Books

Final Bearing
The Blue Widows
The Last Prophecy
The Da Vinci Legacy
The Great Divide
Bride of the Sun (1915)
Wisdom's Daughter: The Life and Love Story of She-who-must-be-obeyed (1923)
Hearts of Three (1920)
Daughter of the Sun: A Tale of Adventure (1921)
Angel Island (1914)
Liar's Market (MIRA S.)
Requiem for a Glass Heart [LARGE PRINT]
The Stirring
The Illuminati
A Skeleton in God's Closet
China White
Don't Close Your Eyes
Overfall
The Last of the Dog Team
Cause of Fear
Crimson Hit
Code Name Extreme Prejudice
Last Rebel Survivor
Darker Than Night
Ice-man

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DiMercurio
Dissapointing for Dimercurio
Who else hates the U.S.?
Home in on THIS superior Techno-Thriller!
Threat Vector

Barracuda, Final Bearing
Michael DiMercurio
Manufacturer: Onyx
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

Spy Stories & Tales of Intrigue | Thrillers | Mystery & Thrillers | Subjects | Books

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Similar Items:

Phoenix Sub Zero
Attack of the Seawolf
Terminal Run
Threat Vector
Piranha: Firing Point

ASIN: 0451407423

Book Description

In this acclaimed undersea thriller, Michael DiMercurio, a veteran submarine officer and author of Threat Vector and Piranha Firing Point, takes readers behind the scenes of a naval crisis-and below the surface...

A new independent nation has emerged in Asia-with a nuclear arsenal. And its most powerful geographic neighbor has launched a preemptive strike against them. The result: worldwide outrage. When a U.N. blockade against the aggressors is met with underwater attacks, Admiral Michael Pacino is forced to take on one of the world's strongest nations-and destroy one of the greatest submarine fleets.

Customer Reviews:

DiMercurio.......2007-04-04

Another good book by a submarine-adventure author I enjoy. Amazon provides a good way to find early books by authors one enjoys. Books are consistently in the condition advertised and are shipped promptly.

Dissapointing for Dimercurio.......2005-11-24

"Barracuda" is a great story idea horribly told. USS Barracuda is one of two surviving Seawolf class subs - Seawolf itself was destroyed in DiMercurio's "Phoenix Sub Zero" - and both `Cuda & Piranha (the other Seawolf) are deployed against the Japanese in an emergency blockade. A newly aggressive Japan has just attacked the suddenly independent nation of Manchuria - specifically a bunker housing ex-Soviet nucs mistakenly left behind when the Soviets left - and a vigilante America demands that Japan completely demilitarize itself.

Though Admiral Pacino (DiMercurio's perennial hero) suggests direct action - namely destroying Japan's advanced Destiny class nuclear subs before they leave port, his craven superiors over-rule him. Instead, he's to lead a blockade which will give the Japanese time to deploy their killer subs. The Destiny subs are quieter than anything in the sea, carry gear making them immune to enemy torpedoes, and fire Nagasaki torpedoes which never miss and cannot be outrun. In little time, the Destiny subs wipe the seas clean of American subs and surface ships - leaving Pacino to hit back with his two Seawolf ships. Even with his Seawolves, Pacino is still forced to rely on the Vortex missile, an underwater rocket that's equally deadly to its target and launcher (the force of launch ruptures the launch tube, and floods the front of the sub.) With no way to launch a Vortex from a torpedo tube, but desperate for any weapon against the Destiny ships, Pacino hits on a (barely) workable solution: external mounts for the torpedoes. Unable to command a ship, Pacino tags a maverick sub commander named Bruce Phillips with the unenviable task of taking `Cuda to war.

