The Profession

THE PROFESSION is a well written, fast moving book about the use of mercenaries in warfare. It has all the heroic characters and gripping combat one expects out of Pressfield, and should not be missed by action/thriller fans.

I admit I was skeptical about reading this. Pressfield's GATES OF FIRE is one of my all time favorite books, and I have read it at least four times. However, TIDES OF WAR was an incredible disappointment, as it was way more political than thrilling. However, THE PROFESSION is an excellent blend of action and political intrigue, and strikes a balance between the two that TIDES OF WAR absolutely missed.

Gilbert "Gent" Gentilhomme was once a proud US Marine, serving under General Salter, one of the greatest military minds in the US since Patton. Salter runs afoul of the political administration and is court-martialed, and Gent feels like he loves the fight more than any cause, so both of them end up as mercenaries. But this is 2032, and unlike today, mercenaries are now organized into full-blown professional armies, hired by nations, mega-million dollar corporations, and big energy companies all over the world. Soon Salter's tactical savvy changes the balance of power in the middle east, and he has the world by the throat. The US can either welcome him home with open arms, or go into an economic meltdown not seen since the Great Depression. The US prepares to welcome back Salter as its savior and abandon its status as a Republic, and Gent has to choose between a commander he loves and the ideals of the country he once-upon-a-time swore to defend.

The story has more double-crosses than I can count, but it's intriguing, exciting, and full of non-stop action. Pressfield did a lot of research into weapons and tactics (I'm career military; he knows what he's talking about), and the result is a story that is as believable as it is exciting. And don't bother trying to predict the end; it's from way out in left field.

Action and techno-thriller fans will truly enjoy this. I'm back on the Pressfield band wagon.

I surprise myself by giving Pressfield's latest book five stars. The only other book by Pressfield that I have read is *Hot Gates*, which I could not even bear to put down, and was at first disappointed that *The Profession* did not hold me as well. Perhaps it's because, as a non-techy, female reader, I found paragraphs containing seven to ten acronyms and technical terms nearly incommunicable to me. About a quarter of the way through, I began to read it as if it were an eyewitness account of an actual event, which would actually be impossible as this book is set in the future. But, since Pressfield employs historic present tense in much of the book, I found reading it this way to be helpful and just began to skim over the technical terms and go for the meat, as I would when reading, say, a primary source on a medieval battle. That helped, and when I got to the last third of the book, I was immensely glad that I had persisted as its theme is astonishingly relevant to current frightening directions in U.S. history at a time when the Constitution is decried by many as an outdated document. Having completed the book, I must finally admit that the technical terms do give the narrative the feeling of authenticity, but to avoid spoilers, I will say no more except for the fact that the theme of this book would be a great discussion topic for those interested in politico-military trends.

This is a simply superb novel, an amalgamation of all of Pressfield's ruminations on politics, combat, and his fascination with the ancient world. He has recreated the career of Julius Caesar and the high drama of the fall of the Roman Republic in a frighteningly unstable and all too believable future. The story is driven by allusions to a variety of modern and ancient political and cultural situations, and focuses around the career of a mercenary named James Salter - the Caesar-esque figure - told from the perspective of one of his soldiers. Despite his love for and loyalty to Salter, the main character's growing disillusionment with Salter's aims and the way he carries them out leads to a dramatic denouement, carried out, suitably enough, at the ancient battleground of Gaugamela, where Alexander the Great - another character, like Salter, or Caesar - who did not know the limits of his own power - defeated the Achaemenid king Darius III.
If you enjoyed Gates of Fire, Tides of War, the Afghan Campaign, and Pressfield's other novels, you will be gripped by this.

This is a thriller with a metaphysical bent. Small wonder since this is the author who brought us the Legend of Bagger Vance. This is a story about the future where the world is dominated by large scale mercenary armies (to include land based and air components)

While the plot centers around the emergence of a rouge general as the "savior" of the world, the camaraderie, bond and fellowship of warriors in battle plays a central role along with the concept of honor and dedication to fellow soldiers.

At places it gets very confusing to get the players and the actions sequences straight,the author has done a remarkable job in illustrating the sense of loyalty and honor felt by fighting men and women.

It truly is about the Profession.

I had looked forward to reading Steven Pressfield's books. I've read lots of books on the military from the Ancient Greeks to the present day and I enjoy them. I've also enjoyed novels based on the military ever since I was a teenager (many moons ago.) And lately I've read all the books of Brad Thor and Vince Flynn. I had heard that Pressfield was quite good; but perhaps I should have begun with Pressfield's "Gates of Fire."

There were some good moments in "The Profession," ... some good firefights, some funny moments, etc., but despite the overwhelming amount of detail about weaponry, military vehicles, the command structures of the various mercenary armies roaming the globe in the year 2032 etc., the book just couldn't capture me. I put the book down several times, deciding to give it another try later on, and I did try again three or four times, but I only got as far as Chapter Eight. I then jumped ahead in the book to see if perhaps the story became more interesting later on, only to find more of the same.

Hey, maybe it's just me. The characters never seemed quite real to me. The main character of the book is a soldier named Gent. Gent comes across okay...pretty much like Scott Harvath/Jason Bourne/Dirk Pitt all wrapped into one, but the people he meets seem to be out of a Who's Who. Gent is sent from the battlefield in the Middle East to deliver a folder (or whatever) to the former First Lady, who is in Scotland. On the way, Gent gets into a vehicle where he is shortly joined by the former Secretary of State and winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. Before getting into this vehicle he is driven from the airport to the former First Lady's estate in a private car. After having been driven for quite a while Gent asks the driver how much further it is to the estate. The driver says, "we've been driving on the estate for the past half-hour." Everything and everyone seems blown out of normal proportion. Even Gent's ex-wife, it turns out, was twice on the "short list" for the Pulitzer Prize. It turns out that the former First Lady is out deer hunting, and they are on their way to find her in the woods. From a mile or two away they are shushed and permitted to watch the former First Lady execute her kill through Special Forces10x optical-enhanced binos that deconstruct visible light and IR/UV into digital elements and then recombine and enhance these signals electronically.

In a scene reminiscent of Claude Lorrain's painting "Landscape with Ascanius Shooting the Stag of Sylvia," the former First Lady waits for the stag to turn its head so she can get a clean heart shot from 300 yards. As a former hunter I found this unlikely and perhaps unethical...but maybe it's just me. The shot from just behind the shoulder would probably have hit both lungs and possibly the heart, but death would have been pretty quick and ethical. The shot at the breast from that distance...well, I won't get into it.

Eventually, the hunting party gets back to the mansion. Gent takes umbrage with the former Nobel Peace Prize Laureate for some supposed slight to the former First Lady, and Gent's Southern sense of honor is aroused and Gent calls the former Secretary of State and Nobel Laureate to account. The latter is rescued by the former First Lady. Being in the presence of the former First Lady, Gent realizes he is in the presence of Royalty.

Royalty? I thought we were done with royalty two centuries ago. Well, after more of this kind of thing I just couldn't continue. However, if you like this kind of writing you should enjoy "The Profession."

I have read one of Steven Pressfiled's other books "Killing Rommel" and knew from the beginning that I would like his style of writing.

This is a very thoughtful military thriller of what could possibly happen in the near future. Gamesmanship, strategy, and geopolitics as viewed from the perspective of a warrior on the battlefield and in the halls of power.

If you have the time and inclination, read this book.

Is the only answer Caesar? For every republic that becomes an empire there is only one answer and that is "Yes!"

Is America really that different?

The author writes a compelling, indeed, a page turner of that very question. Do I agree with the validity his possible future? Yes. I hope not but I can see it happening.

You have probably read the books description and other reviews before you got to mine. I see this book as the timeless story of the warrior and the world. The author could just as well written this as an Arthurian story, a western, or WWII. It is modern only in the weapons and the period. If you decide to buy the book you will read what all of face in some form before we die; what are willing to believe in, and if necessary die for.

