Tom Clancy's Op-Center: Mission of Honor

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Summary: Tom Clancy's Op-Center Mission of Honor: Without Honors
Review: I've been a fan of Tom clancy ever since the release of 'The Hunt for Red October'. Its a shame to say that the works of his successor to the Op-Center series, Jeff Rovin, does not possess the magic of a true Clancy novel.
The first two novels of Rovin already disappointed me because it became more political and less thrilling. No strikes were made, all talk. His third book really let me down because through this book, Op-Centers Strike Team has been permanently dissolved. Yes, a covert non-military team was made to replace it but the Paladin could never measure up to the standards of the elite Striker.
Another thing that disappointed me was the fact that Rovin deviated from one of the most popular trademark of a Clancy novel, REALISM. All this about Vodun and its leader doing magic and prophesies just don't cut it.
If Clancy wants his and Mr. Pieczenic's creation to retain its good reputation, I suggest they either replace or train Rovin.

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Summary: Mission of Honor by Tom Clancy
Review: Jeff Rovin is, unfortunately, not in the same league as Tom Clancy. The overlong descriptions of the landscape, the wildlife and the sunrise plus the private thoughts of the characters tend to obscure what could be a good story if written by Clancy himself.
I regret to say that advertising this book as a "Tom Clancy " book is, in my view, very misleading. One expects a tautly written action story with many twists in the plot typical of Clancy. Mr Rovin's style is far removed from this.

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Summary: English Multi Intel Task
Review: The story starts with Leon Seronga, one of the main characters, telling of his childhood on the then wild plains of Botswana. He is now a grown ex-military man from a group known as the Brush Vipers. This group was formed to aid a group of revolutionists in their successful attempt to overthrow foreign and oppressive rulers, and turn the country into an entirely independent, democratic nation.
After the revolution is complete, the new government, who no longer sees a use for them, abandons the group. Several years later, the group is called back together by its commander, Seronga. This time, they aren't aiding a political movement; it's an economic and religious movement being headed by Dhamballa, a man who believes he is the Vodun snake god incarnate. Vodun is the traditional name for what is commonly known as Voodoo.
The Brush Vipers are used as a defensive weapon, to aid and protect Dhamballa and the Vodunist movement. Their first move was to kidnap a Catholic priest in an attempt to force the missionaries and the church itself out of Africa in an effort to restore Botswana to its native religious roots.
Meanwhile, Op-Center, a group formed within the U.S. Government to intercept messages and thwart plots against the United States and avert international disasters, hears of the growing crisis from Mr. Kline, a Vatican Security Force officer. Mr. Kline calls in an attempt to get Op-Center to help.
Back in Botswana, Leon has taken Father Bradbury, his captive, to Dhamballa. The trek took them across the plains and into the swamplands to a compound manned by ex-Brush Vipers, and built to protect Dhamballa.
Dhamballa is a relatively young man, and very soft-spoken, but his voice is firm and he has an air of confidence that makes people a little uneasy. Dhamballa deprives Father Bradbury of sleep, food and water to try to get him to send the other field missionaries to Gaborone, Botswana's capitol.
Back at Op-Center, the team working there, Hood, Rodgers, Herb, and others, plus Mr. Kline, are trying to solve the problem, either politically or forcefully. They believe Albert Beaduin, a gun manufacturer and suspected international arms dealer, and Henry Genet, a diamond merchant, are funding and are behind the turmoil in Botswana in an effort to get rich. One is suspected of trying to supply arms to both sides, and the other will corner Botswana's diamond market during the infighting. They are both hoping to increase their global influence.
Their one minor problem in moving on Dhamballa forcefully, though: Op-Center had their military force cut by a Senate Oversight Committee, after a fiasco during a recent U.N. hostage crisis in NYC.
The Vatican has a force on call from the Spanish military, and the group is roughly the equivalent of Army Rangers or Navy SEALS. They're called into action. In a public show of support, the Vatican also sends an American bishop to take over Father Bradbury's position. The bishop is killed upon his arrival, forcing Op-Center to work outside their set parameters. They send in Aideen Marley, an Op-Center operative, to join the Spanish in the hunt to find Dhamballa and Leon. Unfortunately, the Spanish are killed after a botched raid on Dhamballa's compound.
Aideen meets Leon and goes with him, after gaining his trust and ensuring him she is their to aid him and his cause. The Botswanan military is going to forcefully put down any uprising that may threaten the new democracy. Aideen meets Dhamballa and tells him of the offensive forces that are pursuing him. Leon orders Dhamballa to leave, in an attempt to keep the religion alive. Father Bradbury, while food and sleep deprived, is able to move and leaves with Aideen while Dhamballa leaves in the opposite direction. Minutes later the Botswanan military arrives and Leon commits suicide, dying for their cause and giving the Botswanans someone to blame the uprising on. Father Bradbury and his missionaries return to their work, and another crisis is averted.

