Rating: 
Summary: The further away Jake Grafton gets...
Review: ...from the veteran carrier fighter jock we've come to love, the less I like it. More and more, he's metamorphosing into a fusion of the "older brother" of Tom Clancy hero Jack Ryan and a still-active clone of "JAG"'s Admiral Chegwidden. For all that, the concept of a terrorist stunt pulled by an uneasy coalition of European robber barons and American computer hackers has an interesting Clive Cussler feel to it. But I was happier when Jake was still a naval "Top Gun" brought to the printed page by one hell of a war storyteller--and as such, there was more to him than a flyin'-and-shootin' videogame. You can do that in a good book. Try this on for size: our Bad Guys manage to boost a new high-tech sub on its maiden voyage. Anybody old enough to remember "Voyage To the Bottom Of the Sea"? This boat is the good old Seaview, that vessel's futuristic technology having become next year's newly-developed hardware. Crewed by a bunch of modern-day pirates who kill each other as easily as they kill the Navy crews they overpower to take the boat and other Navy crews who come after them. Earlier in the story, our hackers managed to send a new defense satellite launch off course and into the drink--that's why the sub is needed: to go get it and steal it. Admiral Jake Grafton's efforts to solve this case are vastly helped by the fact that the hackers who downed the satellite are nothing but highly-paid "server fodder" for the euro-tycoons they're working for, and the tycoons themselves are each out for Number One. Jake actually gets more help from them than he does from sidekick Toad Tarkington, who's just a gofer. I see that fortyish Toad is still only a Commander, the protracted adolescent streak that keeps him from his fourth stripe less obvious here than in previous books. You have to check some of those out to know what I mean. And I see the bit about the "undersea mount that might have once been Atlantis" from some previous book is still here--that's a bit TOO much Cussler. Hell, I don't remember--maybe that came from an actual Cussler book. You can see what I mean, right? Here a bit of Cussler, there a bit of Clancy, there a bit of Edward Beach--it seems like the more Coonts tries to "broaden" his material, the more derivative of other authors he becomes. Which is a bummer, given that he already established a presence as an author from his books set when Jake was still in the cockpit.
Rating: 
Summary: You'll Force Yourself to Finish
Review: A combination of it's-all-been-done-before wrapped into one book. Sure, this guy can write but a little over technical for guys like me, forcing you to skip ahead. There's major disaster in the plot, which if it really occured, people are too damned calm about it, making it unrealistic. He wrote this in a tidy style that it's probably going to be a movie. Wait for the video, better yet. You force yourself to finish, the last 100 pages reduced to quick skimming. The cruise ship part is ludicrous, where all the main characters develop powers to take on everyone.
Rating:
Summary: "A Well Spun Tale"
Review: A definite improvement over the previous Grafton novel, CUBA. Coonts hooks you in the first couple chapters as a new SDI satellite goes missing before it can achieve orbit. If that weren't bad enough, a group of Russian and German mercenaries hijack the most advanced submarine in the world, the USS America. Some pretty good action scenes. I liked how Coonts brought out the sense of disaster when Tomahawks armed with electro-magnetic warheads are used on major American cities. Good job on the characters. The most memorable had to be Kolnikov, the Russian who hijacks America. A stern skipper who at the same time always levels with his crew. He's super shrewd and often times doesn't seem to care if he lives or dies. Jake Grafton comes off as an everyman with one heck of an important job that at times can feel overwhelming. Still he tackles it full bore. USMC Commendant Flap Le Beau was another guy to get behind. Not a uniformed butt kisser, but a leatherneck through and through who's not afraid to do grunt work. My one complaint is there was not enough of Grafton's right hand man, Toad Tarkington. The guy is great for comic relief.Good story with good characters. Nice intrigue and countermoves. The climax on the cruise ship and America rocked!
Rating: 
Summary: A great thriller.
Review: A master at work on technical thriller is at his peak. I loved the book.
Rating:
Summary: HEEEWACK! Coonts at the top of his game!
