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Series: Tom Clancy’s Net Force

Title: Net Force (Book 1)
Author: Created by Tom Clancy and Steve Pieczenik
ISBN: 0-425-16172-2
Format: Paperback 372 Pages
Overall Concept 8
Execution 6

Title: Hidden Agendas (Book 2)
Author: Created by Tom Clancy and Steve Pieczenik
ISBN: 0-425-17139-6
Format: Paperback 366 Pages
Overall Concept 8
Execution 5

Being a fan of Tom Clancy’s novels (despite only having currently read Without Remorse and no others), I was intrigued when he put his name to this concept. What further intrigued me was it was a spy thriller series with an emphasis on technology. Being a person who both works and hobbies with technology this seems a natural set of books to at least give a chance.

The overall premise of this series is that in the near future the FBI ends up having a division (Net Force) that is solely responsible for investigating and dealing with ‘techno crime and/or terrorism’. With it being the near future, the technology is based enough on current technology to be plausible yet advanced enough to allow the authors a fair amount of creative license.

In the first book the head of Net Force is assassinated and the assistant director must step in and find his killer while avoiding being killed himself. This first book does a good job of introducing and fleshing out the main characters and the organization as a whole.

The 2nd book deals with a criminal mastermind and his minions that are attempting to discredit Net Force while simultaneously manipulating the stock market to amass vast fortunes. This book is a seamless continuation from the first book and does a good job of trying to further humanize the characters and events.

My first caveat to the reader of this series is that neither of the two listed authors actually writes the books, but are the co-creators and overseers of the series. I am rather disappointed not to be able, so far, to find out who the ghost writers are for these books, as I would like to see what other materials they have written in an effort to ascertain if it is the series concept which is ‘weak’ or if it is their particular writing styles.

My second caveat is that although the premise is to be a tech based thriller series, the way in which the tech is handled is minimal and has quickly been turned into a literary device that doesn’t force the authors to have an actual working knowledge of modern or soon to be tech.

All in all these novels are entertaining enough to read but not good enough to be considered more than they are, the modern equivalent to the ‘penny dreadful’ of the Victorian era.

I would recommend these books to fans of ‘mental bubble gum’ like Mack Bolan novels or people looking for a quick entertaining read without concerns for realism or depth. But true fans of Tom Clancy or techno-thrillers might be best to fill their wants from other shelves.