Rating: 
Summary: Not Clancy's best, but not nearly as bad as some say
Review: Phew. I finally finished this massive 1026 page hardcover novel. Ignoring the page count for a moment, this is a very large book with lots of things going on. Tom Clancy is following multiple plot-lines and eventually weaving them all together in the attempt to build not just a story, but the broad overview of his world. Over the course of the past 8 novels, Tom Clancy has built a world that is similar to our own, but different events have changed the political reality inside the United States. When The Hunt for Red October was published, Jack Ryan was new to the CIA as an analyst. As the series has moved on, Ryan has moved up the CIA hierarchy and was eventually the Deputy Director of the CIA and took the place of his mentor, James Greer. Terrorists have exploded a nuclear bomb at the Super Bowl in Denver (The Sum of All Fears), a war was instigated that caused a terrorist to crash a plane into the capitol killing the President, most of Congress and all of the Supreme Court (Debt of Honor). At the time that happened, Jack Ryan was just sworn into being the Vice President (he was going to accept the post for the year until election time and then retire from government service all together), so he was now the President. After winning one more war in the Middle East, Jack Ryan actually ran for President and won. This is where The Bear and the Dragon begins. Ryan is now President in his own right and is a year into his term.That was a long introduction to a long novel, but it is important to know because this shapes the actions and thoughts of the characters in Clancy's world. China was behind two major operations: the recent war with Japan (Debt of Honor) and the war with the new Islamic nation that consisted of Iraq and Iran (Executive Orders). CIA believed that China was behind all this, but did not have the proof. So, by this point the top ranked government officials are very skeptical of China and the Chinese. Some reviewers have cried racism, and while the Chinese are painted in a VERY unfavorable light and racist remarks are used by the government officials, we are dealing with a very different world than the one that we live in. China instigated major wars and chemical warfare against the United States. We must take the previous books into account when reading this one. The Bear and the Dragon deals with several plots. The United States has a spy in China and he is working to get access to high level Politburo information. This involves the recruitment of an agent within China, a secretary to a Politburo member. Another plotline involves the discovery a massive oilfield in Russia (larger than the Middle East), as well as a huge gold mine in Russia. This naturally gets China interested in moving north into Siberia. The novel begins with an attempt on the life of Golovko, the top advisor to the President of Russia (I can't remember his exact title, but he used to run the KGB and has appeared in past novels). We see John Clark, Domingo Chavez, and other repeat characters from previous books. As I said, the book is long, and in several parts it drags a bit. For a novel this large and with a plot this convoluted and detailed, it is an interesting read. Not quite up to the level of Clancy's best, it also isn't as bad as some reviewers might have you believe. There is some parts of the book that aren't as interesting and the characters are more or less one dimensional now (Clancy spent 8 books developing some of these characters, I think we're okay if he doesn't change them in book 9). Some parts feel rushed (the ending) and some parts smack of Clancy himself being too much in the novel, but honestly, this is a Tom Clancy novel and we aren't reading this with the expectation that it be William Faulkner. Clancy does best with the military parts of the book, and to be perfectly honest: this was an enjoyable book to read and is a worthy member of the Jack Ryan Universe.
Rating: 
Summary: decent...but confusing
Review: The book uses way too many abbreviations. I mean he goes out of his way to add them...POTUS(president of the united states)...why use it?!.....this was my first clancy novel and i'm not so sure if i will return for another after this loooooooong disappointment.
Rating:
Summary: not a very good Jack Ryan Novel
Review: This book takes place after the setting of Executive Orders. It talks about war between Russia and China. Clancy has written about war against every possible US foe-USSR, Japan, Iran, and now in this book he sets his eyes on the People's Republic of China.
However, this book lacks the excitement of Executive Orders (however, its difficult to live up to this book). I think Clancy did a hurried up job on this one (he even admitted he rushed through the ending in an interview in C Span).
Its okay for Jack Ryan fans, but not all that good.
Rating: 
Summary: Tired...
Review: I'm a Tom Clancy fan. Despite the cardboard characters, the unconvincing dialogue, the political sermonizing, and the fascination with gadgetry (usually of the lethal sort) his book have something. The man can tell a story. When he starts to build to the climax he holds your attention, and the climax is usually riveting. Get past the first, rather slow section, in a Tom Clancy novel and you're probably hooked on the rest of it. But not here.
