Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage

Rating:
Summary: A great read !
Review: This book is written in a fast-paced style - almost like a well written novel. It is sure to capture those who do not enjoy reading "typically dry historical information," yet it manages to convey the suspense that those of us who lived the cold-war period remember. My only criticism(s) are 1: The Thresher incident and its impact upon nuclear powered submarines was barely mentioned and 2: There are lapses between chapters that - at times - make the book "choppy." Regardless, three friends and myself devoured the book in less than a month. For those who have no understanding of the "Cold War Atmosphere," this will provide a revealing glimpse. I salute all U.S. Submariners everywhere, past & present; and a well-done to the authors!

Rating:
Summary: Entertaining, but disturbing
Review: If this was just a novel, it would be a fun read, but I found the macho brinksmanship displayed by both sides to be disturbing. Playing chicken with multi-hundred-million-dollar subs armed with nuclear missiles is for madmen, not military officers.

Rating:
Summary: Superb in "Telling Our Story."
Review: We were there and did those things. How rewarding to now have everyone know the things we lived. Kudos to Sherry and Chris for telling it "Like It Was." And my special thanks to John Craven for locating our "Lost Comrades." Without these 3 and the Book, America may never have known the feats of these ever so young, wild and wonderful Sub Sailors. They were just Youngsters coming out of America's Heartland. But when they were cast together, they accomplished great things under extreme conditions. God Bless the families these men left behind each time they went "Down To The Sea In Their Boats." For without them, there certainly would not have been a book.

Rating:
Summary: Fast, Captivating, Interesting. Did we really do this stuff?
Review: I'm really glad this book came out. As a former A Ganger on SSN-666 USS Hawkbill I did not have the need to know what we were doing or where we doing it (Although I do). I had an inkling about what we were doing but have not and will not reveal to anyone. My family has asked for 16 years what we were up to, now I can have them read this to get a pretty good idea. The Music CD referred to in the "Ballad of Whitey Mack" of Submarine songs from Chief Tommy Cox is really good too. I recommend it. Maybe Amazon could distibute it. Chief Cox does directly. I know of one collision that isn't mentioned. Get the CD! You'll really like it too.

Rating:
Summary: Very good story of another type of warfare
Review: Having been in the Special Forces and 'locking out' of submarines, I never quite understood the men who served on those vessels. This book gives you an idea of some of their missions, cloaked under a veil of secrecy. Recommend checking out some good fiction in this vein-- try McGuire's THE LINE which has the Glomar Explorer and Sosus in it. or Mayer's Eternity Base.

Rating:
Summary: Intriguing, Tragic, and Celebratory!
Review: In the days of the Cold War I remember all the typical rhetoric that came out of the govenment. Everything was done in the interest of "national security". And to some extent with good reason. Sontag and Drew have pieced together a wonderful, and very human account of this era. The events became as intriguing as a spy novel. Yet with the knowledge that all were real events I was totally sucked in to the drama of each episode. I appreciate now the selfless (and sometimes selfish) motives these submariners had. It was also moving to read about the Soviet's horrible history in the undersea military. Our enemy now has a face, and we now have a heart to know they also left behind wives and children. It is too easy to forget the human side of military propaganda. This is a must read for anyone interested in our military history. I, for one, salute them all.

Rating:
Summary: Worth reading, whether or not you were there.
Review: The reviews of this book are also worth reading (some of them really cracked me up). They run the whole spectrum from drooling civies (who wouldn't know the TDU from a TLD) to the monkey-mates (like me) whose fondest memories of the northern climes were the lack of drills, cool sleeping conditions and lots of movies. I spent 3+ years on a SSN during the 70s. I am amazed at what the authors were able to print (I don't think they are in prison or have been audited yet), but I wouldn't take a chance confirming anything they wrote. The book isn't perfect, but it brought back a lot of things I tried to forget.

Rating:
Summary: SUPERB --- informative and HIGHLY readable
Review: A lot of books claim "you won't be able to put this down!" --- THIS one merits that phrase (at least for me). I literally was up all night reading/finishing it. It puts a human face on what has been far TOO "silent", and weaved together numerous facets and incidents in history that I was aware of but without knowing their interconnectedness. I can (and have) highly recomment this to ANYONE interested in history, subs, espionage, or just plain brave sailors.

Rating:
Summary: A Clear Account of the Murky Depths
Review: Brilliant account of the unseen Cold War beneath the waves. Some startling revelations, at least for me, about the nature of the US and Soviet espionage efforts. Extremely well written and quite easy to visualize events that the submariners themselves could only see via sonar. The footnotes were an added treat.

Rating:
Summary: Compelling Tales of the Deep
Review: Blind Man's Bluff is an interesting compilation of stories about the US submarine service during the cold war era. The book is very well written and captures, I assume, much of the untold story of the silent service.

I was intrigued by the parallels and consistencies between Blind Man's Bluff and books such as Spy Sub and Ship of Gold in the Deep Blue Sea. Blind Man's Bluff also serves to better define some of the Tom Clancy and Clive Cussler "fictional" works.

A true work of heroism.