Review: A Star Wars satellite that disappears on launch, a state-of-the-art sub hijacked on its maiden voyage, deliciously evil baddies motivated by lots and lots of money, Washington's circuits fried by EMP and the White House hit by a cruise missile, this one's a delight from start to finish. Don't know if all the technology described is possible, but Coonts made me believe it 100% (unlike the ridiculous "York" robots he invented in the novel Hong Kong). Way to go, Mr. Coonts. Keep writing!
Rating: 
Summary: Back to form
Review: After the dire 'Hong Kong' this is a vast improvement.
Jake Grafton investigates a submarine hijack that snowballs into a significant attack on the US with warheads that detonate an EMP pulses that melt down power capability.
Fast moving and with some interesting ideas this is a return to form for Coonts. This is not up in the Clancey league but it is an entertaining novel non the less. It would have been interesting to see more of a focus on the aftermath of the city meltdown (you get the impression that "and then everyone lived happily ever after") and the plot device towards the end that has some senior navy types (and assorted women) going all SAS to get the bad guys was a little weak!
While not perfect, still worthy of your time...
Rating:
Summary: Jake Grafton rides again
Review: America is another strong effort from Coonts. The book moves very quickly. It will be difficult to put down. In the story, the USS America, a brand new, state-of the-art submarine, is hijacked by a group of terrorists that had been trained to do just such a hijacking of a Russian sub. Enter Jake Grafton, who is tasked with finding the super-silent sub and determining the linkage with the disappearance of an anti-missile satellite in the opening of the book. Coonts brings together a range of characters, while effectively blending a number of sub-stories within the main story. Many of the characters carry over into Coonts' next book, Liberty. If possible, read America before you read Liberty. (I read them in reverse order and believe that both would have been better had they been read in the order they were written.)
Rating:
Summary: 4 1/2 stars
Review: America, Europe and Russia have so far spent 50 billion dollars on SuperAegis, a satellite that's main objective is anti-missile defense. When the launch is attempted, disaster strikes and the satellite is lost at sea and nobody seems to be able to find it. USS America is Americas newest nuclear powered submarine armed with tomahawk missiles. The 2 billion dollar sub, which is carrying 134 men, is hijacked on its maiden voyage and soon disappears into the Atlantic Ocean. The terrorist who has taken the USS America, starts firing missiles at Washington D.C. and New York City in separate attacks. These specific tomahawks are called Flashlight missiles or E-missiles. When detonated over a city it releases a strong electromagnetic pulse and makes everything running on electricity virtually useless making the city shutdown. When this happens, political, psychological, and financial upheaval occurs. Rear Admiral Jake Grafton soon learns there is a connection between the lost satellite and the stolen submarine. Grafton, along with his aide Toad Tarkington, have there work cut out for them in this well rounded thriller that gives you a lot of detail with a lot of action. What you have here is a story of superpower politics, cutting edge technology, and greed (as quoted by Grafton). Throw in some Russian and European spies with a few computer hackers and you have yourself a heck of a story. I liked Coonts' previous novel 'Hong Kong' a little better than this one. Highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Good - until the ending
Review: An entertaning book and nicely paced. Until the end that is. The last 100 pages or so are written as if the author got tired of working on the story and simply put a bunch of disjointed, action bites together so the book could be rushed to the publisher. I have read just about every "Grafton" book and this one is the most disappointing. Would not recommend it.`
Rating:
Summary: COONTS AT THE TOP OF HIS TALENT
Review: As a mystery author with my first novel in its initial release, I admire Stephen Coonts and his work. In AMERICA, Coonts is working at the top of his talent. If you like plenty of action, a courageous lead, an ominous villian, some sexy women, and the continued existence of Western Civilization as we know it being on the line, you'll enjoy AMERICA too. U.S.S. America is the ultimate submarine. It vanishes in a hijacking on its maiden voyage, and Jake Grafton must find it. The book opens with satellite going missing, and that fact also plays into a plot that takes several unexpected twists and turns. This novel is also full of loads of technical scientific and engineering information, and it comes close to being the perfect techno-thriller.
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