The Charm School by Nelson DeMille (Epub)

Description

“True master” and #1 New York Times bestselling author Nelson DeMille presents a chilling, relentlessly suspenseful story of Cold War espionage perfect for fans of the hit FX show The Americans (Dan Brown).

On a dark road deep inside the Russian woods at Borodino, a young American tourist picks up an unusual passenger with an explosive secret: an U.S. POW on the run from “The Charm School,” a sinister operation where American POWs teach young KBG agents how to be model U.S. citizens. Their goal? To infiltrate the United States undetected. With this horrifying conspiracy revealed, the CIA sets an investigation in motion, and three Americans–an Air Force officer, an embassy liaison, a CIA chief–pit themselves against the country’s enemies in a high-powered game of international intrigue.

User’s Reviews

From Library Journal The sustained action of this chilling vision of modern Russia starts with a young American tourist phoning the U.S. embassy in Moscow to report an unusual encounter with a U.S. Air Force major in the forest near Borodino. The tourist then vanishes and the officer is identified as a Vietnam MIA. Attaches Sam Hollis and Lisa Rhodes eventually uncover a spy school graduating several hundred “Americans” each year and staffed by an unwilling faculty made up of American servicemen missing from Vietnam. The blockbuster ends after a maverick CIA agent pulls off a hair-raising escape to the West, carrying proof of the camp’s existence. John North, L.R.C., Ryerson Polytechnical Inst., TorontoCopyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. –This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition. From Publishers Weekly This highly charged espionage thriller gets off to a stunning start. On the road from Smolensk to Moscow, an American tourist, Gregory Fisher, is confronted by a man on the run: an Air Force major who was shot down over appears from his hotel and soon turns up dead, the victim of a suspicious car crash. Intelligence officer Sam Hollis, press attache Lisa Rhodes and CIA bureau chief Seth Alevy must discover for themselves what is going on at the Charm School. They must also decide whether public revelation of a horrifying KGB operation during the new era of glasnost might not damage American/Soviet relations. In this exciting, polemic novel, DeMille (Word of Honor) limns an authentic portrait of Russian society. He conveys the claustrophobic life of American Embassy officials impossibly restricted in movement, and he creates spirited American agents who dodge and spar wittily with coarse KGB men. Once DeMille brings readers into the Charm School itself, however, he cannot sustain the magic that has propelled the narrative for two-thirds of its generous length. At this point, the plot becomes predictable, and the finale differs little from standard adventure escapes, with a cruel resolution to boot. Still, it’s riveting reading most of the way. 100,000 first printing; $150,000 ad/promo. Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. –This text refers to an alternate kindle_edition edition.

Reviews from Amazon users, collected at the time the book is getting published on UniedVRG. It can be related to shiping or paper quality instead of the book content:

⭐ I just finished reading The Charm School for the fourth or fifth time. It’s, perhaps, my favorite novel, especially within the genre of espionage and Cold War.The book has a ring of both accuracy and plausibility. The characters are well defined, but not so much so that you can’t use your imagination to round them out. The story is well drawn and suspenseful, yet not so convoluted that you lose the story line and chain of events.I have read all of Mr. DeMille’s books, and while I have thoroughly enjoyed most of them, this one stands out because the characters are not as sarcastic and “snarky” as the characters in his recent novels.My only regret about The Charm School is that no one has ever picked it for a movie.

⭐ Overall, this book is terrible. The beginning is very engaging and I couldn’t stop turning the pages. The middle is long and full of stereotypes and cardboard characters, and the end is laughable. I only finished because I don’t like to give up once I start reading a book. My advice is to read the beginning (the scenes with Gregory Fisher), then close the book.The good:-The first section: It’s engaging and tense.The bad:-The cardboard cutout characters, especially the women who are basically walking stereotypes-The portrayal of pretty much every Soviet character as cartoon evil (more stereotypes)-The completely ridiculous ending, which would have resulted in World War III in real life, as opposed to the hero and heroine flying off into the sunset-Other ridiculous parts in the middle where the hero and heroine miraculously survive, there’s a limit to how much readers can suspend disbelief

⭐ Best DeMille book I’ve read, and I’ve read most of them. Full of interesting things, both about Soviet Russia and spies in general. The plot is very suspenseful, exciting, unpredictable and believable. Even the characters are believable and likeable. I like DeMille as a writer but get annoyed when he writes with excessive sarcasm and “smart aleck” comments, particularly with the John Corey novels. I like the humor but he tends to go overboard with it. Fortunately this one doesn’t have that characteristic — dialog was realistic for the setting. Particularly liked the ending.

