Rating: 
Summary: Good effort
Review: All in all a good book. The author obviously knows NYC and takes the reader all over lower Manhattan. One could take this book and do their own site-seeing junket by just following the the characters through the city. There are a couple of drawbacks, one being the thin (and I mean THIN) cover of the Mayor and the ending. I did not see the passion that drives the reason for the invasion, and it came on rather sudden at the end. Otherwise a good book.Also, I am not so sure one could have hit WTC Tower 7 with a cannon from the river, would have to be a heck of a shot.
Rating: 
Summary: New York under attack. The United States responds!!
Review: Be afraid. Be very afraid. Chilling novel of what could happen. What if the Chinese used all of their resources to wipe out the city of New York? This book is one you will bring right over to your best friend as soon as you are finished with it. I was interested in the concept of this book from the very beginning and Paul Garrison held me right to the end on this one. He writes like a smooth ride that you never want to get off. Get this book.
Rating:
Summary: Intense thriller w/ heart
Review: In this, Paul Garrison's second novel, his imagination and ingenuity again keep readers on the edge of their seats. I read this novel all in one night, wishing I could read faster to know what happens next. Although some of the technology and details may not be perfect, any reader of thrillers will not be disappointed. My only complaint is that the book doesn't have much of a denouement; the action ends and then the book ends about three pages later. After such a race to the finish, it's as if the writer ran out of steam at the last moment. However, the book is still very much worth the time and the sleepless night glued to the text. I also highly recommend Garrison's first novel : Fire and Ice, which I read the next night and found equally as entertaining.
Rating: 
Summary: Huh?
Review: It may just be me (and going on previous reviews it looks like it is!) but this was quite a ridiculous book, with an extremely implausible premise of 100 Chinese submarines filled with commandoes travelling thousands of miles across the globe, *absolutely and completely in secret*, and attacking New York. Ignoring the fact that it would have been virtually impossible to keep the departure of 10000 troops and 100 submarines from China secret from satellite and HUMINT sources from a multitude of Western countries.
All that aside, the action was okay, if sporadic. A little too "talky" for me, and a bit too melodramatic.
In the end it left me "unfufilled", and the sense I had just wasted a couple of days of my life that I will never get back.
Rating:
Summary: Fleet Week gone amok
Review: Mr. Garrison has obviously spent a long time in New York City. He has an accurate read on Rudy Giuliani (thinly disguised here) and his group of sychophants. The Rudy "bunker" mentality is well portrayed here, as is the "New York City vs. Everyone Else school of thought. Even the Rudy Bunker, perversely built in the World Trade Center, is accurately shown for the folly that it is. The police department is realistically shown, except for one small dig at Long Islanders who are city cops, but one can't have everything. The action, once you get past the stretch of imagination required for the 100 Chinese submarines, is non-stop. The New York character is well written here, these are the people of NYC, average, above average, and some decidedly below average. But they're all here, and they all play a part. If you're looking for deep socio-political thought, go elsewhere. If you want an enjoyable read, something to sit around the pool with, this is the book for you. I recommend this as a good buy. It's worth the read, just don't go looking for deep thought here.
Rating:
Summary: Fleet Week gone amok
Review: Mr. Garrison has obviously spent a long time in New York City. He has an accurate read on Rudy Giuliani (thinly disguised here) and his group of sychophants. The Rudy "bunker" mentality is well portrayed here, as is the "New York City vs. Everyone Else school of thought. Even the Rudy Bunker, perversely built in the World Trade Center, is accurately shown for the folly that it is. The police department is realistically shown, except for one small dig at Long Islanders who are city cops, but one can't have everything. The action, once you get past the stretch of imagination required for the 100 Chinese submarines, is non-stop. The New York character is well written here, these are the people of NYC, average, above average, and some decidedly below average. But they're all here, and they all play a part. If you're looking for deep socio-political thought, go elsewhere. If you want an enjoyable read, something to sit around the pool with, this is the book for you. I recommend this as a good buy. It's worth the read, just don't go looking for deep thought here.
Rating: 
Summary: READER TAKE WARNING
Review: RED SKY AT MORNING was written before the horrifying 9/11 disaster. Even so, Paul Garrison's "glorification" of the Chinese admiral and his worthy crew left a bad taste in my mouth. How can one "admire" a megalomaniacal madman who has no qualms in bombing one of the largest cities in the world; sending in thousands of troops to overtake our financial district; kill innocent citizens and law enforcement agents; and force the city's mayor to hide out in a bunker beneath City Hall? Garrison's empathy for these terrorists is unacceptable in my book and this whole novel is worthless because Garrison tidies up his ending with the destruction of one of the World Trade Center buildings and the martyrdom of the Chinese leader. This is totally bull manure!!
Rating:
Summary: DEAD SEASON OF READING
Review: RED SY AT MORNING READS MORE LIKE A 1970S DISASTER NOVEL THAN A MODERN MILITARY THRILLER. CHINESE SUBMARINES ATTACK NEW YORK CITY, AND NO ONE KNOWS WHAT TO DO ABOUT IT? COME ON NOW...THOUGH WE WERE ATTACKED ON SEPT. 11, WE HAD NO CLEAR WARNING OF WHAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN. IN THIS NOVEL, WE WERE WARNED OF AN IMINENT ATTACK, AND CHOSE TO IGNORE THE WARNING!
