"The Berets" picks up the "Brotherhood of War" series about two months after the end of "The Colonels". It starts out with Green Beret Lt. Tom Ellis picking up the body of a member of his 'A'-Team that was involved in the disasterous Bay of Pigs invasion. From there, we are introduced to two new Special Forces recruits; Geoff Creig, Lt. Col Lowell Creig's nephew; the other is Karl Wagner, an East German Army deserter. Also we are shown one of the first operations in Vietnam, where Maj. Phil Parker is sent as a pilot and advisor. This book really picked up the pace from the last novel, which was interesting but too slow. "The Berets" was very interesting, especially since President John F. Kennedy plays such a major role in this book. Also something I found interesting was the fight over the wearing of the green berets. There was a huge contraversy with Army brass and the Special Forces leaders about wearing it. It sounds a lot like what happened a few years ago when the Army was ordered that all soldiers will wear a beret. Most of the soldiers I knew did not (and to this day still do not) like the thing. And the Green Berets very very highly upset when everybody got them. It was funny that this book brought up such a similer fight. This book also has a very dramatic ending where readers must say good bye to a favorite character. Over all this is a much better book, and now I am looking forward to the next book.

They were the chosen ones and the ones who chose to be the best. Never before had the United States given so select a group of fighting men such punishing preparation. Now they were heading for their ultimate test of skill and nerve and sacrifice, in a war unlike any they or their country had ever fought before, in a land that most of America still knew nothing about, Vietnam.

This is a weak series of books, as far as war novels go. They're more like an ongoing soap opera than gritty war drama (think "General Hospital" as a novel, only set between 1945-1970 and revolving around the Army instead of Port Charles.) The characters are given plenty of time to evolve, and some do (Lowell, in particular.) But it all seems too phony. A good war novel should have some truth in it, but it is in short supply with these books.