Great book, real life action hero's. A must buy for anyone interested in SF community and what brave men will do for Country and Brotherhood.

This was a fairly good book, but I expected more from this true story. The author makes some of his SAS counterparts seem like cowards and certainly not professional soldiers. This might have been his view of the truth but it seems a little out of the norm.

Overall good read.

This book is great mainly due to the dangerous background of the mission. Ryan survived for about ten days in a hostile environment while he had to deal with coldness, exhaustion, injuries and starvation. Therefore it is an account of an incredible surviving. Respect for Ryan. His book is a must-read !

Not the tale of an inhumanly capable and faultless warrior and all the more compelling for that. Very interesting and informative, a more realistic treatment of events that the McNabb book, or at least more believable.

Not the tale of an inhumanly capable and faultless warrior and all the more compelling for that. Very interesting and informative, a more realistic treatment of events that the McNabb book, or at least more believable.

Imagine driving two hundred miles, a long boring journey no doubt. Seems like ages...

Imagine walking it with no food, little water, and freezing temperatures that had already cost the lives of two of the SAS patrol troopers. That's what Ryan did when he journeyed to the Syrian border when the infamous Bravo Two Zero mission fell apart due to bad luck, poor intelligence, and below zero temperatures.

The famous - or infamous - Bravo Two Zero mission was about eight SAS troops that where sent behind enemy lines during the first gulf war. They were compromised early on, and with a fire fight early on, and no communication from headquarters, the men had to evade and escape. Four of the men were captured and tortured in an Iraqi sess-pit of a gaol. Three of the men died, one shot in combat and two died from hypothermia. Only one escaped. "The One That Got Away" is his story...

Ryan had to endure a terrific journey on foot of 200 miles to get to the Syrian border. Along the way, he drills (kills) a few Iraqi soldiers, or guards. He even breaks one's neck, told in squirm-inducing detail:

"When the second man saw me, his eyes widened in terror and he instantly began to run. But somehow, with a surge of adrenalin, I flew after him, jumped on him and brought him down with my legs locked round his hips. I got one arm round his neck in a judo hold and stretched his chin up. There was a muffled crack, and he died instantaneously."

Ryan's spirit comes from a very deep well, and with his SAS training, he pushes on even when he is on the verge of complete exhaustion (towards the end, he starts hallucinating).

Andy NcNab's "Bravo Two Zero" book is about McNab's torture at the hands of his Iraqi captives. Ryan's story is also about brutal pain, but his is self-inflicted as he desperately seeks to escape capture (he loses all his toe nails due to the 200 mile hike, he is on the verge of getting frost bite, he drinks radioactive water, and to finish off bad luck, he nearly gets lynched when he finally gets to Syria).

Ryan comes across as a methodical man. He plays by the book (he doesn't journey during the day - an SAS no-no). His methodical thinking about getting things right sometimes makes the other members of the SAS patrol seem incompetent. That seems a tad unfair (though as the author, and with the slight fact that he was actually there, he may have a right to say what he wants). I think the real incompetence in the Bravo Two Zero mission was the lack of intelligence from the top brass and not the men on the ground (why should you have the cold terrain as the enemy as well as the Iraqis when it needn't be? Shouldn't Intelligence know that the temperatures in Iraqi can drop really low?)

Even if you not a fan of Special Forces you will find this book riveting. People who like endurance will also love this book - for example if you are one of them loons who think climbing Everest in a pair of flip-flops is a great day out, then this book is also for you.

Seriously, I would recommend reading this, especially now when the second Gulf war is still simmering. It gives you a realistic journey on combat that you rarely get with the media. I also recommend McNab's "Bravo Two Zero" as it gives an account of his capture and torture.