I've read three Pressfield novels this year: Virtues of War, Gates of Fire, and The Profession. I stalled out on Rommel, but I will probably try to keep reading it after the awe I experienced reading The Profession. One of the things that was so great about Virtues was Alexander's daemon- true or not, an incredibly powerful literary device. This device is not as dominant in The Profession, but plays a role.

I see other reviewers who were disappointed were stopped by too many technical details. I have to admit, at times I felt like I was watching Syriana, a movie that combined The West Wing's too-fast-talking with an encyclopedic knowledge of the Middle East. And I admit, I knew virtually nothing about the M.E. before 9/11. But as so many popular thrillers have moved their settings to that part of the world, I've picked up a lot more. All I can say is, if you are willing to skip over some of the details (this is a reading skill- you don't actually have to understand everything- and it's easier if you're trapped on a 5 hour flight like I was), you'll be rewarded in the end.

This novel isn't just one thing- it's a portrait of the pure warrior, it's tactical, action and thriller, but it's also strategy. If you've enjoyed Orson Scott Card's Bean novels, especially the ones with Achilles, you'll recognize some of that political/war strategy play here.

But probably the MOST impressive thing about this novel is it's set 20 years from now, so it's recognizable, and yet the historic evolutions and corporate mergers Pressfield suggests are SO believable (and this is coming from a guy who lives in the Google/Facebook/marketing/media world), and his characters act and talk like real people would in these new situations that it made me realize that a lot of future/scifi writers really don't believe the world they've created. Pressfield's 2032 is utterly realistic, and his characters believable, which makes it almost feel like you're reading history rather than future. The details of companies, deals and marketing shows incredible depth of multi-disciplinary understanding.

Juxtaposing that with how he brought to life the details and personalities of Alexander and the Spartans in Virtues and Gates tells me that Pressfield has quite a gift and probably incredible research/writing techniques.

Steven Pressfield delivers a gripping thriller chock-full of non-stop action in The Profession. But this is not simply a story of mindless violence, or a roller-coaster ride of good guys chased by or chasing bad guys. This story is more nuanced than a Die Hard film; where good ends and evil begins is far more difficult to distinguish than Hollywood would have it.

Gilbert "Gent" Gentilhomme is a good soldier. He once was a marine, like his beloved commander General James Salter. Now he is a mercenary, serving under Salter. He is a hard-core, no-nonsense soldier, loyal to his men and loyal to his general, who uses him as a sort of mobile fire brigade to carry out important missions he would entrust to no one else. Told through Gentilhomme's eyes, we understand why he loves Salter; we understand and sympathize with the bonds of loyalty that bind the two men.

And never do we know more about what's going on, about what Salter is up to, than Gentilhomme himself knows. We see his war through his eyes and Pressfield utilizes that intense first-person perspective he employed so well when telling the story of Thermopylae. It's refreshing for a change to remain ignorant of the big picture, to wonder, along with the protagonist, what the hell is going on.

Add to this action-filled thriller an element of mysticism and you have a uniquely powerful story that is about far more than the action it describes. It is about loyalty and the limits of loyalty, and about something more important than the loyalty to a specific individual, even one you have served through many ages and many lifetimes, about a greater good - your country.

The Profession takes place in the future - the year 2032 - but it is a believable future, a future drawn coherently and organically from our own world and our own economic and political realities. It is a future that can be easily imagined to exist in our own lifetimes.

I had a difficult time putting this story down. I know you will too. Highly, highly recommended.

THE PROFESSION is like five fantastic novels rolled all into one. Its like riding on top of a speeding hollow-point bullet through the Hindu Kush. And if you could peep through a pin-hole in that hallow point, you very well might get a glimpse of our future. MMS- Mercs make sense. They take away all the restraints and codes that our honorable forces have to deal with today. I can't wait to read ALL the other Steven Pressfield novels!!!!! His statement in the book: "change is never good" will be tattood in my mind forever.

The world has changed. The long-feared dirty bomb has gone off in Long Beach. The battlefield is fought by private armies, hired by who knows who in a confusing milieu of national and private interests. The protagonist, Gent, a merc, is drawn into a web of intrigue woven by his hero, disgraced General Salter.

