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Art Jefferson #1
Cloudburst
From its pulse-pounding opening to its action-packed climax, Cloudburst grabs you and will not let go. Ranging from the violent assassination of the President on the streets of Los Angeles to covert action against terrorist havens in North Africa, from the halls of power in Washington to a highjacked airliner racing toward the heart of the United States, Cloudburst takes the reader on a riveting journey as FBI agents and elite counter-terrorist units fight a desperate battle to save millions of innocents, and to bring those responsible to justice.
339 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1993
122 people are currently reading
552 people want to read
About the author
Ryne Douglas Pearson
26 books61 followersRyne Douglas Pearson is an accomplished novelist and screenwriter. He is the author of several novels, including Cloudburst, October's Ghost, Capitol Punishment, Simple Simon, Top Ten, The Donzerly Light, All For One, Confessions, and Cop Killer. He is also the author of the short story collection, Dark and Darker. His novel Simple Simon was made into the film Mercury Rising. As a screenwriter he has worked on numerous movies. The film Knowing, based on his original script, was released in 2009 and opened #1 at the box office. Receiving Four Stars from Roger Ebert, who branded it ‘among the best science-fiction films I’ve seen’, it went on to earn more than $180 million worldwide. He has also done uncredited work on films such as the remakes of The Day The Earth Stood Still and The Eye.
Despite the often ‘dark’ nature of his novels and films, Pearson has been noted to have a ‘sweet, disarming quality’ by Entertainment Weekly–an accusation he has been unable to shake. When not writing he is usually thinking about writing, or touting the wonders of bacon in online conversations. He is addicted to diet soda and the sound of his children laughing. A west coast native, he lives in California with his wife, children, a Doberman Kelpie and a Beagle Vizsla.
Despite the often ‘dark’ nature of his novels and films, Pearson has been noted to have a ‘sweet, disarming quality’ by Entertainment Weekly–an accusation he has been unable to shake. When not writing he is usually thinking about writing, or touting the wonders of bacon in online conversations. He is addicted to diet soda and the sound of his children laughing. A west coast native, he lives in California with his wife, children, a Doberman Kelpie and a Beagle Vizsla.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
September 18, 2011
It is the early 1990’s, and the President of the United States has just been assassinated along with a couple of his top advisors. FBI agents working the scene piece together flimsy evidence from what’s left of the blast area to form a list of suspects and pass the information up channel to the new administration.
Meanwhile, an American plane is hijacked out of Athens and detoured to Libya. Some unusual hijacker demands are also passed up the line, ending up on the same new administration’s desk. Delta Force operatives, still squirming under their failure to resolve the Iran hostage affair, are called on to plan a possible hostage rescue of the hijack victims.
Are there people who can put all the pieces of the puzzle together successfully, in the midst of a national funeral for a fallen President, in time to avert further disaster? Can the newly-sworn Commander in Chief make the hard decisions necessary to protect the greatest number of people? Who will be sacrificed for the greater good of the people? Is the fledgling President up to making this kind of lose/lose decision?
This is my first introduction to Pearson’s writing, and I am not disappointed. In fact, I think I’ve found another “must-read” author in one of my favorite genres – adventure/intrigue. Pearson does an excellent job of writing his multiple-viewpoint tale and keeping the reader tightly bound to his seat in the process.
Meanwhile, an American plane is hijacked out of Athens and detoured to Libya. Some unusual hijacker demands are also passed up the line, ending up on the same new administration’s desk. Delta Force operatives, still squirming under their failure to resolve the Iran hostage affair, are called on to plan a possible hostage rescue of the hijack victims.
Are there people who can put all the pieces of the puzzle together successfully, in the midst of a national funeral for a fallen President, in time to avert further disaster? Can the newly-sworn Commander in Chief make the hard decisions necessary to protect the greatest number of people? Who will be sacrificed for the greater good of the people? Is the fledgling President up to making this kind of lose/lose decision?
This is my first introduction to Pearson’s writing, and I am not disappointed. In fact, I think I’ve found another “must-read” author in one of my favorite genres – adventure/intrigue. Pearson does an excellent job of writing his multiple-viewpoint tale and keeping the reader tightly bound to his seat in the process.
November 11, 2015
Re-reading this provocative thriller written unbelievably before 9/11. TTS-enabled eBook ©1993 deserves its rating. Recommended.
September 18, 2017
This one started off a little slow for me, say the first 5% of the Kindle version, but the author suddenly kicked it from first gear all the way to fifth. After a while, the turbo boost engaged and what you have is a pulse-racing thriller. Forgive the auto references but believe me when I tell you this is one action-packed thriller that had my heartbeat increasing on occasion until I completed it.
