The Shark Mutiny: a horribly compelling and devastatingly thrilling adventure that will get under the skin... - Softcover

Patrick Robinson

Softcover

ISBN 10: 009940527X ISBN 13: 9780099405276

Publisher: Random House, 2002

Synopsis

This is set in 2007. The strait of Hormuz is ablaze with the wreckage of three gigantic supertankers. World oil prices skyrocket. US Military Intelligence concludes that behind this catastrophe at the gateway to the Gulf stands Iran, assisted by an expansionist China. The US Navy thunders across Hormuz. The Presidents National Security Adviser, Admiral Arnold Morgan, threatens the Iranian Navy with annihilation. Then he rounds on China, unleashing the US Navy SEALS to deal mortal blows to China's ambitions in the Indian Ocean. The scenario is lethal as the SEAL try to fight their way out of the swamps of Burma...and that's when the Commanding Officer of the nuclear submarine USS Shark throws the entire operation into jeopardy.

About this title

Review

Veteran techno-thriller writer Robinson's fifth novel pairs Arnold Morgan, the aging but still powerful national security adviser who stars in the author's previous titles (Nimitz Class, Kilo Class) with a new young naval intelligence officer named Ramshawe--one of the few characters with more personality than the military hardware on which Robinson lavishes most of his attention in this somewhat pedestrian tale.

Ramshawe's commanding officer ignores his warnings about a Russian airplane carrying a lethal cargo of sea mines to a Chinese naval base and the subsequent movement of Chinese warships flying the flag of Iran in the Strait of Hormuz, even when an American oil tanker explodes in the Persian Gulf. Unable to convince his Admiral that the events are connected, the junior hotshot ignores the chain of command and takes his suspicions to Morgan. When more oil tankers blow up and it becomes clear that the Chinese have mined the strait in order to drive oil prices up and destabilize the economy, Morgan deploys the U.S. Navy to the Gulf. Included in the force are a couple of SEAL teams on a submarine--but the sub is commanded by a deranged captain who believes he's the reincarnated spirit of the French naval officer defeated by Nelson at Trafalgar, so the SEALs are forced to stage a mutiny in order to carry out their mission. Meanwhile, it turns out China has another target in its sights, halfway around the world: its neighbor Taiwan. So the Taiwanese air force must fight off the attack on its territory with no help from the U.S. Navy, which is committed in the Gulf.

There's enough weaponry and military maneuvering here to keep fans of Clancy, Coonts, and Dale Brown happy, but it may be past time for the curmudgeonly Morgan to retire and let a new series hero like Ramshawe take over. --Jane Adams

About the Author

PATRICK ROBINSON is the author of six previous international bestselling thrillers: Nimitz Class, Kilo Class, H. M. S. Unseen, Seawolf, The Shark Mutiny, Barracuda 945 and, most recently, Scimitar SL-2. He is also the author of several non-fiction bestsellers including True Blue (with Dan Topolski) and Born to Win. He is the co-author with Admiral Sir Sandy Woodward of One Hundred Days.

Edition details

• Publisher: Random House
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 009940527X
• ISBN 13: 9780099405276
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 512