What went wrong? "The Bear and the Dragon" has all the bad things, and too few of the good ones. It's too long, there are great lengths of text that could have come out, the politics and action are way over the top. And worst of all, the climax is badly written, unconvincing, and lacks the immediacy and mind's-eye descriptiveness of previous books.
Not only that but the characters - most of whom we have met in previous novels - have failed to develop. Some have actually regressed, and that includes the central figure Jack Ryan, whose behaviour at the end is both illogical and (in the worst sense) un-Presidential. And Clancy acts as if he has just discovered the "F" word and uses far, far too much, putting it in the mouths of characters, make and female, quite indiscriminately. The effect is to annoy and the final result rather childish.
The whole book is tired and formulaic. So why even two stars? Well under it all, it is a Tom Clancy. What a pity it didn't receive some firm and good editing on its way to publication.
Rating:
Summary: Tired...
Review: I'm a Tom Clancy fan. Despite the cardboard characters, the unconvincing dialogue, the political sermonizing, and the fascination with gadgetry (usually of the lethal sort) his books have something. The man can tell a story. When he starts to build to the climax he holds your attention, and the climax is usually riveting. Get past the first, rather slow section, in a Tom Clancy novel and you're probably hooked on the rest of it. But not here.
What went wrong? "The Bear and the Dragon" has all the bad things, and too few of the good ones. It's too long, there are great lengths of text that could have come out, the politics and action are way over the top. And worst of all, the climax is badly written, unconvincing, and lacks the immediacy and mind's-eye descriptiveness of previous books.
Not only that but the characters - most of whom we have met in previous novels - have failed to develop. Some have actually regressed, and that includes the central figure Jack Ryan, whose behaviour at the end is both illogical and (in the worst sense) un-Presidential. And Clancy acts as if he has just discovered the "F" word and uses it far, far too much, putting it in the mouths of characters, make and female, quite indiscriminately. The effect is to annoy and the final result rather childish.
The whole book is tired and formulaic. So why even two stars? Well under it all, it is a Tom Clancy. What a pity it didn't receive some firm and good editing on its way to publication.
Rating:
Summary: Perfect example for why writers need editors
Review: Clancy's written some fabulous books. Some of the great elements of his previous successes remain in Bear and Dragon, especially his (apparent) insider's knowledge of intelligence and military tactics and equipment. Even if half of these aren't real, they're interesting nonetheless. It appears, however, that given his significant success, Clancy has little if any editorial oversight. This should have been a 300-400 page book, not 1100+ pages. The same positions and points of view were made repeatedly. In some cases, the spoken phrases and thoughts were repeated verbatim, sometimes by different characters. Further, the "good" characters just aren't that interesting -- none are given any appreciable faults or inner conflicts do deal with. The end felt so rushed you'd think Clancy had run out of paper. Its disappointing, but this will be my last Clancy novel.
Rating: 
Summary: Jack Ryan - Retire!
Review: (Be aware, there are some spoilers along the way)
Once upon a time Clancy was my number one writer. Well, maybe number 1.5 after Tolkien and Asimov. Still, I loved his stuff, the complex story line, the characters were my heroes and the level of exact details in the military/terror scenarios was astonishing. It all ended, and I am truly sad to say that, in this book. The Bear and the Dragon is a sort of a mish-mash between Clancy`s previous novels (a Debt of Honor and Executive Order) mixed with a very low lever version of Red Storm Rising, which in my eyes, was his masterpiece. Jack Ryan, the beloved president, transforms from the ordinary though talented hero, which is what I liked about him, to a sort of whimpering president who keeps moaning about needing to do what is right and the fact that he hates the hellhole he was driven to (i.e. - the white house). Add to that the fact that his v.p., Jackson, a guy I loved reading about since Patriot Games, became a really annoying ex fighter pilot who can`t get over the fact that he is not flying anymore (For gods sakes man! take off those wings off your suit!) Throw in the nauseating Folies (the bunny couple), The Chinese Politbereau members (who look like a copy of the Soviet members in Red Storm), The super annoying Ernie Van Damm who seems to say the exact same phrases for the third book in a row... Some details in the plot looks quite ridicules, especially for a master of details, such as Clancy. The Chinese espionage plot for example. I am quite sure that comrade Ming would not be as stupid in reality as in the book by allowing Numory to implant that agent in her computer. Or, the joint attack by Rainbow-Speznaz teams against the Chinese nuclear silos. 30 Russian casualties of course, non for the invincible immortal Rainbow team. Get over it...In short - bad plot, annoying characters, very stupid grand finale. The movie will probably be worse.