So why does this fish story sink? "Barracuda", a slim book, spends its time poorly, giving too little attention to the subs that DiMercurio handles so well. DiMercurio takes about half the book to get to the parts where subs actually fight. Until then, we have Japanese politicians and Generals, Manchurian strongmen, Japanese spies - all agonizing over whether newly independent Manchuria has nukes, and what Japan will do should they learn of that fact. The problem is, we know that Manchuria has nukes, and that the Japanese are going to taken `em out, so the extended lead-in is completely superfluous. We then get American politicians and generals arguing over whether there's going to be an armed response, but we know that that's a done deal as well. DiMercurio then takes forever getting Pacino to sea - it's an interesting sequence, but when he then completely glances over the utter devastation wrought by the Japanese on the Americans, you've got to ask yourself, was this trip worthwhile? (We learn after the fact that large numbers of American ships have been sunk - a bit of horrible news that generates barely a ripple here.) The submarine scenes are annoyingly brief - attacking ships detect their targets and shoot them; targeted subs hear torpedoes in the water, and are sunk. DiMercurio plumps up the scenes with submarine dialog ("open outer doors, shoot on generated bearings") but never fleshes out the story. Even the travails of sailors trying to save their battle-damaged ships (which made "Phoenix" a better than average story) are missing. It's like DiMercurio wrote a submarine technothriller with as little about submarines as possible. DiMercurio crafts a great team - Bruce Phillips as the maverick Skipper, and Hornick, a button-down genius akin to Mr. Scott of "Trek", but uses them sparingly. These two guys should have had their own book.

"Barracuda" also suffers from some plot gaps: DiMercurio hypes Japanese subs with completely computerized crews - but they prove utterly incapable of handling American subs, or much of anything besides large surface ships. (Though taking a toll, once they've committed their attacks, the robot subs remain helpless on the surface where they're captured by Americans.) The premise relies on the Japanese taking action against Manchuria that seems unnecessary - there being no animosity between Japan and Manchuria prior to the attack, why should Japan take the rap? (Japan could also have saved itself a lot of trouble had they equipped their spy with a small nuclear bomb - nobody would have known that Japan was behind the attack or, once Manchuria fessed up to its nukes, that there had even been an attack.) Japan's preemptive action against WMD's seems sadly more plausible in 2003 than in 1996 when "Barracuda" was written (I had to check the date). The world response, largely vilifying Japan and demanding total demilitarization, also seems out of proportion given an attack confined to an illegal nuclear bunker. While bad, I doubt that the real world would require reenacting "Surrender on the Missouri" as punishment. The Manchurians themselves and most of the Japanese and American figures simply vanish from the story. It's impossible to read this and not think "hack job". The best thing I can think of is that this is unusually poor for DiMercurio, and shouldn't reflect on his better books.

Who else hates the U.S.?.......2004-10-07

Besides the Japanese sub commander? Boy, he really had it in for us. Reminds me of the hatred of some fundamentalist Muslims toward the U.S.

But hey, how about those computer-controlled subs of the Japanese? Pretty good idea? There were a lot of good ideas here, and much to learn for novices like me. The story line does jump around a lot, making it a little hard to keep up with who's who in the sub world, but I've read much worse. For the most part, this author keeps things together, at least by segregating the crews by their respective subs.

One thing that bothered me, and also scared me, was how much further advanced the Japanese subs were than ours. And, that considered, why would Pacino literally sacrifice most of his sub force, and some carriers, knowing that the Japanese could deflect our torpedoes and even take a few hits without going down? That part seemed a little far-fetched.

I really liked the idea of a female president. It seems like a gimmick now but it's coming, and the sooner the better. Diximus.

Home in on THIS superior Techno-Thriller!.......2001-01-24

The absolute unchallenged King of the underwater submarine adventure has DONE IT AGAIN! I almost want to join the Navy after reading his exciting stories (...ALMOST...). Trying to avert WWIII...a daunting task, but thank heavens our Sub force is up to the task. I echo another reviewers praise of Mr. DiMercurio's talent for getting TO the point without unnecessary literary mumbo-jumbo that serves no purpose other than to make the book bigger and ultimately less entertaining (a trap that Clancy has been falling into since 'The Sum of All Fears'). Always a few years ahead, DiMercurio's stories give us descriptions of weapons that just MIGHT be invented and implemented on subs in the near future (if they actually haven't already). I also appreciate the insight into the minds of those manning these incredible weapons of war, very interesting to say the least.

