The Command: A Novel (Dan Lenson Novels Book 8)

If you like this series, you will like this book. However, the end is weak, as was the ending of the last book.The books follows the main character getting a command aboard the first mixed gender crew. Of course, the presence of male and female leads to all kinds of problems and temptations for both sexes. There is also the story regarding the military issue, which sees some good scenes and some action.Fair warning. Some people you will like in this are going to die!Author does a good job of showing heroism without laddling it on all thick and sloppy and acting like liberals do not care. The strong characters "Show" us heroism in ways we can all relate to and respect!OK. The ending. When the action ends, there is still a lot up in the air, and I mean a lot! NO SPOILERS. What happens on the ship at the end will leave you desperate to find out what happens to all those people who are effected. We also never really get much on the supposed inquiry being taken against the captain because the Australian captain (or commodore or whatever) thought Dan did the wrong thing regarding a boarding party in the last book.Why does the author not finish these stories out?? The scenes should be great.I guess it is all water under the dam in the sense this book is a few years old and won't be changed, but readers be aware that much like the last book, this book will leave you wishing the author had finished out these story lines better.

I've read ten of Poyer's novels and as a former college graduate and a Navy man, I can say they are a special treat. That's because there are real differences between the characters. In other words, Poyer's books are not simply plot driven. His characters do not all have the same voice, and are not simply a means to get from one action scene to another. They are three dimensional and, some of them are complex.For example, Lt. Commander, Lenson, is a work-a-holic masochist. They guy barely sleeps, seldom eats, almost never has sex, but does work like he is an anal compulsive. He's married above his status, but he and his wife, Blair, get together once a novel for some hot sex, In the meantime, they both seem to work 24x7 for the DOD/Navy. Blair works in conference rooms; Lenson works at sea. Don't laugh. I was at sea for two years with a Line Captain who was either in his chair on the bridge, or his chair in the Combat Info Center.I'm going to skip a plot summary to give the reader a brief contrast of two characters: Lenson & First Class PO, Oberg. Lenson doesn't drink, cheat on his spouse, party, or do anything that isn't work. He speaks like an Annapolis grad & an officer of the line. Oberg, on the other hand, lies, cheats, steals, and will engage in animal like sex with anything that has the XX chromosome. Oberg also shoots, stabs, blows up, and batters people, but it's an organized and technically correct way because he's a highly proficient, US Navy Seal. As you'd expect, Oberg talks and thinks like the highly trained commando he is. Think Lenson in the CIC with a computer, bat phone, and a female weapons specialist; think Oberg with a sniper rifle and a ceramic knife.I don't know beans about navy seals, but it was my privilege to serve on the bridge with a real, US Navy Captain. He led us through the most dangerous typhoon in history. Seas sixty feet high crashed over our bow, gun turrets, and combat bridge. The amidship's seam stretched, the screws came out of the water, but that guy was always there. Once, during that storm, the ship tipped over onto its side and the main mast almost hit the water. That's when 'Captain Jones screamed, "This is Captain Jones. I have the deck. I have the con. All ahead flank. Hard right rudder." I was there. I saw it. Our captain willed our ship out of a troth, and by the force of his personality turned us head on into a 70 foot high wave. Green water slammed into the bullet proof glass, water ran everywhere, but the ship recovered and surged forward. That is what a US Navy Captain is like & that's what Lenson's character breaks his back to be.I didn't give this book five stars because Poyer uses a lot of abbreviations and acronyms without ever explaining them or telling us what they mean. He also veers off in French or Russian on occasion to lend ambiance to a situation. I'm OK with that, but I was in the Navy, so, I can guess or know what something like CONUS means, but that's not the case for everyone. Same with the foreign languages. I could see where using a Russian phrase or a Farsi phrase would confuse or confound most readers. At times, that gets on my nerves too.That said, if you are a thinking man, you'll enjoy the tactical & strategic thinking that Lenson is exposed to. If you're an action and adventure guy, you'll enjoy the high altitude parachute drops, underwater swims, and knife fights Oberg gets into. Those two are the boilerplate of Poyer's novels, but every other character has her own, unique identity and mission. I suspect you will enjoy these books.

Once again, Dan Lenson rides into battle to solve complex problems. In this case, the first mixed gendered crew in the US Navy, terrorist attacks, and a host of other problems, not least of which is his marriage. As always, he comes through in the end with generally good results. Spoiler alert: a member of the crew that I was partial towards dies at the end. I was hoping she would make it.

In this novel, Dan Lenson is in command of a Spruance Class destroyer that is the first destroyer to allow women sailors and officers to serve aboard a US warship. The command issues are manifest, and unfortunately serve to reinforce any rational reader's skepticism of this idea. Sexual attraction and relationships between men and women serving aboardship poses an unacceptable and subversive threat to the chain-of-command and to good order and discipline. Lenson's destroyer quickly becomes the "Love Boat" with female sailors frequently being evacuated for reason of pregnancy. The author makes these points persuasively in this interesting novel. RJB.

Dan Lenson now is a commander of a vessel -- a Spruance-class destroyer which has been designated as a lab for an integrated crew of men and women. The book is essentially a tale of how the experiment worked out and, oh by the way, how it managed to tangle with some bad guys. The book is a mixed bag. Like all Poyer books, there is a lot of tension and suspense and you truly cannot put it down. On the other hand, the plot is not so skillfully executed. There are a lot of loose ends -- characters that just disappear, characters that are introduced with great fanfare and then kinda go back into the woodwork. I also found the ending unsatisfying. There is an exciting climax (no pun intended, given the subject) -- but then the author just abruptly ends the book without giving the reader closure on some items -- which I won't try to describe here so as not to spoil it. There's also an excess of naval terminology which is not always explained or understood by non-Navy folks. All in all, this is an okay Poyer book, but he's done a lot better.

for veterans this is true realism series. start at the beginning and trace ensign to admiral bd

I wish I had all his novels. He writes great stories.

I enjoyed the plot and understand the trials of men and women in combat situations. I wish the ending was a little more detailed. What happened to those who didn't make it home. What was the reaction from higher headquarters...

Poyer is among the best war/action authors I have ever read, and I've read most of the best I think. His research, technical expertise, and insider knowledge are truly outstanding. His characters are well formed and interesting, not simply archetypal tough guys. The narrative is always compelling with superb storylines, many great little side stories, and rounded incedental minor characters. Deserves to be much more widely read in the UK. If you enjoy accurate, credible war stories, you will love his Dan Lenson, Tiller Galloway, and American Civil War series.

Was a good enough read, but one of these instantly forgetable books. Been a few months since I read it and already I can't quite recall the characters/storyline etc. Read it once and then pass it on!