Rating:
Summary: Global Economics and Statecraft with Sophomoric themes
Review: To Whom this may concern, This novel is very lengthy with 1137 pages and for the majority of the book, most of the novel is sophomoric dialogue and includes racial slurs such as "Joe Chink" used by figures in the White House including the main character; President Ryan. For the first 600 pages, the story is very droll, with very unimportant details being stated and overall, the main plot does not progress very quickly. This novel is very verbose with emphasis on great detail and complex strategies. Tom Clancy's political affiliation can definitely be determined with this novel as being far right almost to the point of fascism. Clancy I admit has a great talent for making a story, but his scenarios that the book presents very unrealistic situations and Clancy uses the military like a child plays with his toys. Clancy also uses elements of racism in the novel particularly against the Chinese, and also the reader can ascertain the fact that this novel displays what Tom Clancy wants in the national political agenda. The novel displayed however a great deal of knowledge for military equipment, tactics, and strategies for which Clancy deserves full credit. Other novels by Tom Clancy I have enjoyed due to the fact that they were believable and were also very relevant to our era. This novel was very random in speculating that China would invade Russia and actually deploy an ICBM at the U.S. The main character President Ryan, in my opinion reminds me of a whiny incompetent bureaucrat because he ran for president and he complains that he is the President. If Ryan didn't like politics then he shouldn't have ran! His administration is surrounded by his friends and people whom he is very closely acquainted and also very effective (how convenient!). His display of wealth in excess of $80,000,000 and his relationship with the common man is too good to be true. His exuberant wealth display's Tom Clancy's pompous attitude toward the common American and this novel merely reflects Tom Clancy's personal convictions. If you have plenty of time to waste and enjoy military scenarios, you might enjoy this novel but otherwise it is not the best I have read.
Rating:
Summary: THE LAST CLANCY NOVEL I WILL EVER READ
Review: This novel was about twice as long as it needed to be to tell the story. Someone needs to introduce TC to a good editor, because there was no excuse for the length of this book. It really bogged down the pace and made the novel a chore to read. There was a time when you could count on TC for good tight writing, but those days appear to be over. He hasn't been the same since EXECUTIVE ORDERS. His earlier works are still his best. After this fiasco, it will be a long time before I pick up another Clancy novel.
Rating:
Summary: Too lengthy...
Review: I am not really a fan of Tom Clancy. I saw some of his movies: The Hunt for Red October, Patriot Games, Sum of All Fears, Clear and Present Danger... I chose The Bear and The Dragon because of the topic. I am a Chinese guy living in Hong Kong. When I saw the book, I wondered what Clancy would write about China, considering he is a rightist. I have just finished about half of the book. The two clergymen were just killed in China and the Ryan administration was dealing with it. That means the whole plot has just picked up. But it has already gone for 400-odd pages. The book is full of unnecessary details about characters' thoughts, backgrounds, etc. The book is also full of minor details about the military. A military fan would like it very much. But I am not a fan of it. So I skipped all those stuff. I usually do not skip pages especially if it's a book that I actually bought, not borrowed from a friend. But this book is really lengthy. We're in an era full of TV programs and movies. I think we no long have a lot of time to do reading. And we've got used to quicker plot development. So pls cut the...unnecessary details. OK, besides that, when the plot picks up, it is quite unputdownable. Hope it is still entertaining. Then, as a Chinese guy, I don't like Clancy's attitude towards the Chinese people. The pages are full of hatred. I understand why some Americans would not like the PRC because the government has really done something bad. But pls stop preaching, OK? Someone says Executive Order is the best. Is it true? Should I give Clancy another chance?
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