The author does a really good job of explaining the technical details related to science, aviation, and the military without the reader feeling either overwhelmed or the thought of being talked down to while reading. His character dialogue is outstanding as well as the development of those characters for both the "good" and the "bad" guys. I was impressed with how he was able to switch scenes from an FBI team, the armed terrorists, the Delta force team, and the defector with ease and weave it all together.
About the only negative I could give it is there are a few words that are typos, and some of it appears dated - early Vietnam war veterans still in active-duty front-line service, for example, but it does not take away from an all-around great read.
The author does a really good job of explaining the technical details related to science, aviation, and the military without the reader feeling either overwhelmed or the thought of being talked down to while reading. His character dialogue is outstanding as well as the development of those characters for both the "good" and the "bad" guys. I was impressed with how he was able to switch scenes from an FBI team, the armed terrorists, the Delta force team, and the defector with ease and weave it all together.
About the only negative I could give it is there are a few words that are typos, and some of it appears dated - early Vietnam war veterans still in active-duty front-line service, for example, but it does not take away from an all-around great read.
October 30, 2018
While we could imagine this happening today, in a worst-case scenario, it would have been truly visionary in the early 90s when it was written, and especially before 9/11. The president has been assassinated. The next day an airliner has been hijacked. The USA is under attack and the time is very limited to find out what is going on so the powers that be can put a stop to it.
There were so many different locations and a lot of military jargon that I didn’t understand, and so I was in the dark for some of this book. You never did get to know any of the characters very well although the plot is driven – fast. There were so many secrets that we, the readers, were never clued in on. The story was told from numerous POV’s, and there is potential for real page turner, but just not for me.
There were so many different locations and a lot of military jargon that I didn’t understand, and so I was in the dark for some of this book. You never did get to know any of the characters very well although the plot is driven – fast. There were so many secrets that we, the readers, were never clued in on. The story was told from numerous POV’s, and there is potential for real page turner, but just not for me.
September 24, 2012
In 2012 it may not be unusual to find novelists dealing with radioactive material, hatred of Americans within mideastern nations and subterfuge around Benghazi Libya, but those were the last topics I expected to come across as I began to read a book published in 1993 about the death of an American President.
A nicely set up thriller dealing with both American political and terrorist sub-genres, Cloudburst is among the best I've read recemtly. Though beginning with an assassination and investigation by the FBI, the drama of the opening chapters is soon outpaced as the author weaves a compelling tale of intrigue on one coast, a manhunt on another, and the reason behind it all - the involvement of forces within Libya who are bent on revenge against the Americans. Ah, but if it were even that simple.
Without giving away the plot, there is no way to adequately describe the complexity of this story. At the same time, it is not one of those books that leaves us scratching our heads and wondering about dangling story lines. While not every event or character involved in the plot got extensive set up and explanations, I was too busy wondering what would happen next to worry about those details.
From intrigue within the FBI to a prison in Illinois, traitors within a foreign government, freeways of LosAngeles, Russian nuclear scientists, and a the halls of power in Washington, the twists and turns come out of nowhere and at a breakneck pace. And just when the reader thinks we have the next step figured out, yet another shoe drops.
That said, if i can make one minor aside - I have a little peeve about the odd or improbably morphing into the next to impossible and I feel that way about a Secretary of State flying to Cuba and meeting with Castro. Who am I to say what happens in the odd secret world of government, but this was a bit unnecessary.
Back to the more normal issues: characters are written to be fairly likable, if somewhat predictable. There is plenty of potential for their further development, but they are adequately drawn and not boggling to the reader. Although we do not spend extensive periods with any characters, I was pleased with the variety of people involved in the action and I felt that I had at least some understanding of what made them tick.
The mechanics of the writing is well done and the book is well edited. Thankfully there is no feeling that the rest of the story is being saved for another book. This helped Cloudburst rate highly as one of the most interestingly plotted books I've read recently and one of my favorite recently read, if somewhat dated, books in the genre.
A nicely set up thriller dealing with both American political and terrorist sub-genres, Cloudburst is among the best I've read recemtly. Though beginning with an assassination and investigation by the FBI, the drama of the opening chapters is soon outpaced as the author weaves a compelling tale of intrigue on one coast, a manhunt on another, and the reason behind it all - the involvement of forces within Libya who are bent on revenge against the Americans. Ah, but if it were even that simple.
Without giving away the plot, there is no way to adequately describe the complexity of this story. At the same time, it is not one of those books that leaves us scratching our heads and wondering about dangling story lines. While not every event or character involved in the plot got extensive set up and explanations, I was too busy wondering what would happen next to worry about those details.
From intrigue within the FBI to a prison in Illinois, traitors within a foreign government, freeways of LosAngeles, Russian nuclear scientists, and a the halls of power in Washington, the twists and turns come out of nowhere and at a breakneck pace. And just when the reader thinks we have the next step figured out, yet another shoe drops.
