Sink The Shigure

Jack Tremain #2

by R. Cameron Cooke

South Pacific, 1943. Commander Jack Tremain returns to the war zone after a long stint ashore. After narrowly surviving the Battle of Vella LaVella, he is given command of the Whitefin, one of the many American submarines based in Australia. Before long, he discovers that an old nemesis is plodding the seas of the patrol zones - the Japanese destroyer Shigure: the infamous submarine killer, the Scourge of The Solomons, and the ship responsible for sinking Tremain's first command. With a mysterious British commando aboard, and a secret mission that not even Tremain is privy to, the Whitefin sets out for the waters of the Philippine Islands and a final confrontation with the dreaded Japanese warship.

Genres: Military Fiction

418 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published July 31, 2007

Reviews

[Jean · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked up this bite of fact from this book: Cooke states that the US Navy underwater forces in the Pacific fought the only successful submarine campaign in either 20th century world conflicts.

The Shigure was a Japanese destroyer equipped with the latest anti-submarine weapons. It sunk the USS Seatrout. Jack Tremaine was newly assigned to command the USS Whitefin. The Seatrout was his first command so he was seeking vengeance on the Shigure.

The book is well written but I do not think it is as well written as Cooke’s prior book “Pride Runs Deep”. The second half of the book is nonstop action under the sea and on land. Cooke does a good job with battle scenes. Overall it makes a good action packed get- away- from- it- all book.

I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. The book is about 14 hours long. Tim Campbell does a good job narrating the book.

[Viva · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't honestly decide if this should be a 4 or 5 star book. I read this one on the heels of #1 which I really liked. The writing is very easy to read and get into. However, the story line is choppy with starts and sudden stops and a couple of different POVs. There are zero points in authors trying to be clever with "arty" or different flow chart story lines. Keep it linear. Readers are trying to follow a story, not exclaim at how jumpy the plot line can be.

Spoilers ahead:
This book follows Tremain after his first book and even after just reading it, I'm not sure how to summarize the plot because it's a long book with several parts and a lot of things happen. Suffice it to say that most of the plot revolves around Tremain trying to sink the Shigure, which is the Japanese destroyer that sank his previous command.

There is some sea action and it ends with Tremain in the Philippines. I actually learned a lot of things there as I have not read much of the US action in the Philippines with the exception of the first Japanese attack and the Bataan Death March. It's also the first time I heard of Colonel Fertig.

Anyway, I highly recommend this book for anyone interested in WW2 US submarine warfare. I'll definitely read any more of Cooke's WW2 books I can get my hands on.

[Leslie Biffle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. The series of three were quite good! The author's firsthand knowledge is obvious and makes these really shine. Having neither the interest nor the opportunity to be a submariner does not mean I am disinterested in stories set on/in submarines. These books were a kick in the pants. Excellent!

[Paul J. Petersen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great fiction n realised WWII sub story

For those of us who enjoy WWII submarine stories, this is another great example. Good character development, good plot, detailed an well written.

[Avi Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book.

[John Grant · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable read

[Dennis Lemons · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not the typical submarine story. Well written with several sub plots This is mostly a fictional work but really written in a factual way

Looking for another work from this author this was a really believable novel which kept me intrigued The subplots were written into the overall plot

[Ron Denton · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is really two different books that contain the same characters. Apparently the second half was written by a committee or someone paid by the word. The first half, while predictable, a sub commander going Ahab after the IJN destroyer that sank his previous command, does have some good moments and follows on from the first book. The second half just goes silly. It's like every trite situation, cliff hanger, etc. gets thrown in hoping something will stick. It becomes more like an old Saturday matinee or comic book than anything else. The author drops in bits of actual history here and there, but then doesn't build on it. He just wants us to know that he has read a book on it I guess. The terminology, phrases and slang get mixed up too as contemporary things get mixed in with period things. Note to author - the UCMJ did not go into effect until 1951.
This could have been a good entertainment/escapist historical-fiction book, but it really needed serious editing and fact-checking. Too many things seem to have just been thrown in for no reason.

[Jon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ahh, WWII naval submarine fiction, it's like porn, so HARD to put down.

Seriously, this stuff is one quick read. I'm a sucker for WWII naval history, so addictive. Also read R. Cameron Cooke's first novel, Pride Runs Deep, excellent!

[7$MartyQ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great Fiction!

The story was really good, but I NEVER heard of a submarine's skipper leaving his command to do something ashore. The historical fiction is really a good read, and I envy the author doing it so well.

[Connor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not bad. If you have a liking for naval fiction, go for it. Otherwise, you'll probably find little of interest here.

[Bradley · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well crafted old-fashioned submarine yarn set in WWII. Well executed.