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Okay - two disclaimers to begin with:
First, I'm a HUGE W.E.B. Griffin fan - especially his "Brotherhood of War" series (my nickname is "Duke", and "huge" has nothing to do with the fact that I'm a goalie ... and, yes - size does matter ... but, I digress ...)
Second, in my opinion it's okay to read fiction once in a while (i.e. "all work and no play ...") - I find it only whets my appetite, I am able to enjoy novels because they're fiction (and therefore there's no final exam ...)
So, Friday night I sprang for a hardcover copy of "By Order of the President" (MSRP $39.00 Cdn, but luckily it was 25% off). Two days later, I've devoured 528 pages of literary crack cocaine ... sigh ... and I'm ready for more ...
This novel is written in the "present day", and therefore touches upon topical themes such as the failure of intelligence, and Spec Ops. Yes - it's fantasy, but ... it leads you through mental exercises such as "what constitutes the REAL chain of comd", conflicting orders/loyalties, dealing with peacetime/petty empires/bureaucracies, and "pushing the envelope" (i.e. everybody keeps saying "think outside the box", but ... sometimes the solution is already within your left and right of arc ... with a little imagination ...).
It's also topical when it deals with obeying orders, following regulations, the "spirit" or commander's intent, all leading to achieving the Aim and successfully completing the mission - i.e. not everything we encounter is going to be cut and dry, or black and white ...
So, I won't spoil the novel for you by giving away the plot twists, but hope you'll enjoy it (and hopefully it'll be out in paperback soon, since I've only got one copy to lend out ... or you can warm up to it by reading some of his earlier books - I've given away quite a few sets of BOW, so I know they're out there ...).
First, I'm a HUGE W.E.B. Griffin fan - especially his "Brotherhood of War" series (my nickname is "Duke", and "huge" has nothing to do with the fact that I'm a goalie ... and, yes - size does matter ... but, I digress ...)
Second, in my opinion it's okay to read fiction once in a while (i.e. "all work and no play ...") - I find it only whets my appetite, I am able to enjoy novels because they're fiction (and therefore there's no final exam ...)
So, Friday night I sprang for a hardcover copy of "By Order of the President" (MSRP $39.00 Cdn, but luckily it was 25% off). Two days later, I've devoured 528 pages of literary crack cocaine ... sigh ... and I'm ready for more ...
This novel is written in the "present day", and therefore touches upon topical themes such as the failure of intelligence, and Spec Ops. Yes - it's fantasy, but ... it leads you through mental exercises such as "what constitutes the REAL chain of comd", conflicting orders/loyalties, dealing with peacetime/petty empires/bureaucracies, and "pushing the envelope" (i.e. everybody keeps saying "think outside the box", but ... sometimes the solution is already within your left and right of arc ... with a little imagination ...).
It's also topical when it deals with obeying orders, following regulations, the "spirit" or commander's intent, all leading to achieving the Aim and successfully completing the mission - i.e. not everything we encounter is going to be cut and dry, or black and white ...
So, I won't spoil the novel for you by giving away the plot twists, but hope you'll enjoy it (and hopefully it'll be out in paperback soon, since I've only got one copy to lend out ... or you can warm up to it by reading some of his earlier books - I've given away quite a few sets of BOW, so I know they're out there ...).