[reviewers note : I read the paperback version of this novel that had 1,358 pages. Keep this in mind]
Hold on a moment - let me relax and take a deep breath. <-Deep Breath-> Much better. I finally finished this excessively large novel... and I have much to say about Executive Orders.
First, a message to Mr. Clancy: When did you fire your editor? ...and now back to the review.
A while back, someone e-mailed me saying this: "Don't get me wrong I love Clancy and will continue to read his books, but I'm not sure that we need to know every detail of human emotion, character, and personality of every character in every book." And that is only half of it, In Executive Orders, Clancy describes in length - not only characters - but every setting, action and movement in every aspect of this novel. On top of this, there are several sub-plots that add the length. Let us attempt to break down each one.
[Spoilers Alert]
First, the most significant plot of Executive Orders is the merging of Iran and Iraq. It starts with the murder of the President of Iraq by an Iranian. [Although Clancy does not say it by name directly - this President is described exactly like Saddam Hussein. If nothing else, you could tell by joyful reactions of his death.] This was all setup by the Ayatollah Mahmoud Haji Daryaei of Iran - who is the main antagonist of the story. Eventually, Iran and Iraq do merge and they becomes the UIR - The United Islamic Republic. This all happened by page 300.
The beginning of the novel is naturally exciting, mainly because it took place an hour after Debt of Honor ended, and the way in which that story ended - this one had to start exciting. Well as Executive Orders goes on, it slows down when Jack Ryan finally gets comfortable as the President in the White House - and this is when the many plots started unraveling. This first plot basically ends in a Desert Storm [Part III] type of war.
The next plot deals with the spread of the Ebola virus - a device used by the Iranians. It begins when Islamic doctors infect a Catholic nurse. They do this as an experiment - to see how the virus will infect a human. After the nurse suffers greatly - and dies a few days later - they realize it is the perfect weapon. Once they find out that it is a disease that can travel though the air - the UIR thus formulates a plan to unleash a major outbreak of the Ebola Virus - sub strain Mayinga - in the United States. This plot surprised me. It is was so agonizingly slow at the start of the novel that it literally led me to stop reading this novel for several weeks. However, in the end, it is this plot that saves the entire novel as the Ebola begins to breakout in the United States. Unfortunately Clancy gets so caught up in his own little Gulf War that the climax of this plot sort of sizzles away - without true resolve.
The third plot is based around the ex-Vice President Ed Kealty. He claims that he never officially stepped down and Jack Ryan is unlawfully the President. This plot started out decent then became somewhat amusing - but ended too abruptly. The reason why it was "amusing" was because it brought out to the public all the events in Jack Ryan's past. Namely, the events from The Hunt for Red October, The Cardinal of the Kremlin, and Clear and Present Danger. It described those books in vast detail. So if you read this one first - the other three books will automatically be spoiled. Clancy spends a great detail amount of time about his past stories, that this could have easily been edited down.
The fourth plot is just redundant - and should have been edited out. It affects the ending in absolutely no way of significance. This is the plot of the "Mountain Men". I think it was Clancy showing us that a few rednecks from the backwaters of the country could easily cause some havoc in the poorest of chosen times. This plot revolves around a couple of characters named Pete Holbrock and Ernie Brown. So when you see these names, remember that what your reading is insignificant to the plot and it's all right to skim if you are low on time.
The fifth plot is a rehash from Patriot Games. This terrorist name "Movie Star" (don't ask) sent from the UIR tries to kidnap Jack Ryan's youngest daughter from preschool. This was actually a very exciting scene. Although leading up to it was very slow. Of course.
The last plots are separate but are actually interesting and made an impact on the story. China and India form an alliance with the UIR and directly assisted them by causing some minor distractions to the United States Navy. They distract President Ryan in order to hide the true intentions of the UIR: To take over the entire Middle East.
[End Spoilers Alert]
There you have it. The six main plots of Executive Orders. Now that you know how many plots this book has, let me tell you why I decided to give this book a 77%. After all, up to page 1200, I was planning on rating it over 80%.
Clancy gets so obsessed with his own war that he abruptly ended all plots so he could focus on his own military scenario he has created. Don't get me wrong, if you are or have been involved with the military - you will love it . For the average reader - they will tire out quickly.
And for all of those Clark and Chavez fans - you will be disappointed. They do not do much this book - UNTIL - page 1,352. But what they did, and how Ryan set it up, is easily the most memorable aspect of the novel.
On a different note, have you noticed that all of Jack Ryan's friends are promoted above everyone else? Robby Jackson, Dan Murray, George Winston, to name a few. And Jack himself has turned into a bit of a whiner here. We realize he was forced into duty - but he has become sour on his political life style. Things just are not that easy when you are the President, are they Jack?
Minor Spoiler: One wonders what the future will be for Ryan who announced near the end of the novel that he is running for re-election. Just a guess, is there another terrorist act coming soon?
So, over all, Executive Orders has decent moments, but is simply below average quality for Clancy - who seemingly failed to hire an editor.
More information on Executive Orders at Amazon.com
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