Book Description
In the no-holds-barred tradition of The Valachi Papers and Wiseguy, this insider expose of mob boss Sam Giancana, written by his brother Chuck and his godson Sam, blows the lid off some of the Mafia's most shocking secrets. Includes stunning first-time revelations concerning the deaths of JFK, Marilyn Monroe, and RFK. 16 pages of photographs.
Customer Reviews:
Great overview of the heyday of the Mob/Outift - CIA link to Kennedy's Assassination.......2007-05-19
To tell you the truth, I heard about this book for a few years before I found it in a Goodwill bookstore. Something you wouldn't normally find in a Christian store. Nevertheless, I was excited to see it for under $5, so I picked it up.
I was kinda interested in the book because I heard there were some links between the Mob/Outfit and the CIA and Kennedy's assassination. I was really intrigued. So, I read it.
The first bit is setting the stage for the main course of the book. Background and history of Sam and Chuck's upbringings, interactions, beatings, etc. Quite shocking to say the least. Now, the excessive violence of Sam is not something to be read by the squeamish. The language, and vulgarity is profuse in the book. In the context of the book, it is necessary though. To get the true nature of the man that was intimately involved in the climax of the mob's influence in America, and what we find out is around the world, too.
Nevertheless, we see Sam Giancana from the viewpoint of Chuck Giancana, Sam's little brother. Sam becomes Chuck's surrogate father because Sam is so violent, and insists he will take care of Chuck. So unsettling to realize how dysfunctional some families can actually be.
The multiple gory details of what Chuck saw is really unsettling. It is hard to imagine this happening between 50-60 years ago in America! Sex, drugs, music, adultery, spying, murder, intimidation, stealing, drug running, lottery rigging, loan sharking... the list goes on. Everything you've heard about that the Mob/Outfit does, he documents. Oh yeah, Marilyn Monroe is also in the book, related to the Mob/Outfit. Read it and find out!
The link to the CIA and John and Jack Kennedy is amazing. Truly a masterpiece written. I do believe that with the information coming out now about Kennedy's death - deathbed confessions of the real killer - will only strengthen this book's credibility. Not that it needs it, but will maybe perk up some onlookers to actually read it.
Enjoyed the book and strongly encourage those of you to pick it up.
Fact or fancy, readers must decide for themselves.......2006-08-03
I first read this book about ten years ago. I found it to be quite interesting, particularly the part which deals with the rise of organized crime in Chicago in the 1920s-30s. I didn't like the way the book was written, however, and I heavily discounted much of the latter part of the book because I couldn't believe that America's Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) would work hand-in-hand with organized crime, and because I, like most Americans, still held the Kennedys in high esteem. If I had read the "Authors' Note" in the front of the book, I probably wouldn't have been quite so critical as to how the book was written; and if I had known how corrupt Joseph P. Kennedy and his sons were I likely wouldn't have discounted much of what I did earlier. In any event, after reading two or three more recently published and thoroughly documented biographies of the Kennedys, I decided to go back and re-read and re-evaluate this book.
Based on this second reading, I have concluded that this book is one of three things: an accurate historical biography of Sam Giancana and his criminal empire as told from the perspective of his well informed younger brother, a historical novel, or a public service message and wake up call for all Americans. Perhaps it is a combination of all three. My inclination is to believe that most of the information contained in the book is true, but I still find the latter part of the book, that which deals with the assassinations of John F. Kennedy and his brother, Robert, to be somewhat hard to believe.
Organized crime has a long standing reputation for taking care of its friends and an equally well earned reputation for taking care of its enemies; so it's not hard to believe that Sam Giancana orchestrated these murders, as well as that of Marilyn Monroe. But, I still find it hard to believe that two future presidents and high ranking officials in the CIA knew about or were parties to these happenings. Or maybe I just don't want to believe it.
In any case, since I can't figure it out, my suggestion is to read this book along with two others and then make up your own mind. Those books are: "Joseph P. Kennedy: The Mogul, the Mob, the Statesman, and the Making of an American Myth" by Ted Schwarz and "The Dark Side of Camelot" by Seymour M. Hersh.
(By the way, ex-sailors will particularly enjoy this book since the crude language used by the mobsters will likely bring back a host of salty memories.)
Wake Up America! This Book Is Worth Consideration.......2006-06-25
Whilst I agree that this book is sensational and written to cash in on the Giancanna name, I would advise all of the reviewers who dismiss the JFK/MOB link to read up on Jim Garisson's investigation into the assassination and, no less, the Warren Commission Report as well.
