Hidden Agendas (Tom Clancy's Net Force, No. 2) [ABRIDGED] [AUDIOBOOK] (Audio Cassette)

by Tom Clancy (Author), Steve Pieczenik (Author), Kerry Shale (Reader)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal
YA-High drama unfolds in this high-tech thriller. The year is 2010 and virtually everything is run by computers. Someone with access to classified information is leaking secrets and posting it on the Internet for the entire world to see. Congress has created a security agency within the FBI called the Net Force to enforce the Net Laws. It is the job of Commander Alexander Michaels and his team to track down the ruthless hacker, whose illicit postings have caused a multitude of deaths. Readers are introduced to many different characters at the beginning of the book, and it takes several chapters for their relationship to become evident. Numerous acronyms are used for computer terminology and futuristic high-tech weaponry. Although they are spelled out the first time they appear, thereafter just the abbreviations are used. Still, teens will enjoy the prospect of future "virtual reality" and its impact on everyday life as well as the intriguing examination of America's intelligence and defense systems of the future. Although the story line tends to slow down in places, this novel offers international intrigue, murder, romance, treachery, and the limitless possibilities of the new millennium.
Anita Short, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VA
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Description
Read by Kerry Shale
Three Cassettes, 4 hours

In the year 2010, computers are the new superpower. Those who control them control the world. To enforce the New Laws, Congress creates the ultimate computer security agency with the FBI: the Net Force.

Instructions on how to make a bomb...a list of every U.S. spy in the Euro-Asian theater...Someone with access to classified information is posting it on the Internet-and it's costing lives. Net Force Commander Alex Michaels is in the hot seat. Now, before a hostile Senate committee, he must justify the very existence of the Net Force.

Meanwhile, a virus is unleashed that throws the federal financial systems into chaos. And the Net Force operatives must hunt the wily hacker through the twists and turns of cyberspace-down a path that leads them dangerously close to home...

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Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Random House Audio; Abridged edition (October 19, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0375402705
• ISBN-13: 978-0375402708
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 4.6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (50 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,011,342 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Unbelievably Poorly Written - "T is for Terrible"ÿ, November 27, 1999

By	Bill Allen (CT, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hidden Agendas (Tom Clancy's Net Force, No. 2) (Paperback)

Early works were solid. I've been a true fan and read from Red October through to Clear and Present Danger.

What's clear is this book is well below par. Its more along the lines of a Sue Grafton novel as in "T is for Terrible". The Danger is that Tom & Steve put their names on it. I feel like a teacher catching students cheating on an exam. Either this isn't their work or this isn't the work I know their capable of. I can't recommend this and would like a refund.

A few technical points - And I'm not a writer but just some obvious flaws. 1. Poor dialog. 2/10 The same phrasing is used by multiple characters. Sometimes on the Same page! (Granny sickle & Howard sickle - this is lame. A first year writer could do better) 2. Concepts - 3.5/10 I agree the VR approach is laughable. 3. The printed book - 0/10 - Half the book is either smudged or blurred on poor quality paper. This is obviously a publisher cashing in on Tom's name. Previously I didn't think twice about a new Clancy novel. Now I'll have to skim the book first to see if its even worth consideration.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Tommy Boy, I hardly know ye!, December 9, 1999

By	Patrick R. Connell <[e-mail]> (Miami Beach, Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hidden Agendas (Tom Clancy's Net Force, No. 2) (Paperback)

I was hanging around the Pentagon when Hunt for Red October hit the streets. It was talked about in every gathering, during coffee at every conference, and in every cocktail party into the night. Folks at the Navy Annex and Ballston were wide eyed that someone had the knowledge and audacity to write such a tale. None of us could put it down. The same was true for every other Clancy novel including the hard cover edition of Executive Orders which very nearly cracked my ribs a few times when I went to sleep after reading into the early hours.

Then, I'm on a plane with a copy of Hidden Agendas. I sit back, read the first few pages, look at the cover to be sure that my son hadn't substituted one of his Pokemon books. Then, I waded through the rest of it, sad and then angry that one of our most prolific and enjoyable writers would permit his name to be seen in the same neighborhood with such fluffy material.

There was no substance there Tommy, no angst, no depth, no real threat. There was only a pair of one-dimensional bad boys and this Net Force gang, most of whom Jack Ryan would have assigned as door guards at the State Department.

Give it a rest Tommy. If you don't want to write, then enjoy all that success has brought you. If this Pieczenik fellow is holding you hostage someplace, let us know and we'll rescue you. Otherwise, please, don't sully the great and global stories you've shared with us. Go lay on the beach somewhere and give your own imagination free rein once again.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Hidden Agendas by Tom Clancy, December 14, 1999

By	Gavin Matthews (New Zealand) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Hidden Agendas (Tom Clancy's Net Force, No. 2) (Paperback)

Hidden Agendas follows on from the first book where the head of Net Force (Steve Day) was assassinated by terrorists, in steps Alex Michaels to take over the ship with has trusted team of computer experts, Toni Fiorella and Jay Gridley. Without giving to much away, someone was not only able to get their hands on top secret information but is posting it on the net, sending the world into chaos. Michaels and his team are sent on a wild goose chase on the info they are being allowed to gather on the suspect, it seems no-one is safe from these terrorists. I have read both books and find them quick paced and hard to put down. There is Action , suspence, humor and a touch of romance thrown in for good measure. If the first two books are anything to go by, I'm buying the rest and I can't wait for the TV series.