Customer Reviews

Strike Group Reagan

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In the interests of full disclosure, let it be noted that the author is my older brother. That being said, I really did try to write an honest review of the book - but be forewarned that I may be biased. :)

Not bad at all for a first novel. Strike Group Reagan is a Clancy-esque military action novel, complete with lots (and lots and lots) of military and government lingo and abbreviations from several countries and cultures. Mr. Hutchison has obviously put forth a great deal of effort to learn about the various weapons, munitions, equipment, aircraft, ships, and other vehicles he uses in his novel. The detail is mind-boggling (and I have to admit to skipping over a paragraph or two that left my head swimming with letters and numbers). He clearly knows his stuff on the topic and has done extensive research to ensure accuracy. Mr. Hutchison also balances the perspectives well, following Tom Clancy's style here closely, juggling the storylines to keep the action moving without leaving us wondering about any of the characters too long. I would have like the students' storyline fleshed out a little more, but I really liked the relationship that he wrote between Angela (the student sister) and Renee (the fighter pilot sister).

I especially appreciated his inclusion of historical references - the novel's events were compared to battles in World War II, Vietnam, Korea, and the Iraq War. I felt like I was getting an education in war tactics while being entertained by the action. Lots of pop culture references helped to ground the novel in the present as well and provided some relief from the heavy technical side of the story.

My few complaints about the book include the occasional abbreviation or jargon that was not explained (but for his target audience perhaps they don't need to be), a non sequitur here or there that didn't seem to add to the story (but could arguably help flesh out the characters), and some really obvious proofing errors and inconsistencies (more his publisher's fault than his).