I enjoyed this book; but not as much as Tom Clancy's other books. The plot, characters, and settings were all extremely vivid and colorful.
If I were to recommend this book to someone, it would be to anyone who has read other Tom Clancy books. It was extremely hard to put down. I would rate this book as a 7 out
of 10.

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Summary: A super intelligent thriller -- very thoughtful
Review: This book is a real stand out in the action/espionage genre because in addition to an exciting plot, it deftly probes the politics and religion of an area largely ignored in the news. The scenario set forth in the book focuses on the tensions between native African traditions on the one hand and western influence and Catholicism on the other. The book takes a very balanced approach in describing the tensions, and does not paint either the Catholic church or the insurgency as unreasonable -- which is refreshing. Because the story is based on the actual history, politics and economics of the region, the possibility of this sort of religious conflageration seems very realistic (and scary, by the way).

The gist of the story is that Op Center intelligence teams are sent to monitor an explosive situation created when a Catholic priest is kidnapped in the opening round of an attempt to rid this part of Africa of western influence and religion in particular. The religious leader of the insurgency is a fascinating character, who is not a fanatic but actually a peaceful man seeking to usher in change. But he is also somewhat pragmatic, so he teams up with a former soldier --- himself a honorable man, albeit one who is willing to be ruthless to further what believes is a just cause. The kidnapped priest is an equally compelling character, with a deep love of Africa who relies on his faith to survive a horrible ordeal. The op center agents watch the situation rapidly deteriorate when an unknown third group assinates a Bishop sent to replace the kidnapped priest in an attempt to blame the insurgents. Rather than devolving into a simple commando-raid type of story, the op center intelligence agents are tasked to avert violence by forging unlikely alliances between themselves, the Priest and his kidnappers.

The story is really unusual and makes for a great read. I bought this book in an airport and really can't remember the last time I enjoyed a fiction book so much. This is a must read, as it is both exciting and thought provoking. Well done Mr. Jeff Rovin!

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Summary: MISSION OF HONOR - NOT
Review: THIS IS AWFUL. THIS IS NO TOM CLANCY BOOK. EVER READ A WHOLE BOOK AND AT THE END THOUGHT WHAT WAS THIS ???
WHAT WAS THIS ABOUT? WHAT WAS THIS AS A STORY? WHO CARES? THIS IS AWFUL, MORE THAN AWFUL. IF THERE WAS A MINUS MINUS MINUS I'D PUT IT ON THIS MISERABLE BOOK. I LOVE CLANCEY AND I THINK THIS "FRANCHISE IDEA" THAT HE HAS ONLY WORKS IF THE AUTHOR KNOWS HOW TO WRITE, HOW TO TELL A STORY...THIS IS STUPID. I'M GOING TO TOSS IT IN THE TRASH SO NO ONE ELSE IN MY FAMILY OR GROUP OF FRIENDS GETS CAUGHT READING IT, HOPING FOR SOME PAYOFF AND GETTING ABSOLUTELY NOTHING...THIS REMINDS ME OF A BOOK WRITTEN BY A COMMITTEE...OF IDIOTS.

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Summary: Time Waster
Review: This recently added story to the "Op-Center" series was all right at points. This is the only "Op-Center" book I have read, but it has quite a few moments of high tension, but there are points where it drags and I constantly got lost. The end of the story was quite unusual and awkward. It sort of lets the reader know how it ends, but it leaves you hanging a bit. Check it ou t at your local library before you even try to buy it. Depending on how you look at this story which seems violent at the end, it could be a great buya and a great story, or it could be a great letdown. For me, it was half and half. I give this book a B-.