That said, if i can make one minor aside - I have a little peeve about the odd or improbably morphing into the next to impossible and I feel that way about a Secretary of State flying to Cuba and meeting with Castro. Who am I to say what happens in the odd secret world of government, but this was a bit unnecessary.
Back to the more normal issues: characters are written to be fairly likable, if somewhat predictable. There is plenty of potential for their further development, but they are adequately drawn and not boggling to the reader. Although we do not spend extensive periods with any characters, I was pleased with the variety of people involved in the action and I felt that I had at least some understanding of what made them tick.
The mechanics of the writing is well done and the book is well edited. Thankfully there is no feeling that the rest of the story is being saved for another book. This helped Cloudburst rate highly as one of the most interestingly plotted books I've read recently and one of my favorite recently read, if somewhat dated, books in the genre.
July 30, 2012
In “Cloudburst,” Ryne Douglas Pearson brings back FBI agent Art Jefferson in another adventure. He sets the hook quickly in Chapter 1; the president is killed in Los Angeles in a brazen terrorist suicide attack. Meanwhile, halfway across the globe, an American 747 airliner is hijacked by another group of Middle Eastern extremists and forced to make a brief stop in Libya, where a strange, heavy cargo is loaded onto the aircraft. Events that are first seen as unconnected soon are proven to be part of an interconnected plan to strike at the heart of the United States.
We soon begin to suspect that the plane is carrying more than luggage; it is carrying an extremely deadly thermonuclear device that the terrorists plan to deliver to the United States. Meanwhile, we follow various FBI, Secret Service, and CIA teams as they try to fill in backgrounds on the terrorists, and we later join an antiterrorist military team who is out to attempt to save the plane and its passengers. However, as it becomes more apparent that the item on the plane is actually a thermonuclear device, additional subplots quickly develop. The story continues to jump all over the globe as an enormous force is mobilized to save the plane, and if they can’t, then to blow the passenger-laden 747 out of the air before it reaches US airspace.
FBI agent Art Jefferson, Delta Force captain Sean Graber, pilot Bart Hendrickson, and others are fully developed and well characterized. Pearson’s skill as a screen writer is evident as the dialogue moved crisply and logically even as he shifted the setting from subplot to subplot. From the very beginning to the end, the story was suspenseful and filled with precise descriptions of weaponry and military situations; it was very detailed at times, but again, it was interesting and easy to assimilate. The one real weakness that I could not quite understand was the author’s use of an older, somewhat obsolete fighter jet which was armed with some kind of nuclear missile. This plane was sent to shadow the hijacked plane and, if needed, shoot it down before it could enter US airspace. It made no sense to me why one would use an older plane and a nuclear device to shoot down an aircraft carrying a thermonuclear device; it seems that there were various forms of modern technology that could have been used instead of this “old jet fighter.” I struggled with a 3 or a 4 for “Cloudburst;” I finally gave it a “3,” but I would still recommend it. There is no question that this is an action-packed, techno-thriller with an enjoyable fast-paced plot.
We soon begin to suspect that the plane is carrying more than luggage; it is carrying an extremely deadly thermonuclear device that the terrorists plan to deliver to the United States. Meanwhile, we follow various FBI, Secret Service, and CIA teams as they try to fill in backgrounds on the terrorists, and we later join an antiterrorist military team who is out to attempt to save the plane and its passengers. However, as it becomes more apparent that the item on the plane is actually a thermonuclear device, additional subplots quickly develop. The story continues to jump all over the globe as an enormous force is mobilized to save the plane, and if they can’t, then to blow the passenger-laden 747 out of the air before it reaches US airspace.
FBI agent Art Jefferson, Delta Force captain Sean Graber, pilot Bart Hendrickson, and others are fully developed and well characterized. Pearson’s skill as a screen writer is evident as the dialogue moved crisply and logically even as he shifted the setting from subplot to subplot. From the very beginning to the end, the story was suspenseful and filled with precise descriptions of weaponry and military situations; it was very detailed at times, but again, it was interesting and easy to assimilate. The one real weakness that I could not quite understand was the author’s use of an older, somewhat obsolete fighter jet which was armed with some kind of nuclear missile. This plane was sent to shadow the hijacked plane and, if needed, shoot it down before it could enter US airspace. It made no sense to me why one would use an older plane and a nuclear device to shoot down an aircraft carrying a thermonuclear device; it seems that there were various forms of modern technology that could have been used instead of this “old jet fighter.” I struggled with a 3 or a 4 for “Cloudburst;” I finally gave it a “3,” but I would still recommend it. There is no question that this is an action-packed, techno-thriller with an enjoyable fast-paced plot.
