Customer Reviews

The Spy Who Jumped Off the Screen: A Novel

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

 

 

According to both the intro by Bill Clinton and the NPR interview with the author that led me to buy a copy, President Clinton tightened up an early draft. From which I suspect that draft must have suffered from the same problem as I constantly need to fight in my own technical writing: an attachment to fascinating details that were learned in doing the research. For my own prose, I must constantly ask myself: what do my colleagues need to know in order to advance their own research? For a thrilller, the author should constantly ask himself or herself: what do my readers need to know either to advance the plot or understand the characters? And which details should be left out, not because tbey are unimportant in general but because they do not fit this technical report or this novel.

Caplan has a brilliantly original concept for his main character, a serviceable if less original plot (stop the sale of old Soviet nukes), and clearly did considerable research on the technical details required to make such a plot believable. His research into such details was much better than the average thriller. I'm no expert on military technologies or espionage, I am a civilian scientist, but I do have a pretty good idea what is and is not feasible within the current state of the art of computer and aerospace technology. At some point while reading the average techno-thriller or watching the average action movie, I become irritated by the number of details that betray the writer's limited grasp of what really is feasible. At no point in reading this novel did I exclaim to myself "but it could not work that way!" Caplan must have done an unusually thorough job of research for me to get through an entire novel without being annoyed by tech blunders.

Aside from the residual pacing issues, the other issue I have with this novel is the feeling I knew more than I should have known about what the bad guys were doing and not enough about the main characters as people. At many points we readers already knew stuff the good characters were still trying to find out, because we got to see the villains discussing their plans. It would have been better to let us readers learn these things only by watching the heroes discover them. And by removing most of the scenes where the bad guys discuss their plans, Caplan would have had room for more character development among those trying to catch the villains.

Overall, this book was a good read: I was up until about 1:30 AM last night finishing it. In my younger days staying up late to finish a book was common, but in middle age I usually put it aside until the next day! So keeping me up late shows a thriller is well above average.

It's not every day that you see a thriller introduced by a former President of the United States, but Bill Clinton does exactly that for his old college pal "Tommy" Caplan. Unfortunately, President Clinton's introduction is the most interesting and well-written part of the book. The Spy Who Jumped Off the Screen was not worthy of his attention.

It's the story of a nasty duo who are putting together a deal to broker three decommissioned Soviet nukes to the highest bidders. The high-concept twist is that POTUS conscripts a top Hollywood star to go undercover on the trail of the nukes, figuring only someone like Ty Hunter can gain access to the yacht of the mega-wealthy bad guy. Full disclosure: Ty Hunter is everything I hate in a protagonist. When the President and one of his advisors approaches Ty about going under cover, the conversation goes like this:

"Me? I'm an actor."
"Don't be disingenuous," Kenneth said. "You're much more than an actor, and you know it."
"When you were a mere second lieutenant, in the army and attached to Task Force 508," the President asked, "what were you then? You were a commando in an oiled-cotton sweater who possessed every martial arts skill known to man."
"Not every," Ty said.
"You spoke Mandarin and Arabic and Spanish with a fluency that made you indistinguishable from any native."

And so forth. OMG, it's a bird, it's a plane, it's Ty Hunter, box-office superstar! I mean, I'm sorry, but is there anything remotely realistic about that character? Or interesting? And for a guy about whom it is repeatedly asserted he is looking for love, he sure seems to be prepared to hop into bed with any number of beautiful women. I absolutely detested the "romantic" sub-plot of this novel.

I really have nothing good to say. The novel dragged on interminably. The pacing was deadly. The plot vacillated between predictable and boring. The dialog was stilted and embarrassing. ("Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to kiss you." "Then please do. I'd like you to.") I never cared enough about a single one of the characters ultimately to care about what happened to them. (But tell us how you really feel, Susan.)

Look, it's not the worst book I've ever read. There's almost always something worse. But I honestly can't recommend this "thriller" on any level. And there's something even more unforgivable. In his acknowledgements page, Mr. Thomas alludes to this being the first Ty Hunter story. Please, no more, no more! I just can't face it.

This thriller is well worth a read. It is fast moving and is up there with the best. Ty Hunter a very intriguing main character. It is obvious that Mr. Caplan is very knowledgeable about the world of politics and the threats that we face today. I read the book in two days (Didn't want to put it down). I am looking forward to the sequel. This would obviously make a very good thiller movie.

Spoilers Galore

A Hollywood actor who used to be a Spec Ops soldier, a beautiful English jewelry designer, an international disarmament specialist and finally a billionaire with a luxurious yacht that doubles as a small city are the characters in this spy thriller. The theft of nuclear bombs from the former Soviet Union is the plot driver. The action moves from the Black Sea, to London, Rome, Tangiers and Gibraltar. All the ingredients of a good thriller are present. Ty Hunter the actor is given a secret mission by the US President to infiltrate the closed circle of friends around Ian Santal the billionaire suspected of smuggling the nukes out of Russia. Hunter falls in love with Ian's goddaughter, the beautiful Isabella. Isabella unfortunately is engaged to Ian's business partner Philip Frost. Hunter immediately suspects that Frost is the driving force in getting the nukes into Arab hands. The hunt is on for the proof and the nukes as the characters bounce around the Mediterranean from Tangiers to Spain and then Gibraltar. In the end as expected Hunter finds the nukes, gets the girl and has the villain get away to live again in a sequel.

Let me say first off that I did read this book almost straight through to the end. While it is far from the worst thriller I've read there were quite a few shortcomings to this story. The plot moves along very slowly with almost no action for pages on end. The descriptions of the technical details of the nuclear bombs (arming, disarming, moving, shielding, etc.) went on way to long. The character development was fairly thin, the villains actually got better back stories more fully described that the good guys. The dialogue is wooden and cliché filled.

I was surprised to see the glowing introduction written by Bill Clinton (a famous reader of thrillers) until I read he was a college friend of the author. My opinion, different from Bill's, is this is a mediocre thriller at best. Read something by Daniel Silva, Alex Berenson or Paul Haig for a good thriller.

Starting with Bill Clinton's introduction in the beginning of this book all the way to the last page, I was riveted to this story. Who wouldn't love a Hollywood type who is recruited by the government to track down missing nuclear warheads from a secret Russian site? The author had a unique way of letting the reader into the minds of his characters which was a special treat to me. Although this book took longer for me to read than most because of the long narrative passages, it was well worth it in the end.

It's a rare pleasure to read a book that the author clearly has enjoyed writing. The Spy Who Jumped Off the Screen: A Novel clearly is one of these. Thomas Caplan clearly knows his genre and his locations, and it's with a wink and and a smile that he takes us from one continent to another (and quite some time between continents, in fact). This is a spy thriller-romp that knows how to use "whilst" in a sentence and isn't afraid to do so. I especially enjoyed the compellingly complex - is he or isn't he? - Ian Santal; I hope we haven't seen the last of him. If I ever get to Gibraltar I hope there will be a Ty Hunter Tunnel Tour.

A totally unbelievable plot with unlikely characters. I must admit to being charmed by the Geeks. The rest was a total bore.

With a dashing hero, an attractive jewelry designer, and a megalomaniac billionaire villain worthy of James Bond, Caplan brings to you a thriller for the modern day. You'll sail on a luxury yacht and get lost in foreign locales. Filled with passion and betrayal, technology and money hungry men, this book will bring you up to a new level of story telling, and keep you there for the entire ride.
The hero: former covert operative, now number one box office movie star Ty Hunter, recruited by Washington to track down missing nuclear warheads from a decommissioned Russian military site. The villains: Ian Santal, a billionaire with twisted justifications for any action and Phillip Frost, Santal's ruthless second in-command. The lure: Isabella Cavill, Santal's goddaughter, a British designer working in Rome. The problem: the warheads are en route to their eventual owners, fanatics who sponsor terrorism. Hunter must use both his skills as an operative and an actor to thwart those who would try to control world destiny.
This novel is filled with long narration and in depth philosophical passages. The action is analytical, logical, and decisive. Caplan gets into the minds of the main characters, showing faults, quirks, loves and regrets, and how history affects the present. Don't expect a quick read, but be ready for an adventure worthy of another classic battle between good and evil.
Review written by Stephen L. Brayton, author of "Beta" for Suspense Magazine

I haven't read a spy novel in years. Lest you think that contradiction is some sort of backhanded compliment, let me assure you it is not. The truth is, I had long ago found myself bored reading the same formulaic novels with the same characters, whether those of Ian Fleming's successor authors, or Clive Cussler's own family. (Especially that bomb I suspect was actually written by his own son, Dirk.) So while I was curious about a relatively unproven author, I was also excited to step up to the action thriller plate again.

With a title that pays homage to John le Carré's classic, covert operative-turned movie star-turned spy Ty Hunter is a fresh and welcome hero with a cover more believable than real-life baseball spy Moe Berg. Author Thomas Caplan never takes himself too seriously, with textual references to Indiana Jones (p.219), Jason Bourne (p.223), and of course the genre's king, James Bond (p.341).

While the book has a handful of awkward passages in the first half, dialogue was crisp and believable, and exotic locales are handled with descriptive aplomb. Without spoiling anything, the story line is careful to leave plenty of opportunities for a sequel or even a series.

[The reviewer was provided with a complimentary advance copy of the book, and was thus unable to read the promised Introduction by President Bill Clinton.]

"Then He said to the woman, 'Your faith has saved you. Go in peace.'" -- Luke 7:50 (NKJV)

It's quite an honor to have former president Bill Clinton write an introduction for a novel. Unfortunately, the writing there was the best in the book.

The story involves a plot to sell nuclear devices to the highest bidder, some questionable wealthy Arabs. We follow that plot . . . as well as the efforts to counter the plot. The hero is a movie star with a background in the U.S. special forces who is asked to infiltrate a billionaire's activities to find out what's going on . . . and to stop anything nefarious.

The book has some good points: an intriguing villain, lots of realistic details, and plenty of plot complications. It also has some weaknesses: a slow start, not much drama in the first half, and implausible events in places. As a result, although I enjoyed the story it didn't engross me the way an outstanding thriller or spy story can. I couldn't quite suspend my disbelief, so I was limited to watching a fairly predictable working out of the plot in too many places rather than being emotionally caught up in the action.