Terrorism is at the heart of Patriot Games. CIA officer Jack Ryan stumbles upon a plot to kidnap the Prince and Princess of Wales and their child. Although seriously wounded in the attempt, Ryan thwarts the kidnapping and saves the royal couple.

A small Marxist terrorist group that has split from the Irish Republican Army is responsible for the failed kidnapping. To punish Ryan for interfering, this group decides to kill his family and make the murders look like the work of the IRA, thus discrediting the organization and allowing the splinter group to supplant the IRA in leading a terrorism campaign against the British. Throughout the novel, Clancy displays a graphic revulsion against terrorists. IRA members come off as frauds and hypocrites, and their American supporters are unmasked, not only as frauds, but as fools. Other terrorist organizations are portrayed as appallingly cruel and despicable...