September 14, 2011
This is a classic thriller written by an accomplished screen writer. This is very much the way it reads - more like a screenplay than a novel. The book relies heavily on military jargon. Acronyms and military slang are here in abundance, making for a difficult read for those of us who have never served in the military in USA or in any other country. The book is too long. Including a sizeable chunk of Pearson's next book at the back, it measures close to 140,000 words. There was one section in particular that I reckon could have been left out, where the president (and the reader) is lectured on the difference between criminal association and affiliation. As nothing came of this in the end, it probably should have been expunged during editing.
The story is uncannily similar to many extant films and offers little in the storyline that is recognizably new. I found the narrative style infuriating throughout as it continually hinted at important matters without revealing them to the reader. This might work once or twice in a book, but not in every second chapter.
The story is uncannily similar to many extant films and offers little in the storyline that is recognizably new. I found the narrative style infuriating throughout as it continually hinted at important matters without revealing them to the reader. This might work once or twice in a book, but not in every second chapter.
June 2, 2012
It's eerie to realize this book was written before 9/11.
This was reminded me of reading Tom Clancy - you know all these plot threads are going to tie together somehow and you're waiting to see how. Lots of military jargon too, which is something I always enjoy (don't know why - I just do). The characters were well fleshed out and the scenario believable. I'm curious to see what else happens in this series. It says this is an Art Jefferson thriller but Jefferson was one of many characters and I'd be a little disappointed if the others weren't back in some fashion in the next, particularly the Delta Team folks.
This was reminded me of reading Tom Clancy - you know all these plot threads are going to tie together somehow and you're waiting to see how. Lots of military jargon too, which is something I always enjoy (don't know why - I just do). The characters were well fleshed out and the scenario believable. I'm curious to see what else happens in this series. It says this is an Art Jefferson thriller but Jefferson was one of many characters and I'd be a little disappointed if the others weren't back in some fashion in the next, particularly the Delta Team folks.
February 13, 2012
A very taut techno-thriller. Full of action that both keeps you reading and your blood pumping. Part mystery and part shoot-em-up this story has the good sense not to fall into the Hollywood trap. Not every cop or soldier is an expert marksman and not every bad-guy is a bullet spraying inept. You loose some friends by the end of the story but that just makes this read better.
July 21, 2015
The plot is interesting and that is the only reason I bothered to finish the book. If you like details about guns and planes you might find this book worth the time. For the most part, I felt like the author was trying to impress me with his knowledge of flying and killing rather than using details to further the plot .
February 6, 2017
It's a good read, well written and engaging.
You need to suspend disbelief and not be too critical, the plot is fanciful and full of holes. But nevertheless enjoyable.
You need to suspend disbelief and not be too critical, the plot is fanciful and full of holes. But nevertheless enjoyable.
September 11, 2011
Spy/thriller with a more convoluted plot than you often see (that's a good thing). If you like books by Clancy and Hailey you might find the writing style somewhat familiar: multiple threads being woven together from different viewpoints, yet with a slight distance from even the heroes.
October 8, 2012
Actually I did not finish this book. I gave it my traditional "read 10% and go on or quit" yardstick. It started out gangbusters with an exciting assassination of the President and several more people, but then it bogged down for me. Would rather read something else.
March 27, 2013
This book was hard for me to get into. Lots of characters I couldn't keep up with, and lots of pretty technical stuff. The beginning was slow, but the end was a bit better. I didn't think I was ever going to finish it.
September 23, 2014
As usual, Ryne Douglas Pearson writes a thriller that one can barely put down. Prepare for a rise in blood pressure; there's action on practically every page. I've read five of Pearson's books; looking forward to reading the others.
August 22, 2015
Cloudburst
I rate books based on my desire to return to them as quickly as possible. This was one such book. A great story, well written. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys military fiction.
I rate books based on my desire to return to them as quickly as possible. This was one such book. A great story, well written. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys military fiction.
December 26, 2010
a fun read!
July 30, 2011
I think it's telling that I finished this book several months ago, and now that I think back on it I remember very little of the book.
August 23, 2011
This was actually a very good read if you like this kind of fiction. The last 1/3 was hard to put down. I read about 2 hours last night finishing it up.
June 12, 2012
I found this to be a decent book, a bit slow at times. It had a lot of characters and it was sometimes hard to keep everyone straight.
January 17, 2013
Would of given it five stars but, I had a hard time keeping all the characters straight.
July 28, 2013
I don't rate many books a five. Besides having strong characters and plot, the book has to grab me and make me reluctant to put it down. This book does it all.
November 10, 2013
I didn't actually finish the book, but I gave it my best shot. I just couldn't get into it.
Read
December 7, 2013False
June 12, 2015
Good will read more of his books
Read
February 26, 2015No rating. I just could NOT get into this book. Not sure why since I'm on a 100% reading jag.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews