Close Combat

If you're the sort of person who likes to watch daytime soap operas, then you may enjoy these books. If, on the other hand, you're interested in military history, the banality of these books will leave you screaming in frustration.


Great balance of fear, romance and historical fiction   January 9, 2003
 6 out of 9 found this review helpful

Griffin pulls off what so many writers get close to but never quite seem to manage -- an authentic, if slightly romantic, portrait of the US military during the 1930s, 40s and 50s. True, many of the protagonists are wealthy, but many are not. For example, Ken Mccoy is dirt poor until he marries up. There are a lot of promotions to keep things moving, but there's also a number of guys who stay enlisted. What is captured accurately is the look and feel of serving in the pre-Vietnam US military. The Brotherhood of War and The Corps both remind me of Bernard Cornwell's series about Richard Sharpe, tracing his advancement from a Redcoat private and then sergeant in 1799 India to his elevation to Lt. of the 95th Rifles at the Battle of Assaye, and then through the Napoleonic Wars in Portugal, Spain, Denmark and ultimately Waterloo. He retires a Lt. Col., which was almost unheard of for someone raised from the ranks of the British Army, but the chronology is plausible, particularly given the wartime death rate. all in all, I go through the Griffin novels like Doritos and beer -- you can't read just one of them. He is indeed the poet laureate of the American military. Read the Sharpe books too -- you will really enjoy his ability to put you in the action of a 19th century battlefield. They also were made into a first-class series of fourteen 2-hour movies by the BBC, starring Sean Bean as a very convincing Richard Sharpe.


Do the guys always get the girl and the good scotch?   August 1, 2002
 5 out of 7 found this review helpful

I really like this series as well as "The Brotherhood of War" series. The stories are great, the characters are very likeable and the little bit of history you can get from the books are nice. I have read each of Griffin's series at least twice. I like them that much.

However, I AM REALLY GETTING TIRED OF THE SAME OL' THING. Follow me here. Have you noticed:

1- The guy always gets the girl
2- The girl is always "so ... beutiful"
3- It is nearly almost always love at first sight.
4- The main characters generally start out young and enlisted
within a few chapters they are being gererously promoted.
Most are promoted to officers, some right out of boot-
camp or basic training. It appears promotions are handed
out like meals.
5- The girls are all easy, but they are still "nice girls".
6- None of the main characters die or become handicaped.
7- They all drink scotch (famous grouse)
8- Most of the main characters are rich and of course from
Philly or near there.
9- They all make wonderful and reluctant heroes.
10- etc... etc...

All-in-all, I would recommend Griffins series to anyone who is male. I don't think women would much like them.