Sure, Chuck Giancanna is a two-pit leech (by his own account), and Sam Giancanna probably had an ego the size of an elephant, but learn to weigh up the sources.
The lone-gunman theory that this book arguably sets up makes a hell of a lot of sense. A lot more sense, thank you very much, than one Lee Harvey Oswald being able to shoot so well from such a bad angle. Oh, and do any of the reviewers who pan this book know anything about the magic bullet theory, put forward by a so-called expert as "evidence" that there were only three shots fired at Kennedy?
Sam Giancanna may not have been as powerful as his brother makes out. He probably didn't sleep with MM the weekend before she died, but if you read the book by MM's former maid, Lena Pepertone (excuse the spelling), then you will know the conspiracy theory about MM's death should not be taken lightly either.
Read Jim Garrison's well-researched books on JFK and read the blessed Warran Commission Report, between the lines if you can, and you will find all the corroborating evidence you need to accept much of what is said about SG in this book.
A Good Read!!!! Reads Like a Novel!!.......2005-08-26
This book kept my interest through most of it and was a pretty easy read. While all the information in the book may not be true, it makes you wonder what parts are true.
I recommend this book for anyone, not just those interested in the mob.
Double-Cross.......2005-08-04
I'm sure some of the copy was embellished but the vast majority is as factual as you can get. Sam Giancana was a mobster but was a person also, the book brought out both sides. The New York mob has nothing on Chicago's.
Book Description
THE DOUBLE-CROSS SYSTEM is the amazing true story of how British intelligence penetrated and practically operated Nazi Germany's spy network within the British Isles. With great imagination, care and precise coordination, the British were able to identify Nazi agents, and induce many to defect, and supplied Germany completely false information about bombings, battles, and even the D-Day invasion.
Told by the man who himself masterminded the entire unbelievable four-and-a-half-year scheme, and filled with dazzling tidbits and extraordinary stories, THE DOUBLE-CROSS SYSTEM is a testimony to Britain's skill in the fine art of counterespionage.
Also included is an appendix listing each of the 120 double-cross agents and their tasks, a comprehensive index, and a glossary of military abbreviations.
Customer Reviews:
The Grand Deception of WW II.......2005-04-04
This 1972 book explains how the British Secret Service actively ran and controlled Germany's spies during WW II. All German agents who were sent to Great Britain were captured; they either worked for the British Secret Service or were executed. This activity involved the cooperation of many branches of government (p.viii). This cooperation was the one essential condition for success. The examples given by this book could be a manual of operations. Page xii gives the purposes of the Twenty Committee. Other books were written before, but this is the best document on the system. This book was published to offset the bad publicity suffered in the fifties and sixties (p.xvi).
Page 49 says the German spies dropped by parachute were "an easy prey", and could not make radio contact "because of defects in the instruments themselves". I think this implies the British had a mole in the Abwehr who cleverly sabotaged their radios.
One of the reasons for this system was "to get evidence of enemy plans and intentions from the questions asked by them" (p.58). Chapter 5 gives many examples, such as the American Questionnaire which asked detailed questions about Hawaii and Pearl Harbor in August 1941 (p.80). Page 85 tells of Plan Midas, a successful money laundering operation where Nazi money paid for British counter-espionage! Chapter 8 notes that sending information back to Germany via double agents meant that the enemy would not send in other agents (p.108).
Deception was best assured by preventing dangerous information from being passed on, not by passing misinformation (p.110). They passed on facts which lead the enemy to deduce false intentions. Page 116 tells of the German agent who stayed in Lisbon and created stories of his visits to England. "Since he always reported what the the Germans expected to hear, and since many of his guesses were startlingly near to the truth, he was more and more readily believed." In April 1942 agent TRICYCLE was to report on American research into the atomic bomb (p.176). 1942 marked a change: Germany now sought information on British offensives, not defenses. In 1943 the policy of the XX Committee was to reduce the forces on the Russian front. Page 138 tells of METEOR, the German triple agent. By 1944 the sole interest was the grand deception for the Normandy invasion. To make the date of attack appear later, to indicate the wrong location of the attack, and to suggest the attack was just a feint. The reports on the V-1 flying bomb were used to make them fall short of the target (p.179).
