Customer Reviews

24 Declassified: Operation Hell Gate

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

"Declassified: Hell Gate" takes us back in time to before the first season of "24", and tells some early stories about CTU. Make no mistake, Jack Bauer is still Jack. The TV series relies heavily on Kiefer Sutherland, and the books -- at least Tom Clancy alum Marc Cerasini's effort -- captures him believably on paper.

Most of the Season 1 CTU supporting cast, everyone except George Mason, shows up in supporting roles here. The bulk of the story, however, takes place in Brooklyn and Queens, with Jack chasing down a few overlapping terrorist plots prior to 9/11. The NYC settings are well used. You get the sense from Cerasini's writing that, minus a few days of second unit filming with Kiefer Sutherland, this entire story could still be filmed in Burbank. On the other hand, Cerasini captures mid-1990s' New York City well, with several interesting locations off the beaten path, and a large supporting cast of immigrants and ethnic New Yorkers.

The "real-time" format is also retained for the book. There are fewer cheats here than on TV, every character is able to get from Point A to Point B in sprawling Los Angeles in less than 20 minutes, and William Devane can change from orange prisoner garb into a neatly pressed $5,000 suit in 4 minutes and 20 seconds. In the book, fewer things happen, and characters vanish for whole chapters (hours) at a time. Most chapters are between 8 and 12 pages long, and that covers the whole hour. You can believe all this stuff happens in a day.

The potential for a bad TV tie-in novel is really, really high. Walk into any chain bookstore and head to the sci-fi section; you'll usually see two bookcases full of TV tie-ins. Some of those books are innovative and praiseworthy; many others are not worth the low-cost paper they're printed on. The recent tie-in to the TV hit "Lost" is the equivalent of Kim Bauer getting trapped in the woods and menaced by a cougar. So compared to that, at least, this first "24" novel is a good way of passing time in between one season's finale in May and the next season's debut the following January.

It's just a coincidence, of course, that this book appeared at the very moment that there was disturbing news about an actual threat America now faces, and on which Cerasini's first 24 novelization centers.

No, I won't tell you what that is. What I will tell you is that he has distilled the essence of the TV series onto the printed page. The characters, the conspiracies, the conflicts and the betrayals, are all there -- Cerasini has them dead on. Even more important, he has the RHYTHM of 24 dead on, not just in the time stamps but in the pulse of events. If you feel your heart beating faster as you read OPERATION HELL GATE, that's because the author has done his job. There's never a dull moment, but the suspense and excitement have as much to do with the characters -- including those new to this novel -- as with the action itself.

Cerasini is no stranger to the world of 24. Three years ago, he wrote 24: THE HOUSE SUBCOMMITTEE'S FINDINGS AT CTU. An audacious mockumentary based on the first season on the show, its release was mistimed and thus many of you may have missed it. Buy it now. And buy OPERATION HELL GATE. You're in for a great ride -- and a ride with some real thought behind it, too.

--John J. Pierce (author of Imagination and Evolution, the best history of science fiction).

I won't analyze this book's plot or character development, I will simply say; if you are a 24 fan, this book and the other currently out, Veto Power, are awesome.

They read like the show develops. Every cliffhanger is answered minutes later, rather than having to wait for a week. I read both of these back to back in about 10 hours of reading time over a two day span.

They are excellent. I have pre-ordered the other 2 coming out this year.

"Operation Hell Gate" is the first of a series of tie-in novels based on the hit TV show "24." Author Cerasini does a splendid job here, and the book should appeal to fans of the show and newcomers alike. Since the novels are prequels (early "declassified" cases), no prior knowledge of the show's events is needed to enjoy the novels. As on the show, the action transpires in a single 24-hour span, with each of twenty-four chapters covering an hour's events.

The first of the novels moves the action away from the TV show's Los Angeles setting to New York City. Refreshingly, the NYC that Jack Bauer moves through is the New Yorker's New York, not the tourist's "Big Apple." Action takes place in the Atlantic Avenue area of Brooklyn, one of the biggest Arab-American enclaves in the U.S., and in Woodside, Queens, one of the strongholds of Irish gangs like the notorious Westies, as well as in more familiar Manhattan settings. Since Jack is traversing a smaller geographic area than on the show, he is able to get around a little more realistically. (One episode last season had Jack get from Indio, in the desert near Palm Springs, back to LA in a matter of minutes.) And since there are an assortment of characters in play, Jack gets a little downtime now and then to eat something and relieve himself.