It's a great read as far as tactics and strategy and a projection of world politics, as well as how different cultures think and react, such as the relationship between the Saudi princes and their different armies, and how that plays out. There's also a question of the possible end of our form of government in such a wild world where Salter has attained the position of top dog by capturing strategic territory. (Unfortunately this happens off-screen.) You will find yourself rooting for him and yet fearing him at the same time. You will also find yourself in some ethical dilemmas, such as Salter's position when ordered to ignore local atrocities.

Pressfield successfully infuses a mythical aspect to "the profession" of merc via a mystical experience and other ruminations on what it means to be a soldier.

There is sometimes too much detail compressed onto the page, such as the machinations of corporations and goverments jockeying for advantage, or superflous details about the airplane Gent is riding in. I found myself skipping over whole sections of this stuff. There is an extended speech by one character regarding his past and how it intersects with another's. While it has bearing on later events, it's really long. While there are some well-drawn characters, the dialogue is sometimes sophomoric and its casual vulgarity sometimes feels forced, making the writing seem uneven and disconnected. There are twists and turns that may leave you jarred. The events near the end are incongruous. Can Salter really be brought down by a silly recording? Why does Gent think so? Remember, Salter is a guy who thinks five steps ahead. Why Gent is even shocked at how Salter deals with his enemies is puzzling as well.

But overall it leaves you with interesting questions about where we may be headed, where you want America to be headed, what patriotism is, and what power should be used for.

Steven Pressfield must be the best researched author I know. His previous books and this newer offering: THE PROFESSION is full of details and nuances that only someone who really digs into his subject matter can realistically put on the page. The novel is a scary and very believable tale of what our future could (heaven help us) look like. Mr. Pressfield wonderfully mixes military details with men at war who are honorable and valiant and in the end do the right thing. I highly recommend it.

If you are used to reading Steven Pressfield's novels, you appreciate his mix of military tactics and historical accuracy. If you are comfortable with this style of writing, be aware that you may not be comfortable with "The Profession". Pressfield structures his near future tale (year 2032, post third Iran-Iraq war, post 11/11 dirty bomb attack on Long Beach California)) in a Tom Clancy mode yet offers a cautionary look at the potential for the continued rise of a privately financed global military industrial complex. Pressfield posits a mercenary leader, a sort of Erik Prince on steroids, attempting to take over the world. There is nonstop action, but many of the characters are lacking. As for the idea of private armies running around, that concept looks a bit dated as our involvement in Iraq winds down, and dealing with the Arab Spring partly replaces our focus on Al Qaeda in the post-Bin Laden world.

Steven Pressfield knows history. He knows it well enough to have written four great historical novels about ancient Greece. In Gates of Fire, he re-imagined the immortal last stand of the 300 Spartans at Thermopylae. In Tides of War, he re-fought the Greeks' 25-year version of the Cold War between Athens and Sparta.

In The Virtues of War, he resurrected Alexander the Great as a luminous but murderous military genius. And in The Afghan Campaign, he depicted the first great conflict between the West and Afghanistan, as Alexander sought to brutally "pacify" the country so he could press on to conquer India.

And now, with The Profession, Pressfield has abandoned history altogether for the future. Or perhaps it's more accurate to call it a warning about the history Americans may well be facing in the near-future.

It is a future easily imagined. American military and Intelligence agencies are increasingly relying on private--and well-paid--contractors to meet their needs. The 2003 invasion of Iraq saw more private "soldiers-for-hire" operating there than soldiers from the regular American military. It was in Iraq that Blackwater became a household word--as much for its wholesale brutality as its effectiveness.

Pressfield imagines a world where America has attained the power of an empire--but has lost the will to put its own sons at risk to defend it. Instead, it turns to the privately-funded armies of multi-national corporations. And the largest of these mercenary armies is Force Insertion--whose leader is a cashiered United States Marine general named James Salter.

Salter is a combination of several former Pressfield characters. He has the far-seeing strategic genius of the Athenian general, Alcibiades. And he has the charismatic authority of Alexander the Great, worshipped by the soldiers he commands.