Why did the Germans fail and the British succeed? He says it was the personal integrity of the British. German blunders were due to Abwehr officials profiting from their agent, and could not honestly judge the agent's work. Another is the fact that espionage in wartime is difficult and usually unprofitable; counterespionage is comparatively easy and yields satisfactory results (pp.187-190). Since espionage and counterespionage deal with different sides of the same problems, they should be as united as possible. At least activities should be on records accessible to each other. (This book necessarily lacks all mention of British spying in Germany.)
Absolutely fascinating--gives sense of the time.......2004-05-21
This was written soon after the war (initially as a secret document) and is a candid assessment of the double-cross program's successes and failures; fortunately for the Allies, the former greatly outnumbered the latter. The author explains which operations worked, which did not, and why. He also explains how they could have exploited the system for further gains had they been more confident of their effectiveness in deceiving the Germans, but he also explains why they were cautious and why it was reasonable to be cautious given the circumstances. Details of individual cases are often fascinating, including meetings with German handlers in neutral nations and dealing with uncooperative agents. My only complaint was that the acronym glossary did not cover a lot of the acronyms used in the book.
Basic Required Reading for Intelligence Professionals.......2001-12-03
J.C. Masterman's "The Double-Cross System: The Incredible True Story of How Nazi Spies Were Turned into Double Agents" should be required reading for all counterintelligence and other human intelligence (HUMINT) personnel. Even after a 20+ year career as a human intelligence professional myself, this is one of the few "spy" books that I have. I consider this book a counterintelligence "how to" text book. To get the full impact of this book, I suggest first reading Ladaslas Farago's "Game of the Foxes", based on the files of Nazi Germany's intelligence service. After reading the German side of the story, the full impact of J.C. Masterman's book and this amazing intelligence operation will hit you right between they eyes.
The XX or Double Cross Op misled the German Secret Service.......2001-05-12
The Author was one of the few who ran the double cross system in MI5 using captured spies they ran back false intel on the planned invasion of France. Making the German's think that Normandy was a ploy to weaken the fortifications at Calais. The Best agent was codenamed GARBO whom the German's still believed in at the end of the war. They fooled them with false bomb damage reports from the V1&2 Rockets causing them to aim the Rockets short therefore missing London. A Great book on the Secret War.
Average customer rating:
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Double Cross (Alex Cross)
James Patterson
Manufacturer: Little, Brown and Company
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ASIN: 0316015059
Release Date: 2007-11-13 |
Book Description
Just when Alex thought his life was calming down into a routine of patients and therapy sessions, he finds himself back in the game--this time to catch a criminal mastermind like no other. A spate of elaborate murders in Washington D.C. have the whole East Coast on edge. They are like nothing Alex Cross and his new girlfriend, Detective Brianna Stone, have ever seen. With each murder, the case becomes increasingly complex. There's only one thing Alex knows: the killer adores an audience. As victims are made into gruesome spectacles citywide, inducing a media hysteria, it becomes clear to Alex that the man he's after is a genius of terror--and he's after fame. The killer has the whole city by its strings--and he'll stop at nothing to become the most terrifying star that Washington D.C. has ever seen.
Customer Reviews:
Pretty good, but . . ........2005-03-11
The concept for this book is very interesting to begin with. The book contains four novellas, about the same characters, but each are written by a different author. Each novella takes the perspective of one of the Stafford siblings and his or her love interest. The book is easy to read and sewing images are clever. The first three stories were pretty good and built on each other well. The last story was disappointing. After investing myself in the first three and getting to know and love the characters, I found them to be a lot different in the fourth novella. The surface things were the same (timeline, names, position etc. . .) but after enjoying and liking the characters for the first three stories, they were not likeable or sympathetic in the last story. The wisdom and grace in the older characters (the characteristics that made them the people that you would want to go to when you had a problem) was completely missing. The Godly encouragement and lessons learned were also missing. The main characters in the third story didn't seem to grow in the Lord or even develop. I love the time period and read a lot of books in this type of setting. I enjoy the unique trials and triumphs usually found with this type of fiction, but I would have to say that I only enjoyed it half as much in this book. I would like to see this same concept (four novellas, same characters, different authors) done more often, but done better
A Stitch In Time.......2004-07-30
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and liked the way the novella's built on each other. The characters were--for the most part--realistic and the stories well-written. I loved the Testement brothers, they added a fun touch to the stories.