⭐ The depth of thinking, the delineated characterizations of manymajor figures in one story, the descriptive that have you smelling the chimney smoke, the unwashed, the barrenness of the land the almost disgusting opulence of the Kremlin Square vs the most base peasant existence, the incredible page turning story…..the education of landmarks and cityscapes. Just use this as the textbook in Russian history classes and give students a true, vital, glued to the pages lesson they can carry their entire lives. Every student WILL finish this assignment. They will ignore their smartphones for long periods as they feed their brains and souls. Along w Word of Honor, one of DeMille’s finest hours.

⭐ This is not my favorite De Mille novel, in fact, I’m quite disappointed. This book was recommended to me and perhaps I expected a bit too much. There are entire sections of the book that have horrible pacing where it seems that the author is more interested in showing us everything he has learned about life in the Soviet Union rather than telling us a story. When the pace does pick up, it becomes mired and restrained by ridiculous dialogue that violates one of Elmore Leonard’s hallowed rules of writing: it sounds like writing. I had to force myself to finish the novel though I felt quite done with the book some 2/3 of the way through it. And then, I experienced another huge let-down close to the ending. I’m looking forward to reading something else by another author.

⭐ I love DeMille and love his books. This is an older title, but I have just gotten around to reading it. It is set in the Cold War era when there was a Commie under every bush. All I could think of while reading this was “Moose and Squirrel must die!” I loved everything about this book except the ending. It’s not that the ending was bad, it just wasn’t the ending I was expecting or hoping. I always get engrossed in my reading and start relating to the characters and story. This ending left me cold; fell flat. I could see it ending this way in the real world, but not in the world of fiction – or at least DeMille’s fiction. Others may disagree and I am sure they will and you will have your own opinion. I wanted a decisive, vengeful ending – it wasn’t there. Nevertheless, I recommend this book as it is compelling and entertaining.

⭐ In my opinion, this book was one of DeMille’s best. I don’t know how I had never read it before as it was written many years ago and yet, big DeMille fan that I am, I read it only a few weeks ago. Maybe it was the title that made me think I wouldn’t be interested. DeMille’s books often are set in New York and specifically Long Island so I may have taken the title literally and assumed it actually took place at a charm school, perhaps on the Gold Coast or in someplace like Garden City. I couldn’t have been more wrong! It involves American Embassy and, yes, intelligence personnel, and takes place in Russia back in the days of the Cold War, when the KGB ruled by fear and people mysteriously disappeared in the night, never to be heard from again. The discovery of a secret operation in Russia is incredible yet plausible as is the resolution, given the politics and international relations considerations. As always with DeMille books, it is well researched and the characters well developed so that you feel present in the action. I highly recommend this books for lovers of intrigue and edge of your seat thrillers.

⭐ This novel is based on action in and around Moscow in the later 1980’s. A young lone American tourist en route to Moscow by car stops at Borodino and encounters a man claiming to have escaped from a Russian spy school. This school is staffed by American piolets captured during the Vietnam war . He reports this via telephone to the American embassy and is subsequently killed. The investigation and search for the spy school are the basis of this novel which portrays conditions and life in Russia during this period. There is plenty of action and suspense to keep you reading into the night. Very well written and very enjoyable book.

⭐ I love this author and am sorry to say I used this novel as a sleep aid. I rarely got through a whole chapter before falling asleep. I felt the characters were too one sided, the interaction between the two main characters was unrealistic and the last minute escapes were repetitive. The one thing I enjoyed was the descriptions of Russia the way it was (it is set in 1980s) and the premise is interesting and imaginative. There are so many more books by this author which deserve your attention. I would skip this one.

⭐ This book was one, giant thrill ride from the first page to the very last. I have read many of DeMille’s books, but this one, is by far, the best. You are taken deep into Russian territory and learn a lot about espionage, the Motherland and human nature. I would highly recommend this book if you like fast-paced drama, quick wit and well-developed characters. You will be charmed by Hollis and you will also wonder how close to the truth this book really is. The Charm School, itself, is frightening and it makes you wonder…

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