this is a fantastic book. the SAS are phenominal. this mission was flawed, and this book is a testiment to the hardcore training and personnel of the SAS. however, to address another reviewer's comments, i fully disagree with the assessement that the SAS are vastly superior to Delta Force. firstly, for a number of years ive had close affiliations with the special operations world, and personally know a great number of both Delta operators and SAS soldiers and have conversed with them greatly on training, tactics, and so forth. no arguement that both are superior to the SEALs, who have always been overrated and hollywood. but the fact is, it is a complete and utter fallacy to state that Delta dont have the training to survive the way this SAS team did. thats absurd. first, delta's founder, charlie beckwith, a green beret who spent time with the SAS, used the SAS unit structure and training criteria as a template for Delta. second, Delta and the SAS are two of the most closely aligned units in the world, with frequent exchanges, putting Delta operators through SAS training and vice versa, as well as executing missions together from time to time. bottom line, Delta is the US military's MOST elite, MOST well trained, and MOST combat experienced unit of the last 25 years. Delta operators and SAS soldiers dont bother with the comparison themselves, because they're of the same caliber and embrace each other. further, the reason Delta has never done what mcnab's team did is because they've never been in the situation, which by the way was caused by MISTAKES. now im not bashing the SAS, even the most elite units make mistakes, Delta has as well. ultimately, these men survived through a undominable will, and escape, evasion and survival tactics, and to assume that Delta does not have this training is ludicrous, not to mention wholly untrue.

i think this book is very good.

i was in the SAS and i fought against the IRA.

Fact or fiction,in my opinion lots of fiction. Who am I to tell,well I had some questions after having read, The One That Got Away ,as well as B2Z by McNab.The questions have all been answered by,The Real B2Z(Asher),Eye of the Storm(Ratcliffe) and finally in the very good SOLDIER FIVE by Mike Coburn, the fifth surviving member of the patrol.

Well, for all of you who think the American Delta Force or U.S. Seals are the best, think again. This book can prove to you why the SAS is the worlds best fighting force. When I read this book, i thought that if you graduate from the SAS, you are one of the best MEN on the PLANET. I have read countless books on military spec ops and when have the Delta Force done this, that's right they haven't, they haven't got the training to. Well if you want a story of a man suffering from food deprivation, hypothermia, adn total weakness and still can kill what comes in his way, well this is for you.

If you are a fan of Bravo Two Zero by Andy McNab then I highly recommend that you pick this one. This is the story that Bravo Two Zero didn't go into. This is the story of raw courage and great determination as told by the one man who went through misery and hell to finish his mission. Chris Ryan's story is something that you have never read before. Use your imagination here. This man walks from Iraq to Syria after his mission falls apart during the Gulf War. Mr. Ryan covered details that I was hoping he would. His feelings during his hellish trek. His thoughts when he was hiding and came within inches of capture. The feelings of the rest of the team that also made it home and how the special operations world benefited from his experience. He also touched base on how it affected life at home. That is something that every service man faces. Thanks Chris for sharing that portion of your life. This is a book that you want to read, especially if you served in the Gulf. I put it on the shelf next to my copy of Bravo Two Zero. This is no Rambo story, so if you are looking for blood and guts look for another book. This is a story of courage and determination.

This book together with Bravo Two Zero, both written under pseudonyms are spiffing yarns and deserve a high scoring for that. However they misrepresent themselves as fact which they are not.

Both stories are in the literal sense incredible. They have been thoughroughly debunked as highly embellished accounts of the actual events by a number of reliable sources, including Peter Ratcliffe the Regimental Sergeant Major of 22 SAS at the time of the war. In Ratcliffe's book 'The Eye of The Storm' written under his own name he points out a number of 'issues' with both books and the fact that neither concurr in a number of important areas with the very detailed de-brief of the men after the operation.

If you want fact not fiction buy Radcliff's book as well as 'SAS Operation Oman' by Colonel Tony Jeapes former SAS Commanding Officer during the Oman campaign of the early to mid 1970s.

Whith all respects to Chris Ryan and the SAS whom both I admire, I beleive that Chris Ryan story is the valid one based on actual experience in special ops, Andy Mc Nab's story comes out of a comic book compared to Ryan account, I understand Ryan attacks on Mc Nab and I beleive he is right, What amazed me more in this whole story is that while the coalition was fighting this war in the Gulf not far away from them similar commando's where going with their secret wars for more than 10 years. I mean guys with more than 100 missions behind enemy lines and the worst of them, the ones the free world is fighting now, Guys who have real kills that counts in hundreds in one mission, guys who where mutilated in prisons and came back fighting, not writing books and living a trauma after 8 days of E&E. Those real secret warriors who will remain in secrecy with their stories and amazing experience, are the ones I call the real professionals.