He is, in short, a highly attractive character, and it's easy to understand why so many people--soldiers and civilians--want to see him victorious.

But there is a dark purpose behind his every maneuver. Again like Alcibiades, he's driven by rage and pride to avenge himself on those he blames for his disgrace and exile.

And he has an audacious plan to make this a reality: Seize the oilfields of Saudi Arabia--fifty years' worth of crude--and offer these as a gift to his fellow Americans. In exchange, he will return home---as an American Caesar/President.

Standing firmly behind him for most of the novel is its narrator, Gilbert "Gent" Gentilhomme. A former Marine-turned-mercenary himself, Gentilhomme seeks a place of honor and purpose in a world he sees as generally lacking both. He sees Salter as a second father and warrior ideal--a courageous, brilliant, true patriot wronged by those in power who despise such qualities.

It is only when Gent comes to realize the terrible danger Salter poses to the Republic that he moves from devoted follower to would-be assassin. At the climax of the novel, he faces off with his longtime hero, in an exchange containing more blunt truths about America today than many readers may want to accept.

"The United States is an empire," says Salter. "But the American people lack the imperial temperament. We're not legionnaires, we're mechanics. In the end the American Dream boils down to what? `I'm getting mine and the hell with you.'"

Salter has enough of a sense of history to realize he is ultimately fighting a losing war to preserve the country he loves: "The very ascension of someone like me--a mercenary general plucked from the provinces--is history's sign that the nation has lost its way and is struggling desperately, merely to hang on."

Most reviews of The Profession have focused on its depiction of futuristic techno-war: Holographic, hand-held phones. Cloaking technology to conceal high-end weaponry from satellite eyes-in-the-sky. Tactical nuclear weapons that are commonly possessed and plausibly used.

So, yes, like a Tom Clancy's novel, The Profession can be read by those who simply want an exciting page-turner. But, unlike Clancy's thrillers, this is a book with an urgent warning for its audience: A warning that what we are today threatens to lead us to the edge of an abyss--in which there is no freedom, and from which there is no return.

I have enjoyed the work of Steven Pressfield, especially Gates of Fire, but I have a mixed response to this book.

Successful elements of the book include:

1. I had a hard time putting the book down - it was well paced and kept the readers interest.
2. There was a good mix of narrative, battle, and future technology in the book - none overshadowed the other.
3. The concept was imaginative and intriguing - the growth of non-state military actors with non-terroristic motivation.

Less successful aspects include the following:

1. The book is somewhat confusing, especially after the mid-section of the book. Some of the intricacies were unnecessary and bogged down the reader, even one with 27 years of military experience.
2. The ending was not successful, period. I cannot say anything more without ruining the book for potential readers, but it was anti-climactic and unbelievable.
3. The "mystical" element of the book centering on the timeless nature of warfare and the warrior spirit (literally) was not sufficiently developed and not fully coherent. It could have been omitted entirely without detriment to the larger story.
4. It was unclear by the end of the story as to whether the author intended the reader to respect the military profession. I think he meant to extol the military virtues of loyalty, courage, obedience, and the like, but the final 1/4 of the book definitely headed in a different direction that was inconsistent with the trajectories plotted earlier in the book and played to anti-military stereotypes. I understand the notion of a cautionary tale, but the same Marines who undertook the protection of innocent and victimized peoples earlier in the book are later depicted as assassins killing reporters, former politicians, legislators, and the like. The change in direction qualifies as conceptual confusion on the part of the author, not just a plot twist.
5. For those familiar with the author's work, this book was much more like Tides of War than Gates of Fire in that it could have benefited from fewer speeches, less machinations, and fewer changes of venue - in sum, more focus and editing.

My only regret is that Steven Pressfield can't somehow pump out a new book every couple of months. The Profession is as solid as any book he has written until now, and one of the best books about modern (and not so modern) warfare I have read yet. I couldn't put it down. Outstanding.

Is it too soon to say that Pressfield is a national treasure?

