Without Remorse, Week 4

Welcome to the final Online Book Club discussion of Without Remorse.

What did you think of the end of the book? I think the biggest problem I had with the book is that I felt like it was several different books in one. There were just too many storylines. I think a book about drug smuggling and John Kelly attempting to exact revenge would have been enough. Adding the extra Vietnam POW angle was just too much. I just couldn't keep all of the character names straight, and I could not keep the different storylines straight--especially since action for each storyline occurred in each chapter. Maybe it would have been easier if the action between the stories was split into different chapters, but the way it was set up was just too confusing. Did you find yourself unable to keep track of all of the characters? Did you wish the story had been more streamlined? 

To me, the worst thing that happened in this section was that Doris and her father were murdered. I just thought that was so unnecessary. Why couldn't one of the women have a happy ending? She had just gotten back with her father--why couldn't that be the end of their story? I just couldn't believe that they were hunted down and killed. Were you surprised when that happened? How would you have written Doris's story? 

Were you surprised that the mission in Vietnam was ultimately unsuccessful? The mission definitely showed how brave and well-trained Kelly was, but all of his expertise was not able to overcome the fact that the mission was compromised. It was good that John was able to bring Grishanov out with him at the end of the mission. That made it not a total loss, I think. After the Vietnam storyline was finished, did you finally feel like it was a good addition to the rest of the story? Did you think it added to the book? In the epilogue, we find that all of the prisoners were eventually released, and it seems like John's actions throughout the book helped with that. I was glad that was a happy ending to the story at least. 

What did you think of the ending? Did you think it was believable that John was able to evade capture and then fake his own death? It's crazy that he didn't have to have any repercussions for all of the killing he did throughout the book. Do you feel like you rooted for John throughout the book? Would you classify him as a hero? 

Do you think he and Sandy will have a happy life together? I'm not sure what Sandy found so appealing about him--she obviously knew that he was really dangerous and did some shady things. I hope they end up having a good life together--it seems like the women who love John don't have much luck, but maybe Sandy will be different. 

What other parts stood out to you? Would you have changed anything about the story? Would you have taken out any characters or storylines? 

Do you think you'd like to read another Tom Clancy novel? If you want to read and watch some similar titles, check out this list I created. Make sure to let me know if you check out anything on the list!

Before you go, check out this clip about Tom Clancy and the excitement that surrounded his novels. Are you surprised people loved his books so much? 

Thanks for following along this month! I hope to hear all of your thoughts about the book in the comments. Make sure to check back next month as we read The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks.