mojoshivers's review against another edition
5.0
Normally I don’t care for the Clancy-type thrillers—the ones that involve all levels of government agencies, pull in a thousand people all with important titles, in the service of some vast international conspiracy. I’m much more at home with the Reacher-type books where it’s one hero versus a conspiracy much more local in nature, the one where Federal agency assistance, if any is provided, comes as a sub-plot and that’s all. That being said, I liked Power Down. It had the best of both worlds. It had a tough-as-shit lone wolf hero uncovering the plot on-the-ground, as it were, and it had different alphabet agencies uncovering the plot at the global level. They melded well, assisted by a great plot line and meaningful set pieces that were believable while still being tense and bloody.
I will definitely be picking up the next in the series in the future.
I will definitely be picking up the next in the series in the future.
lookingtoheaven's review against another edition
3.0
Story that captures your attention but is definitely showing it’s age
lwalker77's review against another edition
4.0
This was my first Ben Coes novel. It won't be my last. I really enjoyed this book!
joshperna's review against another edition
2.0
”He was alone in so many ways... but he felt the warmth of a hundred thousand brothers beside him... who died for this country trying to protect it.”
In the spirit of acceptance and anthropological curiosity, my father and I agreed to read each other’s favorite novels. Dad really did not like 100 Years of Solitude. I had mixed feelings on Power Down.
For what the book is, Power Down is a well-crafted thriller: it has good pacing, plot development, and thoroughly researched story mechanics. The character development is thin, but I was actually surprised at how mechanically well-written the book is: the action sequences are cinematic and masterfully paced, and the dialogue is organic and believable. The book did not reveal any deep truths about the world, but it definitely keeps the pages turning.
While I don’t have a problem with the books form, however, I question its narrative function. This brand of hyper-real thriller uses the concept of modern terrorism and exploits it for dramatic effect, creating a hyperbolized portrait of radicalized Islam to serve as a narrative antagonist. As I read this book I had to ask myself “why the hell do I even need this in my entertainment?”
Coes crafts a story where radicalized Islamic terror cells destroy major U.S. power sources, killing several thousand more U.S. citizens than have actually been killed in real life terror events. Yet, somehow, these events take place in a fictionalized version of our own universe, where 9/11 has already happened. And the story actually references 9/11 in the narrative alongside these fictionalized events. This creates an extremely blurry universe for the novel, where real tensions and fears from real tragedies are juiced up with even worse fictional tragedies into a confusing emotional cocktail of fear and revenge. It feels exploitative and manipulative to the reader, and I have to wonder how tasteful a novel like this can even be.
Ultimately, I question why we even need stories like this. Real life tragedy is heavy enough as it is without spinning it into some sort of perverse wish-fulfillment, where we get to watch an American blow the brains out of the terrorists we never got to hold accountable. I remember 9/11 because I lived through it as a national tragedy, I don’t need it rehashed in a novel as cheap dramatic tension to get me to care about fake terrorism.
While I can definitely see how books such as these are easy to invest into and enjoy, I found Power Down’s narrative content to be morally questionable and, above all else, something I’d rather not gratuitously pump into my head.
In the spirit of acceptance and anthropological curiosity, my father and I agreed to read each other’s favorite novels. Dad really did not like 100 Years of Solitude. I had mixed feelings on Power Down.
For what the book is, Power Down is a well-crafted thriller: it has good pacing, plot development, and thoroughly researched story mechanics. The character development is thin, but I was actually surprised at how mechanically well-written the book is: the action sequences are cinematic and masterfully paced, and the dialogue is organic and believable. The book did not reveal any deep truths about the world, but it definitely keeps the pages turning.
While I don’t have a problem with the books form, however, I question its narrative function. This brand of hyper-real thriller uses the concept of modern terrorism and exploits it for dramatic effect, creating a hyperbolized portrait of radicalized Islam to serve as a narrative antagonist. As I read this book I had to ask myself “why the hell do I even need this in my entertainment?”
Coes crafts a story where radicalized Islamic terror cells destroy major U.S. power sources, killing several thousand more U.S. citizens than have actually been killed in real life terror events. Yet, somehow, these events take place in a fictionalized version of our own universe, where 9/11 has already happened. And the story actually references 9/11 in the narrative alongside these fictionalized events. This creates an extremely blurry universe for the novel, where real tensions and fears from real tragedies are juiced up with even worse fictional tragedies into a confusing emotional cocktail of fear and revenge. It feels exploitative and manipulative to the reader, and I have to wonder how tasteful a novel like this can even be.
Ultimately, I question why we even need stories like this. Real life tragedy is heavy enough as it is without spinning it into some sort of perverse wish-fulfillment, where we get to watch an American blow the brains out of the terrorists we never got to hold accountable. I remember 9/11 because I lived through it as a national tragedy, I don’t need it rehashed in a novel as cheap dramatic tension to get me to care about fake terrorism.
While I can definitely see how books such as these are easy to invest into and enjoy, I found Power Down’s narrative content to be morally questionable and, above all else, something I’d rather not gratuitously pump into my head.
jecamp86's review against another edition
5.0
Great novel
Such an interesting novel with a lot of great details and terrific characters. I will definitely continue this series and follow the author
Such an interesting novel with a lot of great details and terrific characters. I will definitely continue this series and follow the author
dburley37's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
This is the first Dewey Andreas book. I found it to be an intriguing and action packed book. There are lots of good characters, both good and bad. The book builds to an exciting climax.
sophiewilliams's review against another edition
3.0
Hmmm, not sure about this one. Last 25% I really enjoyed. Struggled with the America is the best theme to a lot of it though and the fact that every other character seemed to be ex-SEAL/Delta/special forces of some description. Certainly don't read this if you like realism in your books.
jpmrrtx's review against another edition
4.0
Power Down is the first book in the series introducing Dewey Andreas. I enjoyed the book, wish it had spent a little more time with Dewey rather than the many characters involved, I'm very much looking forward to reading the next book in the series.
scott_a_miller's review against another edition
5.0
Uh Oh... Coes is really good. I’ve been sitting on this one for more than a year. That was a mistake. DA is going to be fun to watch. I loved how Coes melded thrills, financial markets and government. Absolutely loved it.
The ending was satisfying but there’s a lot more to come. Andreas is going to be the hunted one in book two it seems. I’m not going to wait very long to read the next one. Wow.
The ending was satisfying but there’s a lot more to come. Andreas is going to be the hunted one in book two it seems. I’m not going to wait very long to read the next one. Wow.
wrxtacy's review against another edition
3.0
Must admit that there were times in this book where I shook my head finding it difficult to "suspend" my disbelief, however I still found the story compelling enough to power through. I did enjoy this one regardless of the insane body count and scattered array of activity from the dozen or so actors.