On a side note, recently I visited Portland, Oregon and floating on the Willammette River at the Oregon Museum of Science & Industry is the decommissioned sub, USS Bluefish (remember the sub that came shooting out of the water in 'The Hunt For Red October' the movie? Well THAT is the same sub). I took a tour on this, the smallest American sub on active duty for many many years, and it was absolutely thrilling and amazing to walk the decks of a ship that had actually trailed Russian subs during the Cold War. It reminded me very much of reading Mr. DiMercurio's novels (ALL of which are awesome). If you ever get the chance to tour a sub, I suggest you do NOT pass it up--it was an incredible adventure to see first hand a little of what life was like on board one of these ships. 'Barracuda Final Bearing' is easily one of the best sub stories available in print today. A MUST read for any submariner or anyone interested IN subs.

Threat Vector.......2000-10-08

After reading "Attack of Seawolf", I found myself hooked on DiMercurio and have since read all his books. The stories though fiction, have an air of reality that keeps you from wanting to put the book down. "Threat Vector" was no different. And, with the end left in limbo, I cannot wait for his next book. As someone who doesn't read very often, DiMercurio has definitely got me, hook, line and sinker.

Final Bearing (Tom Doherty Associates Book)

Average customer rating:

Knowledgeable but unmotivational
Move Over Tom Clancey
White-knuckled reading
4 1/2 star adventure
Submarine memories

Final Bearing (Tom Doherty Associates Book)
George Wallace , and Don Keith
Manufacturer: Amazon Remainders Account
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Literature & Fiction | Bargain Books | Stores | Books

Thrillers | Mysteries & Thrillers | Bargain Books | Stores | Books

In the Course of Duty: The Heroic Mission of the USS Batfish
Gallant Lady: A Biography of the USS Archerfish
Red Star Rogue: The Untold Story of a Soviet Submarine's Nuclear Strike Attempt on the U.S.
The Luck of the Draw: The Memoir of a World War II Submariner: From Savo Island to the Silent Service
Dark Pacific

ASIN: B000F6Z5AE

Book Description

Juan de Santiago is not only a billionaire coca grower. He is also a deranged revolutionary, the commander of the most powerful private army in South America. Backed by power-hungry rogue nations who supply him with the latest weaponry, de Santiago devices a plan that will dishearten the American antidrug effort and make him El Jefe once and for all.A successful soldier in Florida's antidrug war, Tom Kincaid is an expert on Colombia, with connections that lead directly to Juan de Santiago himself. But when U.S. politicians demand a publicity-driven drug bust, they blow the cover of Kincaid's carefully crafted network, leaving most of his informants dead, and get the DEA agent exiled to the relative backwater of Seattle.Commander Jonathan Ward and his crew on the old attack sub Spadefish are on one last mission. They are to launch a strike that will put de Santiago and his empire out of business for good. They are getting help from Bill Beaman and his SEAL team, who are searching for the secret laboratories of de Santiago. Following deep jungle trails and hiking the lofty mountains of the ancient Inca Empire, they are intent on driving a stake through the heart of de Santiago's drug empire.But there is a leak in the Colombian government, and Beaman and his SEALs are being stalked. From the old highways of the Incas to the plush haciendas of the drug lords, guerrilla armies are lurking, striking out at those who threaten their lucrative trade. And at the same time, a futuristic minisub leaves Colombia. Destination: Seattle. And it is loaded with the most lethal, addictive substance known to man.

Customer Reviews:

Knowledgeable but unmotivational.......2005-10-23

I like these writers; they are reasonably efficient, for the genre, and are clear about what they intend without subterfuge. This book is an action thriller, meaning that while there are some mysterious elements to it, we the readers know the basics of its development and thus have the pleasure of watching characters adapt to it. Characters... well, they're a slight bit one dimensional, and the action somewhat linear, but the knowledge of submarining here is spectacular and is used to enhance our feeling of being there, of facing the actual threats of being submerged in the sea. For all its faults, I enjoyed this book, and were I its editor, would have demanded a more compelling and realistic plot and slightly tighter action. Still, of all the works in its genre, it's one of the least laughable and most pure entertainment value. I would recommend this book to other experienced readers in this genre.

Move Over Tom Clancey.......2004-04-25

FINAL BEARING is a real page turner. Make sure you have the time to stick with this intriguing "get the bad guys" book. I'm still wondering what happened to the two trucks that got away. I liked this better than Clancey's submarine stories as the scenes are more authentic and complete in detail. I almost got sea sick reading of the influence of heavy seas upon the men. Sure would make a great movie! I'm looking forward to the next book.

White-knuckled reading.......2003-09-18

Wallace and Keith manage to take the action from the jungles of South America to the streets of Seattle without missing a beat, but the best scenes take place within the confines of the submarine. Never has the pressure, camraderie, and very real danger of daily life on a sub been conveyed so fondly and so well. You don't have to be a submariner or even a fan of this genre to find this book thoroughly engrossing.

4 1/2 star adventure.......2003-09-09

See book description above.

With the knowledge of George Wallace and the writing skill of Don Keith you get an adventure well worth the read. This novel covers a lot of territory. From the ins and outs of submarines to the covert ops of the War on Drugs. Well worth your time. I look forward to this duos next novel.

Highly recommended.

Submarine memories.......2003-09-02

I am a retired Navy Submariner who now lives in New York. It was exciting to read about so many instances and details that had the realism only a fellow submariner could express, even down to the mannerisms and lingo. It is also apparent that the author has been to the places cited in the book. Once again, having been to the Puget Sound and San Diego, it brought back memories. The combination of submarine realism, location facts, and the weaving back and forth of the story line between different scenes and settings kept my interest, and kept me wanting to read more. Great book for a relaxing yet interesting read.

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Final Command Action Manual
Claude V. King
Manufacturer: Final Command Resources
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Book Description

Final Command Action Manual is designed to help all Christians in your church work together to obey the final command of the Lord by participating in the process of making disciples. Members will work together to undertake seven actions to lead others to faith in Christ. Leader's material and a variety of use plans are included. This book is especially prepared for introduction in a half day workshop or retreat but can be used in individual study as well.

Furbearer population data analysis: Final performance report

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Furbearer population data analysis: Final performance report
Gary D Schnell
Manufacturer: s.n
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Wildlife | Conservation | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0006XU58S

Dynamic studies on the bearing capacity of piles: Final project report

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Dynamic studies on the bearing capacity of piles: Final project report
G. G Goble
Manufacturer: s.n.]
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Design review and analysis for a Pratt & Whitney fluid-film bearing and seal testing rig final report (SuDoc NAS 1.26:197035)

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Design review and analysis for a Pratt & Whitney fluid-film bearing and seal testing rig final report (SuDoc NAS 1.26:197035)
Dara W. Childs
Manufacturer: National Aeronautics and Space Administration National Technical Information Service, distributor
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B00010NU5Q

Flex bearing UUEC final report (SuDoc NAS 1.26:193901)

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Flex bearing UUEC final report (SuDoc NAS 1.26:193901)
NASA
Manufacturer: Thiokol Corp., Space Operations National Aeronautics and Space Administration National Technical Information Service, distributor
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B00010K8BU

Survey of furbearer populations on the Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge: Final report

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Survey of furbearer populations on the Yukon Flats National Wildlife Refuge: Final report
Howard N Golden
Manufacturer: U.S Fish and Wildlife Service
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B000731ZJU

$Improved fracture toughness corrosion-resistant bearing material final report (SuDoc NAS 1.26:174990)$
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Improved fracture toughness corrosion-resistant bearing material final report (SuDoc NAS 1.26:174990)
Eric N. Bamberger
Manufacturer: General Electric Co., Aircraft Engine Business Group National Aeronautics and Space Administration For sale by the National Technical Information Service
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B00010PDBK

Indices of fox, raccoon, and other mammalian population abundance in Alabama: Final report

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Indices of fox, raccoon, and other mammalian population abundance in Alabama: Final report
Edward P Hill
Manufacturer: s.n
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B0006XSNIW

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