7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Possibly the best of DeMille's books, a real education!, June 17, 2010
Nelson DeMille is, in my opinion, one of America's best novelists. I have read all of his books with the exception of the one that just came out - which I intend to order this week. I have read several of his books twice or three times. I would rather read a DeMille for the second or third time than read a second rate author, which most are, I hate to say.
This book told me more about Vietnam and war than any book I have ever read. It expressed the moral challenges soldiers must address almost daily. It explained human nature and man's inevitable reactions to exposure to long-term brutality. It expressed the absolute brutality of war through the eyes of a character who was not opposed to the war, who thought, in fact, that he was in Vietnam because he was doing what a patriot ought to do.
His male-female relationships in this book, like in all his others, are totally realistic. He understands women better than any male author I have ever come across. He understands the dynamics so well that he can get into the small print of the relationship and not look stupid and uninformed in a woman's eyes. He understands us as well as we understand ourselves.
For the first time I understood the geography of Vietnam, what the civilian populace of the country suffered as we dropped hundreds of thousands of bombs on them and how they hid out in tunnels, gave birth in tunnels, had medical facilities in tunnels.
The book addressed the reputation of our CIA, FBI, Military Intelligence, etc., and how even those involved in that line of work distrust these organizations to varying degrees.
Truly a masterpiece! Do yourself a favor and read this exceptional book.
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