You won't be disappointed by this novella collection.
a wonderful read.......2004-07-17
I fell in love with the Stafford siblings and their romance troubles (and their neighbors too, especially the mischievous Testament Brothers)! It was fun to see how each brother (and a sister) fought love, only to end up right in the middle of it!
These stories, written by four authors, blend well and make you feel like you're a part of the family. I especially enjoyed the stitching theme 'woven' thru-out (sorry, I couldn't resist).
Join the family fun and read about Micah, Louisa, Josh, and Sam as love blooms in No Man's Land west of the Oklahoma territory!
Book Description
When a good twin's picture-perfect life implodes, it's her bad twin sister who is left behind to pick up the pieces.
There's no love lost between Maralys and her sister's husband. But his transformation in the shadow of divorce from suit-guy to sexy jeans guy-and from workaholic father to doting dad-catches Maralys off guard...
Customer Reviews:
Fun !!!.......2005-05-14
I loved this book!! The heroine was one sarcastic puppy (kinda like me), opinionated (like me) and had an answer for everything (me again). I enjoyed reading this book and laughed out many times. The book was very witty AND did not take itself too seriously. Just like a good, fun book should be. Good work Mrs. Cross!!!
...what? ::spoilers::.......2005-02-24
Okay, I got this book after my heart was broken this past valentine's day as a theraputic tool to get rid of the blues.
I loved this book when I first started to read it and I got most of the way through it until...it turns out the two main characters KNEW EACH OTHER BEFORE HAND. As in, they were lovers and there was a case of mistaken identity. After that, frankly...the book just plain sucked. I couldnt' take it seriously anymore, and after a while, Maralys, the main chracter would not develop, it was just like, "all right already, we've heard this soliloquy before hand...will you develop already?!".
Also, all of the computer stuff...it was just too unbelievable that the main character was a highly-trained computer programmer. It didn't fit, and the author overly described a LOT of things.
It got tedious to read and I skipped pages upon pages of reading and I didn't miss out on any plot. The low points of conflict were too drawn out, I'd say.
However, you'll just love the main male character and wish you had one of your own.
~ Rebecca A. Paisley
Double Trouble...........2005-02-11
Double Trouble by Claire Cross
February 10, 2005
Courtesy of WWW.Loveromances.com
DOUBLE TROUBLE by Claire Cross opens with what looks to be an advice column. "Hot_Chic" needs advice on going to a funeral versus meeting Mr. Right. "Aunt Mary's" reply is to wear "something sleek and black" in case the heir of the deceased needs solace, and thus begins the story of Marylys O'Reilly, the protagonist of this novel, a spin-off to Cross's 2001 book THIRD TIME LUCKY.
In DOUBLE TROUBLE, Marylys is a computer geek who among other things writes an advice column through the Internet. Her twin sister has just left her husband, James Coxwell, a very handsome and successful lawyer, and two pre-adolescent sons. So, how does Marylys fit in with this story? At first it wasn't apparent what she had to do with James and Marcia Coxwell, and that made the first half of the book very frustrating for this reviewer. Marylys reacts to her brother-in-law James (and vice versa) with such chemistry and near-passion that this reader questioned why one would like or even admire Marylys, who as the main character of this contemporary romance, spent a lot of her time flirting with her own brother-in-law. It didn't make any sense at all, since it seemed that the author started out by painting Marylys as a likeable person, yet Marylys was doing something so heinous as to go after her sister's husband when Marcia had just left him. It didn't matter that Marylys and her twin Marcia had a very strained relationship. The fact that Marylys was the main character almost dictates that going after one's sister's husband was not something she should have been doing, at least in the eyes of the romance reader.
After halfway through the story, the reasons for this character's aberration becomes clear to the reader. Marylys' personality and behavior was based on an event in her life that happened years ago, before James had even met her sister. With this one event, everything changes Marylys in the eyes of the reader. This reviewer was able to breathe a little better, knowing that the protagonist was not as shady as she was starting to appear, but despite the explanation, it may have been better if the reader wasn't left in such suspense for so long. The problem with the main character in a romance seeming to have such an attraction toward her sister's husband may anger and turn off some readers, as it did this reviewer. If this secret was revealed sooner, instead of taking up half the book, this reviewer feels the book would have been much better.
Another problem with this book was the dialogue. A lot of the dialogue just did not read right, in that when the reader goes from one person to the next in a conversation, it felt as if the same person was speaking the entire time, with the author just changing the names in between quotes. The conversations were often boring, or irrelevant to the story.
