The Charm School is a 1988 spy thriller novel by American author Nelson DeMille, set in the Soviet Union.[1][2]
In a 2010 FBI investigation, striking similarities were noted between the real life case and DeMille's book.[3]
Plot
The novel's hero is U.S Air Force Colonel Sam Hollis, a former F-4 Phantom Fighter pilot[4] who fought in Vietnam. Hollis was shot down during the war[5] and was disqualified from flying. Later on he was transferred to US Air Force Intelligence and served as an intelligence officer and air attaché at the American embassy in Moscow. A young American MBA graduate driving in the Russian countryside encounters another American, claiming to have escaped a secret Russian POW camp—leaving numerous others behind who are still captive and being used to "Americanize" Soviet spies. When the information reaches Hollis, he begins to investigate and discovers a secret[which?] so dangerous that might cost him his life.
References
- ^ Clarity, James F. (3 July 1988). "In Short: Fiction". The New York Times.
- ^ "Book Reviews, Sites, Romance, Fantasy, Fiction".
- ^ Perez, Even (Jun 29, 2010). "Alleged Russian Spies: A Novel Idea?". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on July 2, 2010. Retrieved December 24, 2019.
- ^ Nelson DeMille, The Charm School, Warner Books, 1988, page 67: "There were times when he wished he were in his old F-4 Phantom with nothing more to worry about than MiGs and missiles converging on his radar screen".
- ^ Nelson DeMille, The Charm School, Warner Books, 1988, page 110: "I spent four years at the Air Force Academy. I graduated and went on to fighter school. I did a tour in 'Nam in 1968, then another in 1972. That's when i was shot down over Haiphong".
Novels by Nelson DeMille | |
|---|---|
| Joe Ryker |
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| John Sutter |
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| Paul Brenner |
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| John Corey |
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| Stand-alone |
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| Film adaptations |
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