💊💰 Chain of Command by Marc Cameron

Not a Book Report

I enjoy reflecting on the movies, TV, books and other media that I consume. I’m notoriously sentimental. This series documents the books that I read. These aren’t reviews or recommendations. Just a list. For me. Mostly so that I can page through what I read, where I was, and when.

Why did I read it?

I picked up a Tom Clancy book in the Stockholm Central train station a couple months ago and it made me remember how fun these can be. So I rewound in the series by about a decade and picked up at Book 10 in the run. I have been spending a lot of time wading through some complex, but interesting, challenges at the office - all good problems, but the kinds of things that leave me beat at the end of the day and ready to jump into a novel about spies and special forces for 30 minutes before I fall asleep.

What is it?

Category	Value
Title	Chain of Command
Author	Marc Cameron
Year Published	2021
Format	Kindle
Pages	509
ASIN	B08WJ5BG3K

Publisher Summary

The United States has stared down many threats with President Jack Ryan at the helm, but what if he’s not there when we need him? That’s the question facing a nation in the most shocking entry in Tom Clancy’s #1 New York Times bestselling series.

A shadowy billionaire uses his fortune to further his corrupt ambitions. Along the way, he’s toppled democratically elected governments and exacerbated divisions within stable nations. The competitors he’s destroyed, the people he’s hurt, they’re all just marks on a ledger. Now, he’s ready to implement his most ambitious plan of all. There’s only one force standing in his way—President Jack Ryan.

How do you compel a man like Jack Ryan to bend? He’s personally faced down everything from the Russian navy to cartel killers. It will take more than political headwinds or media disfavor to cause him to turn from his duty to the American people, but every man has an Achilles heel. Jack Ryan’s is his family.

The answer is as simple as it is shocking. The billionaire has assembled an international team of the most ruthless mercenaries alive. Their mission—kidnap the First Lady.

How did I read it?

Category	Value
Date Started	June 17, 2024
Date Finished	August 15, 2024
Places Read	Lisbon, Sintra, TAP flights to and from Paris

Notes - No Spoilers

• I skipped Book 20 because my wife and I had listened to it on audiobook a couple of years ago on a long car trip.
• Whole lot less Campus in this one. Most of the team sidelined for various reasons. Felt less like a novel about Jack Ryan Jr, who has become the protagonist in the last few books, and more like just a thriller.
• All Jack Ryan plots are contrived but, whoa boy, kidnapping the First Lady just to delay a regulatory bill?
• The most interesting part was the Of Mice and Men themes (which are kinda hamfisted).
• No villains have gray zones in these novels anymore. The Indian billionaire is just a cartoon character.
• Whole lot of wristwatch shoutouts; the Breitling Emergency saving the day, the Citizen Eco-Drive that the Camarilla guys like, the Rolex Submariner that the Green Beret ludicrously owns…