The same can be said about the whole section about the "Ariadnes", a group of women that Marylys met with once a month. Although it is understood that these women were a somewhat important element in Marylys' life, and they also helped to explain some of her character traits, the group for the most part was really an unnecessary addition to the plot line. If they had been left out of the book, the novel would not have lost anything. There were many parts of the book that felt extraneous, and better editing may have made a better book.
On the other hand, there were some fun characters in DOUBLE TROUBLE. The relationship between the two sisters, although most of it was "off camera", was a great idea, albeit not original. This reviewer would have enjoyed seeing more of this relationship. The two sons of James and Marcia were also a welcome addition to the cast of characters, and should have been utilized more. The same goes for Connor O'Reiley, Marylys and Marcia's widowed father, who was cantankerous and yet lovable at the same time. And Meg, Marylys' best friend, was a hoot!
With that said, this reviewer is giving DOUBLE TROUBLE a three-star rating, despite the negative aspects of the novel. There were enough positive things that made up for it, mainly interesting and fun characters that are often what makes a romance work. A little bit of editing would have made this a four-star book and a much enjoyable read.
Undiscovered Treasure.......2005-01-08
This book is wonderful, funny and touching. Yeah, I know people throw these terms around but this really is an unfairly neglected favorite. Maralys' voice is a joy to read. The revelation of the events that have shaped her unique character is particularly effective.
Claire Cross/Delacroix does a great job with the first person; I've been searching for a new title for years, in vain, alas. Grab it - get one for your best friend while you're at it.
Both Funny and Serious - Good Read!.......2004-11-18
When Maralys O'Reilly received the phone call from her 10 year old nephew telling her he and his younger brother were stranded because their mother, her twin sister Marcia hadn't picked them up, she raced across Boston to get them. Bringing them home she was surprised to find a note - from her sister not addressed to her, but hey, under the circumstances she read it - telling the boys father, James that she was leaving - and good luck with the boys! Maralys and James had been at each other's throats for a long time, but she'd never imagined there was so much trouble in paradise. Besides Marcia leaving for parts unknown, James was deep in debt, losing his job and his inheritance.
Surviving a bad marriage and climbing out of debt herself, Maralys wasn't sympathetic for James, even though Marcia seemed to be in the wrong to just abandon them. As a web-designer running her own business, Maralys was emerging into her own writing code and running an advice column on the web. She now found herself offering advice to James on downsizing and living more modestly. Surprised when he took her advice, started downsizing and moved into a middle-class neighborhood, Maralys, who'd used anger as a safeguard to her heart, was now looking at James in a new way. When James started putting moves on her, Maralys began to wonder if he was looking for a substitute wife or, was he looking for more. More importantly, was she ready to take a chance on love again.
I found this contemporary to be both humorous and serious. It demonstrates how innocent comparisons made by parents can have an effect on shaping a child's psyche. In such a way, the author characterized Maralys as this wise cracking cynic who at thirty something was still a rebel - using cynicism as a shield to mask barbs still being inflicted by an aging father and caused her to retreat into the safety of her cyber world rather than living in the real world. James was also drawn as a bit more complex then just the abandoned husband, whose live had been given a major shake-up and now was learning how to be a real father. The kids were sweet, even as they too were given a `wake-up' call from living high to a more modest way of life.
While not your ordinary romance, especially with the ex-brother-in-law getting involved with his ex-wife's sister, it is still a romance, but with a surprising twist that readers will enjoy. The often-irreverent musings of advice on the internet will have you all thinking of Dear Abby, and there are truly some gems of sage advice to the lovelorn here! - BOTTOM LINE - Although not your typical boy meets girl romance - it is amusing and provides some food for thought on how innocent remarks made in the hearing of little ears can have life-changing repercussions. --- Marilyn, for www.contemporaryromancewriters.com ---
Average customer rating:
- More Than Double...How about Quadruple?
- Double, Triple, Quadruple, Anyone?
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The Double-Cross Program
Chris Bunch
Manufacturer: Roc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Bunch, Chris
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ASIN: 0451459865
Release Date: 2004-07-06 |
Book Description
M'chel Riss and the Star Risk, Ltd. team find themselves in the middle of a strange assignment: a staged bank robbery that involves putting money back. But the job soon takes an even stranger turn when they get caught up in a full-fledged war over an addictive new consumer product. The roguish mercenaries will need to rely on every resource possible to make a buck and make it out alive-in this fast-paced tale of hard-hitting action and a double-cross or three...
