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Power Play, a thrilling new Trident Deception short story by Rick Campbell. The Russians have their newest class of nuclear attack submarine and is taking it, K-561 Kazan, on a shakedown cruise. Unbeknownst to them, however, this new submarine is being followed by an American submarine, the USS Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgh is to gather any intelligence they can on this new Russian submarine while avoiding detection by the Russians. But what first appears to be the rollout of a new type of submarine, might well be something completely different. Instead the Pittsburgh witness a torpedo firing exercise—and the radical new technology might well not be the submarine, but the torpedo.

85 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 8, 2019

342 people are currently reading
197 people want to read

About the author

Rick Campbell

13 books341 followers
RICK CAMPBELL, a retired Navy Commander, served on four nuclear-powered submarines, finishing his career with tours in the Pentagon and the Washington Navy Yard. On his last submarine, he was one of the two men whose permission is required to launch the submarine's nuclear-warhead-armed missiles.

Upon retirement from the Navy, Rick was offered a two-book deal by Macmillan / St. Martin's Press for his novel The Trident Deception, which was hailed by Booklist as "The best submarine novel written in the last thirty years, since Tom Clancy's classic - The Hunt for Red October". His first six books were Barnes & Noble Top-10 and Amazon #1 bestsellers, and the 7th and 8th books in the series are scheduled for release in April 2024 and spring 2025.

To learn more, visit Rick Campbell's website and his "Submarine 101" page at www.rickcampbellauthor.com.

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5 stars
130 (39%)
4 stars
106 (31%)
3 stars
61 (18%)
2 stars
20 (6%)
1 star
16 (4%)
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
Profile Image for SteVen Hendricks.
691 reviews32 followers
May 26, 2022
ebook Review - In author Rick Campbell’s short story, “Power Play,” the Russians have a new class of nuclear attack submarine and is taking it on a ‘shakedown’ cruise - testing/training. Unbeknownst to them - the Russians, their new submarine is being followed by an American submarine, the USS Pittsburgh. The Pittsburgh is tasks with gathering intelligence on this new Russian attack submarine while avoiding detection. But what first appears to be the rollout of a new kind of submarine, might well be something completely different. Instead, the USS Pittsburgh witness a torpedo firing exercise and the radical new technology might not be the submarine, but the torpedo instead! Former Navy submarine veteran turn author, Rick Campbell continues to deliver heart pounding action adventure under the seas in his Trident Deception series. Based on his knowledge aboard US Navy submarines and his research of Russian subs, Campbell makes the reader feel as if they are right there in the story, on the submarines! Although the short story was the set up for the full novel, “Treason,” — it lead me to move the Treason book up on my ‘To Be Read’ list. Intriguing, adventurous, just flst out action-packed, Power Play accomplished its intention with me. I’ll be reading the full story in the book Treason by sooner than later. Great military thriller short story…
Profile Image for Jeff Dawson.
Author 23 books106 followers
February 16, 2019
Clancy, this is not. Way too much telling and not enough showing. I lost count how many times the narration described before or after the actual conversation. Too much filler.

As far as the plot, while it is intriguing, the execution comes across as flat. And, most importantly, this is only an unfinished short story.

Disappointed to say the least.

Three star push.
Profile Image for Samyann.
Author 1 book84 followers
October 2, 2022
Plot: The Trident Deception Series consists of several full-length novels in the military genrè. A retired Navy author provides page-turning excitement of near-miss disasters in American conflicts, primarily with Russia. Suggest starting at the beginning of the series, as several characters - like the President, Chief of Staff, a navy seal, and a strong female lead traverse all novels written to date - will be more.

Liked: If you are a fan of The Hunt for Red October by Tom Clancy - you'll love The Trident Deception Series. All are nail-biting, page-turning stories. Some graphic violence; if you're a victim of wartime PTSD, these might not be for you. Clean reads, no sex, no objectionable language. Learned a bit about submarine tactics.

Not so hot: Audio speed is a bit slow for my taste; I bumped the rate to 1.4 on the iPhone.

Written by Rick Campbell, and narration is fine; there are several, each book in the area of 10-15 hours of listening in audiobook format, released from March 2014 to date by Blackstone Audio.

Recommended.
Profile Image for Lonnie Mixell.
32 reviews8 followers
January 13, 2019
A great story above and below the waves.

Rick Campbell added even more intrigue and seat of one’s pants action in this short story, Power Play.
His expertise of the world of Naval submarine warfare shines brightly in all his stories and he is a kind enough author to translate the technical parts for the fans who have not lived that life.
His use of the timeline and characters he has created is amazing. The reader can even become invested in the lives of the bad guys, thanks to Mr. Campbell’s character development.
The only possible negative would be the abrupt ending to the story, but it is rectified by the preview of the upcoming book beginning on the next page.
I highly recommend this book series to anybody that enjoys a great thriller!
55 reviews
January 11, 2019
Great run up to his newest book.

Like all of Campbell's books this short story is really great. It is a wonderful run-up to his book treason which should be out in March, which I have had the opportunity to read early. You will love it . It is action-packed from the very beginning . It keeps you in suspense and it has all of the same characters and many more. I highly recommend you buy the book Treason when it comes out.
Profile Image for David.
395 reviews
January 21, 2019
A short story very nicely done. Tantalizing, with enough detail to keep you wanting more. I would call it a real page-turner, but it's not long enough for that.

Chronologically, this fits between book #4 (Blackmail) and the not-yet-released book #5 (Treason).

Full disclosure: the author is a Naval Academy classmate and friend. I am a named character in book #4.
4 reviews
March 16, 2019
What a crock. It stopped right in the middle and started a preview to another book for the last 60 plus percent of the volume. A tip off..

What a crock. It stopped at about 60% through and started a preview for another book for the remainder of the volume. A ripoff!
91 reviews
April 25, 2019
Good Short Story

I've never read anything similar to th his it is engaging but less compelling than the other reads. I guess there was a reason these were on the editors cutting floor. But i am still a fan. Headed to his next book to see how it ends.
513 reviews7 followers
February 4, 2019
Good book but too short

I liked this book and wish it had been longer. One thing really surprised me, and it does set the stage for his next one.
1 review
February 12, 2019
Na

Good read, as usual the thrill and excitement that drive me reading non stop.. , just waiting for the next
Profile Image for William McLoughlin.
376 reviews12 followers
March 24, 2019
Short story filling the gap between naval warfare novels #4 & #5. Author is prior service, knows his stuff, and writes well.
125 reviews6 followers
Read
July 16, 2019
Very good read. Fits well in the Rick Campbell story lines
Profile Image for Wade Higgins.
23 reviews
September 26, 2019
A Rip Off!,,,

This is a half book. The story is not complete and the book ends in the middle of the story. It’s a clear rip off to sell the other half of the story.
7 reviews
October 18, 2019
Short story?

I was unawear that this was a unfinifhed novel so i cannot review it as such bu it showed promise .
51 reviews1 follower
April 15, 2021
My review

Have all the books in the series. Love the characters, and the action. Can't wait for the next in the series.
304 reviews3 followers
October 31, 2023
Just a short but enjoyable read that is a good introduction to the author.
1,223 reviews2 followers
February 6, 2024
This is a very short short story. Well paced, interesting. But it just stops, no resolution, no ending. The problem is presented and the story ends. Not satisfying.
1 review
April 19, 2024
Poor represtative of Rick Campbells work.

If I knew it was only 62 pages for Power Play I would have not bought it. Slipping the other works just is not aceptable.
Profile Image for Dallin.
131 reviews
March 25, 2019
Very enjoyable! Moves right along. Great interim setup for the next.
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews

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