of.
Rating:
Summary: Where is this country?
Review: Being from San Sebastián and living in Madrid, I was immediately drawn to this book when I saw that the action starts in these two cities. I finished the first 100 pages out of curiosity, the rest of the book out of sheer masochism. The story is poor and full of stereotypes, the "historical facts" are wrong, the research was done without leaving the plane at the Barajas airport, and the characters are from a Scooby Doo cartoon (my favourites are the fisherman and the priest)...even at some points the book turns completely "kitsch" (asking a shepherd for directions in San Sebastian??). There is not worse lie than a half-truth, and the book is full of them. I know it is just a novel, but I expected a bit more refinement from Mr. Clancy et al.
Rating: 
Summary: Somewhat predictable
Review: Clancy has done better in the past. Entertaining and forgetable!
Rating:
Summary: Not up to Clancy's standards
Review: Clancy's books are usually well paced, gripping and built on plausible facts, but the Op-Center series is generally sub-standard. This one is sub-sub-standard. I feel thoroughly cheated. The action is spasmodic and the lack of knowledge of Spain downright pitiful. Clancy, haven't you ever been to Spain? The interplay of Spanish political forces is less than primary, the knowledge of Spanish people nil. The names are sometimes ridiculous and the characters can't even speak Spanish! Who wants my copy? I won't keep this one for a second reading.
|