The author also seems to have inherited Tom Clancy's uncanny knack for choosing topics that become newsworthy just as the book hits the stands. In this case, the novel's menace is the 1918 influenza virus that killed 20 million people. The pandemic was the subject of a book, "The Great Influenza" by John M. Barry, that was read and duly noted by President Bush. A recent Time magazine article (mid Oct. 2005) ran related articles on the 1918 flu and the potential of the recent Asian Bird Flu to create similar havoc. Though critical of federal response to Hurrican Katrina, Time actually gives the Bush administration credit for being ahead of the curve in preparing for potential future pandemics. The same week the Time story broke, "Influenza" author Barry was interviewed at length on LA's popular "John and Ken" radio talk show.

"Operation Hell Gate" is about Jack Bauer's race against the clock to avert a new deadly outbreak of the 1918 influenza --a truly shuddersome menace that can kill a young healthy person in a single day. The first "24 Declassified" novel is a smart, fast-paced contemporary suspense yarn as good as any Clancy-esque techno-thriller out there.

This story is as nerve gripping as the series. I'll read it over and over.

The purpose of this review is not to rehash the plot which is ably done by the editorials above, but rather to give my opinion whether or not this book is worth its asking price. In this case, yes, buy this book, 24 Declassified: Operation Hell Gate.

This 24 story by Marc Cerasini is well written. The story is fast paced and exciting. Cerasini makes the reader feel just like he is watching a 24 TV episode. For 24 fans, you will enjoy this book. Even the layout of the book is reminiscent of the television show: the chapter numbers are the 24 hours countdown and each chapter starts with the familiar words, "The following takes place between the hours of X and X Eastern Daylight Time" (etc) with the action following a timed sequence. People who have never watched a 24 episode will also enjoy this book as an intense, stand-alone thriller; you don't have to be a previous 24 fan to find the book entertaining.

So you know, I am not a 24 TV fan. I've seen maybe three episodes, but I thoroughly enjoyed this book by Marc Cerasini and the series other book, "Veto Power" by John Whitman. Both authors do a fine job. I look forward to reading more books by each of them.

I found this book to be very interesting to read and it definitely got me excited about the new season starting soon. A huge fan of the show, I feel like I really know these characters. The only thing I didn't like about the book was all the jargon about weapons and ammunition, but it was still easy to follow along (even if I didn't know what the gun looked like or how powerful it was.) The plot was interesting and just like the series, each chapter kept me in suspense and wanting to go on reading to find out what happened next and how Jack ws going to get out of this one! Great book!

The pages turn like lightning in this first novel of a new thriller series based on the TV show 24. Federal Agent Jack Bauer faces a group of terrorists who plan to unleash a deadly flu pandemic on New York City.

Each chapter is a new hour in Jack's day. The action starts with a prologue featuring an assault at LAX that yields the first clues to the emerging threat. It is the capture of Dante Arete, an East Coast gang member with ties to Afghani terrorists and the IRA.

Jack travels to NYC for a joint FBI-CTU interrogation of the suspect when he's artfully framed for murder by a corrupt FBI agent. Thousands of miles from his Los Angeles field office, alone and hunted by the authorities and terrorists alike, Jack makes NYC his personal Ground Zero as he chases down clues in a race against the clock in a war against terror, all predating (and deftly foreshadowing) the attacks on 9/11.

Because this is a prequel, readers are treated to the return of characters from the 1st season. Even though Jack is in NYC, he relies heavily on help from Los Angeles and members of his loyal CTU team, who are given points of view throughout the novel. The old CTU gang are helping Jack at every turn: Nina Myers, Jamey, Milo, and Tony Almeida (my favorite character after Jack). Tony is given his own plotline in Los Angeles, which ties into what Jack's investigating in NYC. (Tony's forced to team up with an attractive female Marine captain, a weapons specialist with whom he's got a few beefs, to investigate the origins of a dangerous piece of advanced weapons technology.)

I liked the way the author put you in Jack's head (he's got Jack dead on). The final chapters are explosive. I'm a huge fan of 24, and I loved this book. If they're all as good as this, then I'll look forward to reading more in this new series.

This novel is great to hold you over until the new season starts in January. The structure is still in the real time format without having to fill up the time with extra plots (no cougars!). The author seems to have actually watched 24 before (unlike some other media ties) and possibly even read some posting boards on the net. The basic plot is classic 24 and very enjoyable. The throw away details are great for 24-phile (watch for the Mac reference), though the anvils of foreshadowing for 9/11 were abit heavy (I counted at least 3 references to the Twin Towers/WTC).

I'm 15 and I love this book! I am obssessed with Kiefer Sutherland and the show 24 so I obviously read this book. I have to say that this is one of the best books I have ever read! I highly recommend that everyone else who likes action, 24, or reading, should definately read this book!!!