I have enjoy many of Pressfield's other books, so I have high hopes for this triller. It was an slow read book, that didn't help to keep you reading faster.

If you love future trillers you may like this book, but be aware that it's a sad view of the future.

I really loved this book. The storyline kept me intrigued throughout--without giving away any spoilers, it's set in the future in the ultimate political what-if scenario.

If you like this book, you'll also love Gates of Fire by Pressfield. Another great read! Keep 'em coming!

I liked everything about it. The storyline. The characters. It's not like Pressfield's other books (which I liked, too). From start to finish I was very intrigued and anxiously awaiting the unfolding of the story. Creative, thought provoking, fast paced, and I would highly recommend it.

The basic concept of The Profession was very interesting to me and, as a result, I picked it up ahead of the others in my mountain of books to read. The book takes place in 2032 in which Force Insertion is the world's mercenary monopoly, and its leader is the disgraced former US Marine General, James Salter, who was stripped of his command by the president for nuclear saber-rattling with the Chinese and banished to the Far East. Salter, a master military and political strategist, deftly seizes huge oil and gas fields which ultimately enables him to be the most powerful man in the world. His endgame is to take vengeance on those responsible for his exile and to come home as Commander in Chief. The major conflict in the book's concept arises when Salter's most loyal foot soldier makes it his mission to take out his mentor and save the US from self-destruction.

The concept is a good one. However, Pressfield's execution of this concept was so filled with such detailed information about high tech weaponry that interfered too much with the plot, with weakly developed characters that come off more as action figure heroes than real people and with such cliche-ridden unrealistic dialogue that after reading a little more than half of the book I decided to surrender in the battle to try to finish it.

Pressfield struck gold with his first book and since then has failed to maintain the excitement and realism he showed then. In my view, he is the Orson Welles of fiction--starting out with a great first effort and never living up to it.

The novel starts off with a lot of pointless shooting and then quickly lapses into a patchwork of equally pointless action punctuated with excruciatingly dull narrative and childish dialogue before the plot finally emerges. This trend, compounded with completely lifeless characters, continues until the tedium terminates in a ridiculous and scarcely identifiable conclusion. Pressfield really ought to be ashamed of this one.

The world described in this book never existed will never exist and simply cannot exist either politically or economically. This world can only exist in the minds of people incapable of analysis on any meaningful level, do not know human psychology and are suffering from the Hollywood syndrome.

This stand-alone novel by the author Steven Pressfield is in my opinion a fantastic futurity story.
Story-telling is of a superb quality from the author, and all the characters come splendidly to life within this tale of war, politics, greed and loyalty.
Also is this story very well written and is the storyline perfectly worked out, and thus making this book such a treat to read.
The story is set in the year 2032, and this futurity tale will show us how the world may look like, and how people and/or countries alike will behave and act between themselves, when important assets, sources and governments are under threat from a powerful leader of men.
The book is divided into seven parts, and the first sets off in August 2032 with the Third Iran-Iraq War fully raging, and in where our main character and narrator, Gilbert "Gent" Gentilhomme, and his men are in the thick of the action, while being supervised and directed under the overall General Command of former US Marine General James Salter, and his merc Force Insertion.
What will follow in the rest of the book is a tour-de-force for Gent to serve and obey his mentor and leader General Salter, but ultimately Gent will have to make to most difficult decision of his life if he wants to preserve the world from chaos, and at the same time to try to save his honour, integrity and his identity.
Really recommended, for this is a tremendous story which is written in a great style and brought to us with verve, and that's why I call this book: "An Absorbing Futurity Political War Story"!

Generally speaking, spy/war/espionage novels are among my favorites. I was intrigued by the premise of the book, that being the future war in the Middle East and thought this sounded like a great book. However, I was put off from the beginning by the over-the-top characters and the minute details of battle. Every character seemed to get worse as I read on until I finally stopped roughly half way. I stopped and started the book several times determined to give it a fair shake, but it is just not my cup of tea.

If your are into rough, tough Rambo characters and highly detailed battle descriptions, you will like this book. Sorry, I just could not get into it.