Title : Under Fire by Grant Blackwood

Author : Tom Clancy a Jack Ryan Jr

Publisher : Penguin Random House

Date of Publication: 2015

Nr of Pages : 534

Reviewed by : PSSG VERNARD C PATDO

Student Nr : 2022-1498

Class Nr. : IBC PNCO 2022-50

I. Book Summary

While on a routine intelligence gathering trip for The Campus in British

intelligence and Matthew Spellman, his American counterpart, who tell him that
Gregory, who works with them on an intelligence operation, had gone rogue; they
warn him to stay away from his old friend. This piques Ryan's interest.

Ryan later goes to Gregory's apartment, but is later abducted by an unknown

group of men. He manages to escape just as a mysterious woman pulls up in a car
to fetch him away from his abductors. The woman introduces herself as Ysabel
Kashani, an Iranian national who is also Gregory's college friend. They return to his
apartment and retrieve an old document from a safe, which combination was found
with “steaks in the freezer”.

Ryan and Kashani later go to Azerbaijan, where they are met by Gregory and
Spellman. Ryan discovers that his old friend is an agent for the Central Intelligence
Agency, and that his father, Paul, was a legend in the CIA until he was branded as a
traitor and committed suicide. He further finds out that Gregory is taking part in an
intelligence operation with Wellesley and Spellman, which is to facilitate a coup in
Dagestan, and that the document he and Kashani retrieved has coordinates for
internet hubs to be used during the coup (Gregory's father had originally written the
document).

However, Dagestani interior minister Rebaz Medzhid, who is being lined up to

be Dagestan's president, refuses to participate unless his daughter Aminat, who has
been kidnapped, is rescued. Ryan agrees to extract her from her captors in
Scotland, and later helps discredit a smear story planted by the Russians against
Medzhid about his involvement in atrocities against Dagestanis years ago by
rescuing the “witness”, who is being coerced by the Russians.
 Ryan's boss, Gerry Hendley, sends his cousin Dominic “Dom” Caruso to help
him. They later discover that Wellesley plans to sabotage the coup by using armored
trucks named Krasukhas that have the ability to jam electronic signals coming from
the internet hubs that are to be used in the coup. In addition, he had also arranged
for the kidnappings of Aminat and the “witness” to the Russian smear story. He and
Caruso later destroy the Krasukhas.

Later, Russian President Valeri Volodin deploys border troops to

Makhachkala in an effort to stop the coup. Ryan sniffs out a mole in Medzhid's
security detail; Gregory is killed in the resulting altercation with the mole, who is one
of Medzhid's bodyguards. Meanwhile, Medzhid makes a last-ditch effort to stop the
Russian troops by appealing to their leader, suggesting that he is being manipulated
by Volodin and telling him to go back and report no disturbance in Makhachkala. The
colonel agrees and the standoff is averted.

Ryan, Caruso and Kashani later find out that Wellesley had misused
government funds and was acting on behalf of the Russians. After being reported by
the trio to the British, Wellesley is arrested by British agents as he tries to escape
Azerbaijan
II. Background

a. Origin of the Trade – Its starts in Ryan’s curiosity about his friend. The story takes
place in numerous foreign locations and you are drug through a myriad of
impossible-to-beat circumstances. Somehow, Jack Ryan, Jr. always manages to
escape unscathed.

b. Modus Operandi – Intelligence, not all the readers will love culture and language
crime that is portrayed by the characters in this novel. Although some part of this
novel is a unique based on true to life, organized crimes were common.

c. Threat/Adversary - The mysteries of who is good and bad are what make a good
thriller even better. There is honestly a surprise waiting around every corner. This is
a story that keeps you on the edge of your seat. It is the ultimate experience, offering
the right amount of mystery, romance, murder and mayhem.

d. Strength – Tom Clancy Under Fire by Grant Blackwood is a book that offers
everything one would expect of an espionage suspense adventure. There is
romance, murder, mystery and an incredible array of twists and turns with action-
packed drama.

e. Weakness - It is not long before you discover who the main characters are and
what their functions are within the plot. It is not difficult to predict who is bad and
good, but predicting the events as they unfold is impossible.

f. Social Environment - There is an excellent plot designed to put you in mid of a

Tom Clancy novel, but the result is still unique to Grant Blackwood. There is much
more action found on every page than the slower paced novels of Clancy.
III. Analysis

a. Related Philippine Vulnerability

Just like any other stories in the Philippines, there are intelligence that are
abused and some users. Meaning there are people serving the government and
somehow making a profit using his position in the government and using other
people because he is a high ranking official than others. It is not

b. Lessons that the Phil Law Enforcement Agencies can learn from the book

There are numerous opportunities that the book may offer and open up some
events that are described by the author that somehow relevant to present events. A
reader can tell that the writers of this book have known so much about government
and other relevant or alike. Philippine law enforcement agencies can learn from this
book about the tactics the characters used
c. Recommended Course of Action for the PNP and other Law Enforcement
Agencies with citation

The campaign against crime is a continuing concern. It is a war that thepolice

can not win alone, and can not in any real sense fight alone. Police can notchange
the “root drivers” of crime such as poverty, unemployment, poor housing,moral
education, freedom, civil liberties, ambitions, dysfunctional families and other illsof
socio-economic opportunities. Thus, all aspects of police work should be
premisedupon active community consent, trust and participation.
(https://www.coursehero.com/file/104914280/PNP-Master-Plans-LOIspdf/)

Intelligence Operation – includes Surveillance Operation, Counter Intelligence,

Intelligence Research, Intelligence Assessment and similar police intelligence
operation conducted to gather information related to security, public safety and
order. Investigation Operation – includes Investigation of Crime or Incident,
Administrative Investigation and similar investigative work necessary to determine
facts and circumstances for fi ling cases criminally or administratively. (PNP
handbook PNPM-DO-DS-3-2-13 December 2013)
IV Most Powerful line that summarized the book (25 words)

Jack is in big trouble. She appears at just the right moment. She has a relationship
with Seth Gregory.