The Hunt for Red October, Week 3

Welcome to Week 3 of the Online Book Club discussion of The Hunt for Red October

Did you enjoy the section this week? I was still surprised by how many characters and settings there were in every chapter, but I felt like I was a little better able to keep up with all of the details this week. Did you struggle to keep every character and setting straight? I was a little surprised, also, that Jack Ryan wasn't a more prevalent character. I thought he would be in a lot more scenes than he was. 

What was the most exciting scene to you? I think the most interesting part to me was when the Red October realized she had been spotted, so she came to the surface and received those messages from the American ships. Do you think Ramius was hoping to be spotted? Was that all part of his plan? I was surprised that Ramius was able to decipher the English messages, but I was glad that he was. After the Americans contacted Ramius, I felt like the whole rescue mission was finally going to work. It felt like a puzzle piece that had fallen into place. I felt like there was hope for the Red October to not be taken out by the Soviet fleet following them. 

Another exciting part was the spy sting that happened at the end of chapter 13. Didn't you feel confused when the CIA operative, Ritter, started telling the senator, Donaldson, that they believed Poland was responsible for raising suspicion about the Red October? That seemed like such an obvious lie, so I was really confused why the information was being shared. But, it all made sense once it was revealed that Henderson, the senator's chief aide, was really a spy and shared that fake story with his Soviet contact. I wasn't expecting that at all, were you? 

Henderson wasn't the only spy in this section. Were you surprised to learn that there is a Kremlin agent going undercover on the Red October? Surely, Ramius has no idea, right? This man has orders to destroy the sub if it strays from its mission. What is going to happen once the Red October comes in contact with the American ships? Do you think this hidden person will make trouble for the ship? 

What did you think of the other Soviet ship, the Politovskiy, that blew up? One man, the cook, was rescued, but the rest of the men were lost. It was kind of handy, I guess, that the boat exploded, since it gave the Americans a reason to be out near where all of the submarines were. How else will the Americans use this explosion to their advantage? How will this tie in to the Red October?

Did any other parts stick out to you? What's your guess for what will happen in the last section? How is this all going to be resolved? What will Jack Ryan do in the last section? What will happen to all of the extra crew members on the Red October? 

Before you go, check out the video clip below in which Tom Clancy talks about his writing process and how he didn't change after his books came out. 

Finally, several different actors have played Jack Ryan over the years. Check out this article to get reacquainted with each of the actors. Do you agree with the ranking from the article? Which Jack Ryan do you like the best? 

I hope you'll join us again next month as we finish the book! I can't wait to hear all of your thoughts in the comments section!