Command Authority

By: Tom Clancy

Narrated by: Lou Diamond Phillips

Length: 17 hrs and 53 mins

Publisher's summary

Decades ago, when he was a young CIA analyst, President Jack Ryan, Sr. was sent on what was supposed to be a simple support mission to investigate the death of an operative looking into the suspicious banking activities at a Swiss bank. Ryan’s dogged tenacity uncovered not only financial deceit, but also the existence of a KGB assassin code-named Zenith.

He was never able to find the killer.But in the shadowy world of covert operations, nothing stays hidden forever.In the present, a new strong man has emerged in the ever-chaotic Russian republic the enigmatic President Valeri Volodin. His rise to power was meteoric, but shrouded in deception and treachery.

The foundations of his personal empire are built on a bloody secret from his past, and he will eliminate anyone who comes close to that truth. For he has set in motion a plot to return Russia to its former glory and might with the rest of the world once again trembling in fear of the mighty Bear.When an old friend of the Ryans is poisoned by a radioactive agent, the trail leads to Russia. And Jack Ryan, Jr. aided by his compatriots John Clark and the covert warriors of the secretive Campus must delve into an international conflict thirty years in the making, and finish what his father started.

With President Ryan fighting a desperate campaign to thwart Russian aggression, and his son fighting a silent war against a ruthless foe, the chances for global conflict grow greater ? and the possibility of survival may soon be lost for all...

©2013 Copyright © Rubicon, Inc, 2013. (P)2013 Bolinda Publishing Pty Ltd

Critic reviews

Heart-stopping action ... entertaining and eminently topical.' ( The Washington Post )

bit disappointing

Is there anything you would change about this book?

no, there wasnt really any one thing wrong , just the story was a so predictable, the only surprise happened in the 1st chapter with the killing of golovko.

Would you recommend Command Authority to your friends? Why or why not?

i wouldn't recommend that they pay good money, wait till it gets to your library.

Would you be willing to try another one of Lou Diamond Phillips’s performances?

yes , performance was good, the author just didn't give him much of a story to tell

If this book were a movie would you go see it?

not at cinema prices no,but would rent it in dvd

Any additional comments?

i own every one of the jack ryan series and this is probably the worst,apart from a very poor narration of Red Rabbit that i once listened to.(funny how you remember the bad ones)

Tom Clancy's final book

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes I would to anyone who loves political thrillers and a good spy novel.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes, Lou Diamond Phillips does a great reading and his character voices are brilliant.

lack of command

What did you like best about Command Authority? What did you like least?

it is a hard book to get into when jumping back to old jack ryan then to young ryan

Would you be willing to try another book from Tom Clancy? Why or why not?

maybe give another ago

What aspect of Lou Diamond Phillips’s performance would you have changed?

hard to say his vioce tends to drone after a while

Could you see Command Authority being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

yes possibly with harrison ford as old jack and matthew mcounagh as young ryan

Lou Diamond Phillips should read ALL audio books

What did you love best about Command Authority?

Lou Diamond Phillips

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

It was swift enough to keep it tight.

What does Lou Diamond Phillips bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Great voices, emotion. Just great.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes.

Any additional comments?

Lou Diamond Phillips is the best.

It is with Regret I finished this.

Have you listened to any of Lou Diamond Phillips’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Lou Diamond Phillips was excellent. Having listened to other of his performances I am glad he did this too.

Any additional comments?

I was sorry to finish this as it was Tom Clancy's last. I have enjoyed the wild ride of his stories particularly the John Ryan (Snr) stories and was dubious of the John Ryan (Jnr) trail yet I have grown to love the sagas. Tom Clancy will be missed by this reader/listener and will wonder if Mark Greaney will take on the mammoth steps to continue the stories on, I don't know.

This is a long way around to say this was as great book as expected, a well written, well told book and one that deserves to be in my library. I will listen to this again and marvel at how the past and present, the injection from other Ryan books and the characters have grown.

Why the regret, I just hope maybe, there is something more. If not, I will just have to read and listen again and enjoy a master storyteller.

Not much new, OK if you are a fan...

I found it better than his last few books. I'm not so much into Clancy's novels these days but I have been reading them for so long and have so much invested in the characters that I cant help but read them.
I think that now that Mr. Clancy has left us that it is time to end the series. I hope they don't let it drag on like other authors.
Jack Ryan has run out of puff...the publishers need to let it go...

Did Tom Clancy even read this???

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

The story and Clancyverse is just so far removed from the earlier books. The problem is that Jack Ryan Jr is now more James Bond than everyday man.

What do you think your next listen will be?

I am looking forward to Sci fi or military.

What does Lou Diamond Phillips bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

As a narrator he brings a great voice and hearing him speak allows me to visualise the book so much more.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

I would say sadness as I just remember reading every book as it came out and enjoying them then when Red Rabbit came out the quality just dropped.

Any additional comments?

The problem for me is that the writers now have made the main characters just indestructible. In the last book Clark cops a beating and even now all the main characters are up and killing with no effort. The tv show 24 has a lot to answer.