Rating: 
Summary: His Best Yet
Review: The kept me hooked. I read it in less than 48 hours including sleep.
Rating:
Summary: Typos- R- Us
Review: Fantastic book - Clancey has another hit! Unfortunately, the publishing company really needs to find a better proofreader - dumb errors - use of the wrong word - like "ever" when the intent of the sentence was "never" ...but then again, what's a few missing letters? It's still a great read.
Rating: 
Summary: A solid B+ for Clancy
Review: This book is like getting a B+ paper from your A++ student - I'm disappointed and wondering what happened. Tom Clancy is my favorite writer. I ordered this book to be delivered to my beach vacation, and waited anxiously for it to appear. Although the Clancy-style is there, the story line isn't polished enough for a writer of his caliber. Repetitive phrases are distracting and none of the characters (including Ryan)have the depth they had in previous books. I do recommend the book if you're a fan already, but if you're not, then start back at the beginning of his books, with the Hunt for Red October or Red Storm Rising.
Rating: 
Summary: Who Pulled the Emergency Brake...
Review: I enjoyed the book even with the all editing oversights. I must agree with the general sentiment most avid fans feel: "Why is he ending his book so abruptly?". There is no follow through or wrap-up. I do not even get a sense of a teaser for the next installment. I still give it 4 stars, but it might be time to find another author if this is going to be indicative of his future works.
Rating: 
Summary: A Nuclear Disappointment
Review: I am, or better yet, WAS a Clancy fan. I've read all his novels. I have to say I am astonished at how poorly written, plotted, and edited "The Bear and the Dragon" is. Many critics say Clancy must get paid by the word, I never felt that way before, but I do now. His narrative is that of a novice. He repeats himself over and over and over by using the same metaphors and phrases, duplicating and explaining the same characters thoughts and feelings repeatedly. It's either a form of writers block, a plea for filler, or a lack of literary vocabulary. I also blame Clancy's editor. He/she should have picked up on the redundancies, but lets face it, that's a lot of editing in 1000 pages, and dare they doctor that much manuscript? God forbid it be 600 pages and not over a 1000! He (Clancy) has lost all since of characterization through poor dialogue. Characters which we've grown to love are suddenly talking like randy sailors on shore leave, rather than heads of state with intelligence. In fact, I don't recall ever reading a book where the characters swear as much (Maybe "Clockers", but that was about NYC crack dealers) President Jack Ryan's cabinet seems more like rowdy college students at a fancy ball they don't belong at. This book was like taking that miserable long cross-country trip to Walley World, and discovering it's closed. I suggest Clancy not worry over size so much as content. Like a Jazz musician who only improvises a phrase knowing their vocabulary is limited, Clancy should do the same if he can't deliver. I know Clancy has his fans that love Jack Ryan (I was one), and are just happy to have a new book to read, but that doesn't make this a well written book. It's mind boggling how his recent "Rainbow Six" could be so well written, and "The Bear and the Dragon" be so poor.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointed
Review: Clancy is an extraordinary storyteller, but The Bear and the Dragon doesn't cut it. 700 pages of buildup to one battle that fails to create any suspense. The few scenes with the Navy, are short and unexciting. The Air Force is tremendously outnumbered, but the air battles lack any real suspense. The tank battles are so one sided that I wonder why Clancy didn't simply say, "All the Chinese tanks get killed." and be done with it. That is the way you want a real battle to go, I'm sure, but this is entertainment, not real life. The Chinese politicians are so dense that never once do they make a correct decision. And like most of his last few books every character he's ever written is back. It feels like a high school reunion. People you didn't really care that much about in the first place are back, and now you have to spend a couple hours with them.
Rating:
Summary: Same old stuff, but still a good read.
Review: I'm 90% done with the book (boy, is it a big one), and it's definitely a great page-turner. It's nice to see Clancy dial back the techno-overload a little (I never have minded it, but I can see where it makes his stuff inaccessible), but he still gets a little bit preachy at times. I've noticed in his last few books, he takes the chance, through the characters, to do a little over-the-top conservative preaching. I don't read the books for the politics, and it tends to go far beyond character motivation and into the author writing an editorial through the characters. It's only a bit less than previous books, but still fairly tolerable.However, it's looking to me that Clancy is running out of things to write about. Rainbow Six and Executive Orders had basically identical storylines (bio-warfare? Again? ), and Bear/Dragon is pretty much an amalgamation of Red Storm Rising and Debt of Honor (uh-oh, major power in economic trouble, let's have a war). I'm not sure how it ends up quite yet, but it's looking fairly predictable at this point. The biggest casualty of the cold war ending appears to have been Tom Clancy's source of stories. Still, it's a fun read, and definitely worth $25. Hope this helps! -JAL
Rating:
Summary: A real disapointment
Review: I travel frequently to Bejing and the decriptions in this book are prefect.....If you were there 10 years ago. how much trouble would it have been to fly to Bejing and actually look around??
Rating:
Summary: Waste of time
Review: I'm a Clancy fan, have read all of his books, and "Without Remorse" is perhaps my favorite book. But if the Jack Ryan series continues this way, I'm going to have to stop reading. There is entirely too much time spent on the technical detail, with very little character development. Now that Jack Ryan is president, he isn't an underdog, which was the basis of his appeal and heroism. And frankly, there is too much political opinion included with Ryan as president. If I wanted to read about political debate on issues such as gun control and abortion, I'd read the newspaper or watch "Meet the Press" or some other news program. I read for entertainment, and Clancy's Ryan series has been getting less entertaining in the past few installments. Unless you are a diehard Clancy fan, save your money for the paperback, or check this out at the library. And be prepared to be put to sleep by the technical details.
Rating:
Summary: Worth the Wait
Review: Although the book takes a while to get going, it is an entertaining read. The last 300 pages will keep you reading well into the night. Of all the technothriller novelists out there, Clancy is still the best.
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