Looking into the art of war and peace, as seen through the eyes of a retired Marine general, a fourth volume in the Commanders series offers important insights into the practice of leadership, chronicling the evolution of the U.S. Marine Corps through the Vietnam era, through the revolution of the 1970s and 1980s, to the new realities of the military in the post-Cold War, post-September 11th era.

Called out of retirement to serve as National Security Advisor to the president, Jack Ryan, with the help of CIA officers John Clark and Domingo Chavez, must prepare the untested president to meet the challenges of a new world order.

Both the Americans and the Soviets commence an intense naval search when a trusted and skilled Soviet naval officer defects, using the USSR's most valuable nuclear submarine as his escape vehicle.