I've talked before about posthumous books and how much I dislike them. And who controls an author's work after he/she dies. And in that discussion I mentioned that since his death in 2013, Tom Clancy has basically been used as a brand name. His estate and/or Ubisoft, along with Big Publishing have put out a bunch of books with his name on them despite that he never wrote them and had been dead for years prior. It's still going on as this book is slated for release this spring:
.jpg)
On top of that, Clancy is listed as a producer for TV shows featuring his work when, again, he's been dead for 10 1/2 years. It's seems crazy. And then it gets crazier!
Someone on Bluesky mentioned this book:
.jpg)
At first I just thought it was another of those "official" books using his name. But when you look at it the description is no description and instead of Penguin or MacMillan or some other big publisher, it's through Amazon.
So I'm pretty sure that's just a knockoff. Which isn't really surprising. I mean when you make your author a brand it's pretty easy then to create knockoffs using the same brand. It happens all the time with toys, electronics, watches, clothes, and so on. Why shouldn't it happen with authors?
Perhaps seeing a couple of reviews saying this isn't a real Tom Clancy book, the description was updated as follows:
Prior to his passing in 2013, author Tom Clancy wrote 19 best-selling books. He co-wrote another dozen or so books with 7 other authors. In the following years 36 more authors have written almost 100 more books. Hundreds of writers have created two dozen video games, several tv shows, and streaming series.
This book, “Between the Lines” is a new kind of genre for the Tom Clancy Universe: Historical Fiction. It takes almost all of the books, movies, tv shows, and every mission in every video game, and references the minor characters and missions in the background of real world events. It’s a new story with new characters taking place between the lines of the rest of the Tom Clancy Universe.
Operation Desert Shield, Desert Storm, Somalia, the Rwandan genocide, and so many other real events now tie together between the lines in the books, games, all the missions in the different games, and movies. See how one of being a hostage changed Erwin Osterman’s life (Rainbow 6 novel, and original game). Find out why Nikoladze was more than just a Georgian oil baron (Splinter Cell). Was Colonel Charles Bliss always an egomaniac (The Division)? How did historic floods in Mississippi ripple into characters and events? What was 911 like for some characters? What effect did Hurricane Katrina have on characters and events?
This story is a new stand alone in a world that crosses the Tom Clancy Universe with the real world, and it does so by reading between the lines and referencing hundreds of secondary and tertiary characters and events.
It also adds a fake publisher with "Turner Book Writers." Sounds legit. Basically this new description is saying it's fan fiction, which again you're not supposed to profit off of unless you have the permission of the property holder.
Just to prove it's not an isolated case, here's another one:
.jpg)
That one is done a little better--except the cover--but still I'm pretty sure that's not an officially licensed one. It is pretty ridiculous that this is what it's come to in publishing, "official" and "unofficial" works trading on a dead man's name. It's ghoulish and really I'm not sure who's worse: the big publishers who collude to do this or small-time scammers copying them.
This is the rare case where I don't really fault Amazon. I mean when the legitimate publishers use "Tom Clancy Blah Blah Blah" for titles, how is some flunky in India supposed to know that some scammer's "Tom Clancy Blah Blah Blah" isn't legit? You can't expect them to actually read through all the details or read the books themselves. Ironically by making Clancy a brand, his estate/Ubisoft/Big Publishing have made it easier for scammers--and harder for readers to determine what is "official" and what is "unofficial."
His estate should be ashamed, but I suppose they're too busy counting the money to really care.
2 comments:
You would think his estate would catch those and sue. But like you said, too busy counting the money.
They really should be more honest. It's just like the click bait. Once I find out the truth, then I don't trust them anymore. It occurred to me that they could've done that with the 3 prequel books to Dune. They could've put Frank Herbert's name on there in big letters, and the real authors in tiny print. Maybe it would've sold more, but I appreciate and respect that the publisher was honest.
Post a Comment