The Captains by W.E.B. Griffin
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I’m about 85% percent of the way through, but I dont’ think my overall rating will change.
***Spoiler Alert***
The good…
WEB can spin an awesome yarn. The combat scenes and personal interplay are top notch. You feel personally invested in Craig, Sandy, Mac, and Ilse. They are living, breathing people.
The bad…
The same attention to detail that brings the characters to life isn’t spared elsewhere. There is so much minutia around even the smallest part of the story that it sometimes feels like your getting washed out to sea. I know its a careful balance, and I guess some people love the knowledge WEB obviously has in regards to military affairs. But for me it took away from the enjoyment of the characters and their overall journeys.
The ugly…
The love story between Lowell and Ilse was honestly one of my favorite things about the first book. Having her killed by a drunk driver seemed to serve no purpose and Lowell’s subsequent actions didn’t make any sense to me. I know he “ran” back to the army to escape the pain. But that also meant running from his son Peter Paul, or PP. Look at Lowells life. Mother is crazy, feels like his family abandoned him. He loves Ilse and PP, the first family he has ever had. Is he really going to leave the kid after his mother dies? I just found that to be a huge flaw in book two.
Summary:
Worth reading if you like military books and well written characters, but book two had several flaws that take away from the overall enjoyment of the book.