Investigative reporter and pulitzer prizefinalist bryan denson tells the riveting story of the father and son coconspirators who betrayed the united states. Its very recent history, written by a journalist, so its different in content and style from the usual history and biography that i read. There he recruited his son nathan to resume his espionage. By day, he taught spycraft at the cias clandestine training center. But he may gain fame thanks to densons startling new book the spys son. The spys son jefferson county public library overdrive. Author bryan denson, an experienced journalist, leads us step by step through an extraordinary espionage case that stretched, in two phases, from the mid1990s to. Densons suspenseful story of the nicholsons reprehensible activities is an adventurous read, revealing tradecraft used. A single father, respected mentor, and brilliant case officer, he was also a double agent selling thousands of state secrets to the russians. If you want to learn the 21stcentury equivalent of those rules, the spys son is a great place to startalthough in real life, they dont always work as smoothly as in fiction. That was my reaction to the spys son in which bryan denson recounts the story of jim and nathan nicholson a father and son pair of spies. Despite a confusingbut thankfully shortdigression into a 2010 spy swap between russia and the u.
Denson is at his best recounting jims career trajectory and the general geopolitics of the time. Mar 11, 2017 the spys son goes inside the private meeting rooms of the fbi and cia, delves into the postcold war intrigues between moscow and washington, and steps behind the closed doors of a family struggling to stay together. The spys son book south san francisco public library. Bryan denson audio books, best sellers, author bio. Dec 09, 2015 the spys son by bryan denson tells the story of jim nicholson, the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and how from behind bars he recruited and then trained his son. The crooked cia officer who brought his son into the business. The true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy. Spys son is, simply put, and not withstanding the enormously complicated and strangest stories it tells and a very good read. The cia officer who recruited his son to spy for russia. The true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia by denson, bryan isbn. Denson not only covers what they did, but also provides a thorough analysis of why they did it. The true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia by bryan denson 2016, paperback at the best online prices at ebay.
The true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia bryan denson cia officer jim nicholson was imprisoned for selling secrets to russia. Densons suspenseful story of the nicholsons reprehensible activities is an adventurous read, revealing tradecraft used by both spies and spy catchers. The spys son ocean state libraries ezone overdrive. The book was released by the atlantic monthly press on may 5, 2015, and is now for sale in north america, the united kingdom, australia, new zealand, poland, the netherlands, estonia. The true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia, and the spys son.
Discover delightful childrens books with prime book box, a subscription that delivers new books. The riveting true story of the fatherandson coconspirators who sold us national secrets to russia. The true story of the highestranking cia officer ever. The spy s son the true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia by bryan denson. May 05, 2015 the spy s son is the amazing account of the dysfunctional nicholson family s foray into the treacherous world of selling out one s country to the russians. Denson also was a finalist for the investigative reporters and editors award, a secondplace finisher in the society for features journalism for news series and projects, and an honorable mention for the robert f. The spys son is a startling story of a fatherson team who. The book may be about as comprehensive an account of the nicholsons cases as readers are likely to get.
The spy s son, bryan s first book, was a finalist for the william e. Spys son is based on bryan densons bestselling 2015 book, which tells the true story of a highranking star cia officer who was brought low when he was caught selling secrets to the. The true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia. So it was, denson writes, that a dozen years after jim began spying for the russians, he sent them his youngest son. At bottom, however, the spys son is a poignant and painful tale of family love, loyalty, manipulation and betrayal. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. What other book might you compare the spy s son to and why. The spys son the true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia book.
Book 2 in the fbi files series takes younger readers inside the hunt for this killer. Denson s work is quite reminiscent of ben mcintyre in that he takes an indepth view of famous crimes in a snapshot of recent history. Buy the spys son in a stunning piece of reporting, denson has unraveled one of the strangest spy stories in american history and written a haunting book as fast paced and exciting as the best spy novel. By night, he was a minivandriving single father racing home to have dinner with his kids. A haunting book as fast paced and as exciting as the best spy novel. Investigative reporter and pulitzer prize finalist bryan denson tells the riveting story of the nicholsons father and son coconspirators who deceived their country by selling national secrets to russia.
Atlantic monthlyatlantic monthly bryan denson, a reporter for the oregonian. Jim nicholson was the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage. Denson, an oregon newspaper reporter, focuses on a detailed chronology of events instead of delving deeply into the contradictions and pressures built. May 14, 2015 the spys son is a startling story of a fatherson team who bluffed the cia. Buy the spy s son by bryan denson from waterstones today. By day, he taught spycraft at the cias clandestine training center, the farm. The spys son, bryan denson shop online for books in new. The riveting true story of the fatherand son coconspirators who sold us national secrets to russia. Denson writes about how jim nicholson, who possessed in abundance the qualities of a successful spy charm, grandiosity, and a knack for extracting from others. Denson has a knack for sly wordplay and descriptions. Denson covered the case as it wound through portland courtrooms, and the spys son is the culmination of a twoyear investigation, springing from a six part series in the oregonian reaching more than one million readers in print. This book might no longer be in promotion, but you can always try.
Denson puts his reporting chops to good use, packing the book with information but never overwhelming readers and maintaining tension, interest and momentum. Denson puts his reporting chops to good use, packing the book with information. The spy s son by bryan denson my historyhistorical fiction book club us meeting in early january to discuss the spys son by bryan denson. The true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia, about jim nicholson. Bryan denson is a veteran american journalist, a winner of the george polk award and finalist for the pulitzer prize. May 05, 2015 a haunting book as fast paced and as exciting as the best spy novel. One of the strangest spy stories in american history robert lindsey, author of the falcon and the snowman.
The spys son has been published in five languages, with russian soon to come. The true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia kindle edition by denson, bryan. The spy s son goes inside the private meeting rooms of the fbi and cia, delves into the postcold war intrigues between moscow and washington, and steps behind the closed doors of a family struggling to stay together. Bryan denson books list of books by author bryan denson. The spys son is the amazing account of the dysfunctional nicholson familys foray into the treacherous world of selling out ones country to the russians. Books in the spys son, bryan denson tells a fascinating true story of familys espionage.
The true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia reprint by bryan denson isbn. Denson s suspenseful story of the nicholsons reprehensible activities is an adventurous read, revealing tradecraft used by both spies and spy catchers. The spys son takes readers deep into life inside a cia family, a federal prison, and into the colorful world of spies and spy catchers on four continents. Undeterred by his incarceration in federal prison, nicholson recruited his son to smuggle messages out of.
The spys son by bryan denson tells the story of jim nicholson, the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and how from behind bars he recruited and then trained his son. Cross creek tackling the spys son exclusive hollywood. The spys son takes readers deep inside the world of spies and spy catchers. Mar 12, 2020 a haunting book as fast paced and as exciting as the best spy novel.
May 26, 2015 in 1997, jim nicholson became the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage. A highspeed, highstakes account of the riveting true story of a fathers deception, a son s loyalty, and the terrible costs of betraying both country and kinback jacket flap. The spy s son the true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia book. Apr 27, 2017 spys son is based on bryan densons bestselling 2015 book, which tells the true story of a highranking star cia officer who was brought low when he was caught selling secrets to the. The spys son by bryan denson overdrive rakuten overdrive. Have you listened to any of jason culps other performances before. Undeterred by his incarceration in federal prison, nicholson recruited his son to smuggle messages out of the visiting room to a russian spy. Denson s ability to reconstruct in almost novel form, the history of this saga, from diverse sources and research, and to provide a compelling look at how a controlling father could recruit a somewhat naive son provides an excellent look into the world of spy recruitment and covert operations. The true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia, by bryan denson.
Nicholson was caught and convicted of spying for russia in the late 1990s. Robert lindsey, author ofthe falcon and the snowman investigative reporter and pulitzer prize finalist bryan denson tells the riveting story of the nicholsonsfather and son coconspirators who deceived their country by selling national secrets to russia. The culmination of a sixyear investigation, bryan denson has masterfully crafted a highspeed, highstakes account of this. The true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia ebook written by bryan denson. Denson covered the case as it wound through portland courtrooms, and the spy s son is the culmination of a twoyear investigation, springing from a six part series in the oregonian reaching more than one million readers in print.
See all books authored by bryan denson, including the spys son. In june 1997, judge james cacheris sentenced harold james. The young operative turned out to be the son of one of the nations worst embarrassments. The book starts with son nathaniels final meeting with a russian operative in cyprus, then jobs back in time to tell the story of how his father, harold james jim nicholson came to work for the cia. In the spys son, bryan denson tells a fascinating true. Denson puts his reporting chops to good use, packing the book with. How a cia traitor turned his son into a russian spy cnn. The true account of the nicholsons, the father and son who sold national secrets to russia. Jim nicholson was one of the cias top veteran case officers. Robert lindsey, author of the falcon and the snowman investigative reporter and pulitzer prize finalist bryan denson tells the riveting story of the nicholsonsfather and son coconspirators who deceived their country by sel. The true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia, about jim nicholson, the highest ranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage. Read the spys son the true story of the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage and the son he trained to spy for russia by bryan denson available from rakuten kobo. Investigative reporter and pulitzer prize finalist bryan denson tells the riveting story of the father and son coconspirators who betrayed the united states.
By day, he taught spycraft at the cias clandestine. Bryan denson tells the tale of a spy convicted of selling secrets to russia who then hands the work to his son. The crooked cia officer who brought his son into the. The spys son goes inside the private meeting rooms of the fbi and cia, delves into the postcold war intrigues between moscow and washington, and steps behind the closed doors of a family struggling to stay together. The spys son is a fastpaced, thrilling account that takes readers inside the private. Sep 28, 2017 jim nicholson is the highestranking cia officer ever convicted of espionage, and the only one ever nabbed for betraying his country twice. Robert lindsey, author of the falcon and the snowman investigative reporter and pulitzer prize finalist bryan denson tells the riveting story of the nicholsonsfather and son coconspirators who deceived their country by selling national secrets to russia.