From Publishers WeeklyCalling to mind such undersea techno-thrillers as Clancy's The Hunt for Red October and Hagberg's By Dawn's Early Light, this latest outing by Bond, a former naval officer turned bestselling military suspense author (Larry Bond's First Team, etc.), is an edge-of-the-seat yarn about an aging nuclear submarine on a secret mission to Russian waters. Using his senator uncle's political clout, Lt. (j.g.) Jerry Mitchella former pilot permanently grounded thanks to a wrist injury sustained in a freak carrier crashhas found his way into submarine training, where, among the other basic skills, he becomes an expert on the Manta, a robot device used for underwater exploration. Cmdr. Lowell Hardy, veteran skipper of the Memphis, a nuclear sub long overdue for decommissioning, is given orders to take Dr. Joanna Patterson from the President's Advisory Science Board and her comely young assistant, Dr. Emily Davis, into Russian waters to look for evidence of illegal disposal of nuclear waste. Mitchell's alleged political pull and the presence of women aboard create unrest among an already unhappy crew. Somewhat predictably, the mission uncovers a major threat to world security and the suspense cranks up when the Russians learn they've been found out. Despite an obligatory surfeit of naval alphabetese and a muster of trite maritime stereotypes with seabags full of childish personality conflicts, this is an engaging read. Copyright Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. "Dangerous Ground is a great submarine novel. When I grow up I want to write like Larry Bond."--Stephen Coonts"Larry Bond's intimate knowledge of a submarine's technical details is matched by his understanding of human nature, and he combines fascinating characters with captivating technology to keep you turning the pages. Larry Bond is a master of his craft, and Dangerous Ground is the best submarine novel yet!"-Walter J. Boyne, New York Times bestselling author of Operation Iraqi Freedom "Hats off to Larry Bond, with Dangerous Ground, he has raised the bar of quality for the rest of us. My heart was in my throat nearly through the entire read."--David Hagberg, USA Today bestselling author of Lucifer's Hammer and By Dawn's Early Light"The technothriller has a new ace and his name is Larry Bond."---Tom Clancy"Action on every page . . . Bond's army of readers will be thoroughly satisfied."---Kirkus s on Larry Bond's First Team"A solid series debut."--Publishers Weekly on Larry Bond's First Team"A superb storyteller . . . Larry Bond seems to know everything about warfare, from the grunt in the foxhole to the fighter pilots far above the Earth."---The New York Times Book "No writer living can produce the depth of political intrigue like Larry Bond."---Clive Cussler what is the #1 best selling book on Dangerous Ground (Jerry Mitchell)
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. An entertaining read with flawsBy CustomerAn entertaining and we'll written book. I can attest to its reasonable accuracy. I am a Memphis Plank Owner (served on the commissioning crew), attended her decommissioning ceremony, and spent 20 years in the Sub Force, half as enlisted and half as an officer. Two downsides of the book: character development was inconsistent, with comments and actions of some characters pointing toward a tyrant or grump one minute and to a different kind of person the next. Also, the level of formality and lack of camaraderie, with officers addressing each other as "sir", snapping to "attention on deck", and so differentiating between a jg and a full lieutenant are more descriptive of a surface ship than a sub. To some degree the described crew interactions do the submarine force a disservice.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Excellent novel about the challenges of a junior naval officerBy Roger J. BuffingtonThis is one of the best novels I have ever read dealing with the early career of a professional naval officer. In this novel, the protagonist, Jerry Mitchell, suffers a physical disability that disqualifies him from his chosen career as a naval aviator. He then transfers to submarines where he is under intense pressure to qualify for the coveted submariner's qualification dolphins. His success is far from assured, and there are those who do not want him to succeed. Anyone who has ever been a junior officer has experienced some of what goes on here (I did) and this all makes for a very engrossing story.All of this takes place in the context of a somewhat ill-conceived covert mission into Russian-controlled international waters, and this adds to the intensity of the storyline. While some have criticized this novel for its slow pace, I did not find it so. Jerry Mitchell is a bright, compelling character and this is a very good story.For whatever reason, Larry Bond remorselessly refuses to tell the reader anything whatever about Mitchell's personal life or develop this part of the character. This is a shame. RJB.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Well researched, takes a while to get going but good when it gets thereBy John J. FrancoJerry Mitchell always wanted to be a pilot. When a terrible flying accident cost him his ability to fly, he pulled some strings to get transferred into submarines. He gets assigned to the USS Memphis, which was scheduled to be decommissioned. But it turns out that the Memphis was given a special assignment by the President, taking on a couple of female scientists and looking for unreported nuclear waste off the coast of Russia.The crew of the Memphis isn't thrilled with Jerry's presence and the way he forced his way on the boat. The boat itself is old and in need of maintenance.This book was clearly well researched, and it was well written with some well-developed characters. I really liked the fact that Bond didn't spend the whole book harping on the fact that there were female characters on the boat. But there just wasn't enough action. The first 2/3 of the book are filled with training and drills. Interesting, yes. Important, yes. Engaging, yes. But not really exciting. If you want to know what it's really like to be on a submarine, I suspect this is pretty realistic - a lot of boring time with occasional excitement.Eventually the action does pick up when the Memphis finally gets where she needs to go and starts her mission. And it was well written when it did. It just took too long to get there