The Final Storm

A Novel of the War in the Pacific

By: Jeff Shaara

Narrated by: Paul Michael

Length: 20 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

The Final Storm opens a new front in Jeff Shaara’s gripping chronicle of World War II as soldiers, sailors, and marines sacrifice all for one final push toward decisive victory in the fierce maelstrom of the Pacific theater.

As the war in Europe winds down in the wake of the Normandy invasion, the United States has turned its vast military resources toward an all-out effort against the Japanese. In the spring of 1945, Japan’s empire has been pressed slowly back toward its home islands, and the Americans mount a furious assault on the last great stepping-stone to Japan itself—the heavily fortified island of Okinawa. The three-month battle will feature some of the most vicious combat of the entire war, as American troops confront an enemy that would rather be slaughtered than experience the shame of surrender. With a narrative dexterity befitting his status as a master storyteller, Shaara relates the story of the struggle for Okinawa through the eyes of combatants on both sides: Private Clay Adams, a young marine whose brother Jesse has already earned his share of glory as a paratrooper with the 82nd Airborne in Europe; Admiral Chester Nimitz, who must unite rival army and marine commanders into a cooperative effort; General Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr., the American ground commander trying to live up to the legacy of his father, who led Confederate troops during the Civil War; and General Mitsura Ushijima, the Japanese general in charge of defending the island, who understands what Tokyo will not believe: that his own fight to the death will only delay the inevitable—as the Americans continue their advance toward the home islands and ultimate victory.

With the fights raging across the Pacific, a different kind of campaign is being waged in extraordinary secrecy: the development of a weapon so powerful, not even the scientists who build it know just what they are about to unleash. Colonel Paul Tibbets, one of the finest bomber pilots in the U.S. Army Air Corps, is selected to lead the mission to drop the horrific new weapon on a Japanese city. As the new president, Harry S Truman, mulls his options, and a Japanese physician named Okiro Hamishita cares for patients at a clinic near the city of Hiroshima, citizens on the home front await the day of reckoning that everyone knows is coming.

A fitting conclusion to one of the most riveting sagas in military fiction, The Final Storm illuminates the heroism and sacrifice that defined the war in the Pacific, bringing the conflict to life as only Jeff Shaara can.

©2011 Jeff Shaara (P)2011 Random House Audio

How can he keep it up

This book is an exiting "conclusion" of Jeff Shaara's World War 2 trilogy, making it, in fact, a quadrilogy. Just as exiting and horrifying as his other books, this tells a story of a different kind of war then the trilogy. The japanese are fare more death-defying then the germans, so the battle in the pacific are so much more brutal and terrifying, then in Europe. Seeing women sacrificing their lives to kill the marines, suicide-attacks and other horrible tactics, truly is different then the other books. It is told, all to well. A masterpiece of authorship by the greatest author in this genre. Read it. The best author in the world has done it again. Michael Shaara would be proud of his son.

Another outstanding effort, Terrific!!

So vivid I had to take frequent breaks to think about what the author's characters were telling me. Wonderfully presented with really three dimensional views of the hell that our guys had to face at Okinawa. This was about the best book for me, this year. I was sorry that it was over. Buy it, its well worth your while.

Finally the Pacific

Jeff Shaara's novels are well researched & a fresh historical view…. just glad he applied his talent to the Pacific for a great book!

A much needed complement to military history

I started with Shaara's book "The Rising Tide" and needed time to get comfortable with the changing perspectives of multiple characters. I greatly appreciated "The Steel Wave" and I am deeply impressed by "The Final Storm". The story of Clay Adams and his comrades is a wake up call that military history must not only be taken in through more scientific writing. It opened my eyes for what the fighting soldiers endured. The Japanese position is conveyed with tact and respect for the cultural specifics. The horrors of the fights on Okinawa made me think about the ordeals so many woman and man have endured in World War 2 - be it during the fights on the islands, in Stalingrad, on Omaha beach, over German cities or under German and Allied bombing runs. The story of the bombing of Hiroshima does not give sufficient justice to the Japanese side. The torture of the people in Hiroshima and Nagasaki - on the day and over decades after - demands a more extensive portion of such a narrative even though it might not incraese the book's popularity - regrettably.

too restrictive

A good read for sure on a very limited segment of the war in the Pacific. It is disappointing however that the author is not devoting more time to a more sweeping narrative of the war in the Pacific. I may be spoiled by Jeff Shaara's more thorough series, particularly in his account of the Civil War.

Final Storm review

Just as spellbinding as the trilogy and perhaps better. If you like the trilogy you must have this one.

Good coverage of unknown battle

Since I first read it at 12, I've been huge fan of Michael Shaara's Killer Angels. I've had a much harder time getting into his son's books, as I find the pace much slower.
That being said, with my daughter and new son-in-law in Okinawa, I enjoyed reading about a topic I had only cursory studied before.
Narrator was horrible with the Japanese accent, something out of a really bad 1940's war picture. While I appreciate a good narrator that can do different voices for the various characters, I found this one very, well, insulting. I haven't read the book, so maybe to be fair the written dialogue comes off same way. Even so, I found the Japanese characters would have been more interesting to the story if narrator had handled their parts better.

overall, a good listen

There were a few mind numbing sections, but overall, I'd recommend it. You really get a feel for the constant grind of the Pacific war for the Marines.

Great ending

loved it! Great ending to such a great story. Well done. Recommend the entire series.

Another Good One!

I've become a huge fan of Jeff Shaara. Telling the story by bringing to life not only key figures, but ordinary soldiers and civilians makes the history more interesting and personal.