Customer Reviews:
More Than Double...How about Quadruple?.......2005-10-10
Not having read the other book, the first, in this series, it took me a little while to get into the characters depicted in Chris Bunch's novel. Taking place in the distant future, the members of Star Risk, Ltd, a mercenary group, attempt to make money out of two warring groups in a part of the galaxy far, far away. The plot starts out simple: the company is hired by one government to actually help them replace money into a bank that was stolen - the government used it for investment purposes without anyone knowing, and now has the money to repay its unofficial loan. Unfortunately for Star Risk, what seems a simple job turns into a conflict between warring states, both of whom turn out to be corrupt and greedy for maln, a new consumer product that Alliance officials want to spread throughout the galaxy. The plot has numerous twists and turns, and at times, it's hard to follow exactly what's going on. The characters are fairly interesting, and it's nice to see two women as vital, leading characters. The most interesting character is Grok, a Chewbaca-like alien, who seems to really enjoy killing. However, the battle scenes drag the book down, and I found I wasn't caring a lot about the fate of the main characters all that much. Again, perhaps if I had read the other book in the series, I would have had a greater connection to the reality created by the author.
Double, Triple, Quadruple, Anyone?.......2005-01-10
Chris Bunch has always written books that blend action and intrique with complicated political situations. In that, this third book of the Star Risk series is no different. Every word is worth it though!
M'chel Riss, partner of Star Risk, Ltd wants to hire her firm to invesitgate the death of someone she knows. Luckily, the parties involved need someone like Star Risk to advise and to win the war they are involved with their neighboring systems.
However, Star Risk is being setup for a double cross, and they don't particularly like their employers either. Nothing's stopping them from contemplating working for the other side...
Bringing peace to these systems while ensuring regular shipments of the main export - a new addictive crop - to the galaxy while keeping the Alliance off their backs may prove to be a bigger job than they can handle. Filled with incompetent rulers, huge battles, non-stop action, doublecrosses galore, and more - could this be the final mission for Star Risk?
This was an excellent followup to the first two books in the Star Risk series, "Star Risk, Ltd" and "The Scoundrel Worlds". The characters have proven they work well as a team in the previous two books. But now you see even more character developement as you learn more about M'chel, Grok, Chas, Jasmine, and even Friedrich as they take on the biggest job of their lives. Chris proves that he has the deft touch to blend action, politics, romance, and solid world building into a seamless whole. This is some of the best 'military' sci-fi being written out there.
Average customer rating:
- Interesting History
- A Hard Read
- A new espionage classic
- An OK read.
- Have not read yet...but a question
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Double Cross Blind
Joel N. Ross
Manufacturer: Anchor
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ASIN: 1400078814
Release Date: 2006-07-25 |
Book Description
December 1, 1941
It is seven days before the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor. Days that are numbered for Sondegger, a Nazi spy captured in London while on a mission to take down the Twenty Committee, a German network of spies the British have turned.
For American Tom Wall, the days have run together as he awakens to find himself locked in a British military asylum. Wounded and shell-shocked, all he knows is that his brother, Earl, betrayed Tom’s unit in Crete, causing one of the bloodiest masacres of the war.
Now Tom has to pretend to be his brother, and try to force Sondegger to reveal what he knows about the Twenty Committee. But Sondegger also knows about the Japanese plan of attack, and Tom may be able to prevent it. But should he?
An electrifying debut that combines political insight with the classic elements of espionage fiction–here is a Nazi spy novel you won’t be able to put down.
Download Description
Joel Ross studied history at Hampshire College and taught English abroad for a short time before writing Double Cross Blind, his first novel. His father served in WWII, along with all five of his uncles, and their stories provided some of the background for the book. Currently, Ross lives in Maine with his wife, Lee.
Customer Reviews:
Interesting History.......2006-12-08
A "classic spy tale," DOUBLE CROSS BLIND is a thriller in pre-World War II England, and the author obviously performed intense research on that historical era. The story line (which includes a number of flashbacks) is loosely based on a real-life event ... a network of German spies that the English turned into counterspies. RAF Pilot Tom Wall is dragged into the espionage when his brother (an MI-5 agent) disappears. The story also provides engaging insight into the political intrigue with which England initially tried to entice America into the war.