THOUGH THERE'S ENOUGH ACTION TO KEEP YOU INTERESTED(BARELY!) ALL THE ACTION SEEMS TO FOLLOW TWO N.Y.C. COPS WHO MEANDER THROUGH THE CITY, AIMLESSLY, AND HAPPLESSLY, TRYING TO TAKE ON A FAR SUPERIOR FORCE WITH MACHINE GUNS THEY'D MANAGED TO STEAL FROM THE ENEMY, AND A NEW YORK CITY REPORTER, TRYING DESPERATELY TO GET THE STORY. OH, ALSO A TUG BOAT CAPTAIN, CAPTURED BY THE INVADING ARMY, AND HIS GIRL FRIEND, RUNNING HAPPLESSLY AROUND THE CITY TRYING DESPERATELY TO RESCUE HIM.
THE CHINESE TROOPS ARE JUST THROWN INTO THE FORAY, TO MAKE THINGS INTERESTING, WITHOUT ANY REAL THOUGHT OR DETAIL OF HOW AN EXPEDITIONARY FORCE IT SUPPOSED TO TAKE ON AN ENTIRE CITY WITH ONLY TOKEN RESISTANCE FROM THE CITY DWELLERS, OR POLICE FORCE, AND A MAYOR THAT WANTS OUR MILITARY NOT TO COME IN TO HIS CITY TO RESCUE HIS PEOPLE, FOR FEAR THAT INNOCENT LIVES WOULD BE LOST IN THE ENSUING BATTLE?
I KNOW FOR ONE, EVEN AN ARMED CRIMINAL, WOULD COME TO THE AID OF HIS CITY, IF HE FEELS HIS FREEDOM IS GOING TO BE THREATENED BY THE INVADING ARMY.
OVERALL, NOT VERY REALISTIC SO FAR AS OUR REACTION TO AN INVADING FORCE IS CONCERNED, AND A REAL INSULT TO OUR HERO POLICE, AND FIREMEN WHO DIED TO SAVE PEOPLE ON 9/11.
GOOD PLOT, COULD HAVE BEEN MUCH BETTER EXECUTED. A FAR BETTER BOOK OF THIS PREMISE IS "INVASION" BY ERIC L. HARRY
Rating:
Summary: Not As Implausible As It May At First Seem
Review: This is first and foremost an escapist political thriller. That being said, Mr. Garrison has fashioned a high speed, emotionally tense and well thought out (and plausible) story in which a renegade Red Chinese Admiral uses a force of 100 diesel electric submarines to invade the Big Apple. When I first read the premise, I said, "COME ON!!! NO WAY." Then I stopped and suspended disbelief and my knowledge of the current strength of the Red Chinese Navy. Right now, the Chinese Navy does not have 100 submarines; they don't even have a total of 100 ships that could cause real consternation to the U.S. Navy in a sea battle. They do have some capability in submarines, both nuclear and conventional, but none like those depicted in this book. That being said, and if the reader can get past that real world info, then this book becomes an entertaining and high speed roller coaster ride. There are some interesting and not so well hidden personality similarities in this book that amused me. The Mayor of NYC is named Rudy Mincarelli and possesses all of the key traits of the current mayor, Rudy Giuliani. He is one of the heroes of this book as he tries to keep the Federal government from trying to retake NYC (specifically Manhattan) by force. The key players in this book are some patriotic New Yorkers who do all they can to foil the plot of the renegade Chinese Admiral. Admiral Tang Li is no madman. He is well educated (Columbia University, the US Naval War College and others) and comes from a distinguished Chinese family. His grandfather was with Mao on The Long March, his father is a wealthy and successful businessman in the NEW CHINA and Tang Li has excelled as a sailor and leader of men. However, Tang Li realizes that the majority of Chinese are still impoverished and he fears civil war. He fears the break up of the China he knows and loves and he wants Taiwan back within the fold. By taking NYC and holding it hostage, he hopes to divert internal dissent, reunite the people and restore The Middle Kingdom. He also hopes to make himself over as the new Emperor for China. He wants that role and he expects the world to pay him tribute. NYC is a very vital stepping stone in his process. Garrison has done a fine job of injecting humor, pathos and NY smartass comments into his story. This novel is like a runaway train and the reader will want to know just how quickly NY reasserts itself and send this maniac packing. For the average thriller reader, this is an easy read and one they will enjoy. For those with some naval expertise, the suspension of disbelief will be more difficult. However, if they can get past some of the more glaring technical mistakes, then this book is one that almost any thriller fan will enjoy. If you live in and around the NY metro area, this book is especially enjoyable because the author uses so many recognizable names, landmarks and locations. Give it a try.
Rating:
Summary: Would make a good movie
Review: Tugboat Captain Ken Hughes works the waters of New York City. He combines the intellect of an academia with the pragmatic sleaze of a wharf rat. Kate Ross is a book editor in a major publishing house who concedes she will never meet her life's soul mate until a blind date introduces her to Ken. However, an invasion by an advance Chinese vanguard interrupts the romance. Admiral Tan leads a force of over one hundred submarines poised to attack the Big Apple. The zealot plans to hold America's largest city hostage until Taiwan is returned to its rightful place as part of the glorious People's Republic of China. If the United States fails to heed Admiral Tong's warning, he will destroy the city. A small group of freedom fighters including Kate and Ken begin the counterattack. Paul Garrison pumps up the volume with his latest cardiac thriller, RED SKY AT MORNING. This thriller will leave the audience requiring a cool down time to normalize their pulse. The villain is a believable patriot (depending on which side of the fence you sit) who surprisingly will garner much reader empathy. The lead couple makes for a heroic duo. However, there is no question that the thrills a page plot is what makes this a winner for genre fans. Harriet Klausner
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