I read this book right after reading Bravo Two Zero by Andy Mcnab. Both books are a tale of survival, all be it in different ways.

Chris Ryan sure has a good story to tell, he was the only member of the Bravo Two Zero patrol to escape Iraq. He evaded capture for many days on very little food or water. He battled fatigue, extreme weather and many many Iraqis. He also battled himself, he didn't let his body give in while his mind was still working, he fought for every step and his story is truly one of courage and self determination.

The book does focus alot on Ryan's own 'heroism', he obviously feels he should have been the commander of the patrol and expresses this many times through the book, in the end this gets a bit tired and old. He seems to think that the problems the patrol encountered would have been just fine if he was in command, it seems a bit pretentious as it continues.

There are alot of inconsistencies between the books and it is upto the reader who he should choose to believe. I personally think this book was written to ride on the success of the first book by raising questions that will never be answered.

However it is a must read for any one with an interest in the SAS, 2 Stars

Those who are interested in military operations and war history should not miss The One That Got Away. Chris Ryan's escape from Iraq is without a doubt one of the most notable events of the Gulf War. Even people who are not particularly interested in military matters will be touched and inspired by Ryan's account of his harrowing trek through the desert. The ultimate theme that TOTGA leaves with readers is that with strength of spirit, steadfast endurance, and sheer determination a person can overcome seemingly insurmountable odds. It is a lesson that people from all walks of life can benefit from. Chris Ryan survived a hopeless battle against enemy forces. He walked through the desert for over a week, covering 180 miles in a region full of people who would kill him. And he did it in freezing cold weather, going without food or water for many days. After he made it out, he still had to contend with the trauma of his ordeal and the deep feelings of guilt over certain decisions he had to make. Although he never explicitly states it, one might get the impression that Ryan feels a great deal of personal responsibility for the death of Vince Phillips, a fellow member of the Bravo Two Zero patrol who Ryan was forced to leave behind.

Certain issues have been raised regarding the authenticity of the accounts of the Bravo Two Zero mission that have been presented by Chris Ryan and patrol leader Andy McNab (who presented his account in his book, Bravo Two Zero). A comparison of the two accounts reveal a number of inconsistencies. There have been accusations of exaggeration and distortion of the facts made against McNab and Ryan. Those interested in an outside opinion of what truly happened might want to pick up a book entitled "The Real Bravo Two Zero", written by Michael Asher (an ex-SAS member/expert in Arab culture) who went to Iraq years after the war to research the Bravo Two Zero mission on location. Although his research is very thorough, he seems much too willing to accept the accounts of Iraqi witnesses as completely honest while holding McNab and Ryan's accounts in constant suspicion. It is interesting to note that the evidence he uncovered does debunk some aspects of Andy McNab's account. One example is McNab's farfetched claim that Bravo Two Zero managed to kill between 200 and 250 enemy soldiers throughout the ordeal. Chris Ryan never makes such an outrageous assumption in his book, and even Michael Asher has to lend more credibility to Ryan's account at the end of the day. In all fairness, those who were not there can only speculate to a certain extent. There's really no use further arguing about it unless someone out there is capable of reading the minds of the surviving members of Bravo Two Zero. My curiosity was caught by all the sensationalism surrounding the BTZ mission, and in my personal opinion, the truth probably lies somewhere between Chris Ryan's account and Michael Asher's conclusions (leaning closer to Chris Ryan). Whatever the truth of Bravo Two Zero is, Chris Ryan's amazing feat of survival and escape cannot be disputed. The fact remains that he walked through hostile territory in horrible conditions (that caused two other members of his team to die from exposure) for 7 days and 8 nights, and he managed to survive enemy attack, hypothermia, exhaustion, and starvation. These cold hard facts alone make an amazing story even without any of the small details that are in dispute. Chris Ryan is a man of amazing will, and his accomplishment should be forever remembered in the history of military special operations.