This is the author's first novel, and his writing is intelligent, but it also incorporates the idiomatic vocabulary and grammar of 1939/40 London, which modern American readers may find a bit difficult. However, the author's character development is a particularly strong part of the book, and his story's love interest between the brothers and the heroine (Harriet) quickly grabs the reader's interest. In fact, all the book's characters (including the German spies and Harriet's diplomat father) are fully-developed and believable. The reader's imagination is piqued from the opening chapter all the way to the end.
Ross has launched a promising career with this book. He paced the story well, and the plot lines finally dovetail into an entertaining ending that is a real "aha!" moment.
I recommend this book to any reader with an interest in the espionage genre.
A Hard Read.......2006-10-03
...for this lover of World War II novels. Usually I'm a sucker for any novel with a red swastika on the cover and this book provided the necessary bait.
My library includes some 700 WWII novels. If properly motivated by a good story line and historical accuracy, I'm one who can finish a good book in two to three days. But "Double Cross Blind" took a Herculean effort on my part to finish in just over three weeks. I wanted to like this book (the basic storyline of the German's tipping off the USA about Pearl Harbor to keep the USA out of the war is certainly plausible and interesting), but this rookie author certainly showed his rough edges with his first novel.
First of all, the storyline is exceptionally thin...events move too quickly and are very underdeveloped. The main character, shell-shocked American Tom Wall, is constantly escaping and being reinstated in his psycho ward...c'mon one or two attempts is enough. He is constantly on the lam and getting beaten up, only to survive to be beaten up again. Secondly, the author introduces some characters (and makes feeble attempts to develop their role) only to have them die off without impacting the main storyline or hero...i.e. a bright British intelligence officer is suddenly blown up halfway through the book (leaving us to put up with his dull supervisor as the hero's helpmeet. Or there's "Duckblind" the female German agent. The reader follows Duckblind throughout the entire novel and just when you think her and Tom Wall's storylines will intersect, she comes across a bad character in the dark and is randomly killed (all in two paragraphs). Thirdly, the author enjoys including a number of trite, over-worn literary descriptions and expressions throughout the book...then I guess a good editor could have fixed that.
My recommendation: Don't fall for the red swastika bait - or have at least 3 weeks dedicated to reading this book.
A new espionage classic.......2006-06-22
Joel Ross has written a riviting first novel in the vein of Le Carre, Gerald Seymour and other masters of the modern espionage thriller. Well written with strong characters, the book grips one immediately and the plot is inventive and entertaining. Ross evokes a picture of wartime London with a keen eye and vivid language. Anyone who enjoys this genre will be pleased to welcome a very talented new author to historical espionage fiction.
An OK read........2006-02-25
I purchased the book after reading a favorable review. I read the book with mixed emotions. It was an interesting story and a fast read. But I found the protagonist's ablity to be mugged, tortured, cut and generally beat up and then bounce back and zoom all over wartime London subduing the bad guys a bit hard to believe. His resilience makes James Bond look like an amature.
It's a good vacation read as long as you don't take the participants too seriously.
Have not read yet...but a question.......2005-11-16
I have not read the book, but in the jacket it talks about the OSS in December 1941...there was no OSS in 1941, but it was called the Office of the Coordinator of Information (OCI). Does the book mention the OSS in 1941? If so, that is incredibly inaccurate.
Average customer rating:
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Toward Cinema and Its Double: Cross-cultural Mimesis
Laleen Jayamanne
Manufacturer: Indiana University Press
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0253214750 |
Book Description
Toward Cinema and Its Double brings together Laleen Jayamannes discussions of Australian Films, Sri Lankan films, European art films, silent film comedy, contemporary American films, and her own films. While some of her essays are based on formal film analysis, others include more theoretically based ways of considering films. In her studies, Jayamanne employs Walter Benjamin's and Theodor Adorno's concept of mimesis, and Gilles Deleuze's theses on cinematic time and movement as tools for thinking about the cinematic experience in new ways.
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The Case of the Double Cross (I Can Read Book 2)
Manufacturer: HarperTrophy
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Detective Dinosaur Lost and Found (I Can Read Book 2)
ASIN: 006444029X |
Book Description
Wizard's private eyes don't want any girls in their clubhouse. But a funny little man double-crosses the boys with a message in code. Then Marigold and her girlfriends get to show just how much the private eyes really need them.
Customer Reviews:
Fun for Kids.......2001-05-30
My kid's 4 1/2 and 6 1/2 love this book. It is also a great book for my 6 1/2 yr old to read to us now.
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