The Charm School

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Summary: One of My Favorites!
Review: Great book - well worth reading and re-reading. You hit the ground running on page one and never stop. Even with all of the political changes since the book was written, it's a keeper - masterful, suspenseful, full of style and intellect.

Rating:
Summary: This espionage thriller captures your interest & keeps it!
Review: This is my first DeMille novel and it was a great one. DeMille provides an interesting cast of characters with careful detail to setting. The climax comes within the walls of the "charm school" (where Russians are taught to imitate Americans). Although this is not my normal genre of reading, I found this novel to be a great choice and know that it will keep your interest.

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Summary: More than just a spy thriller, a bit of politics too...
Review: DeMille is one of my favorite authors for a reason, he simply writes very well. Action, romance, intrigue, murder, love, hate, it's all here, plus, he gets in, just subtly enough at times, how horrible a system of government totalitarianism/collectivism is. Oh, and he makes a few jabs at our own system too, but he sizes things relatively.

Now why do I think all that's important? Well, an action thriller/spy novel in the Ludlum/Clancy type is good enough, but I think DeMille is able to bring just a bit of humor and sarcasm to his characters that takes them a cut above par. They live and breathe just a bit more and they love and hate just a bit more. In their actions and words, they make a case for certain truths, and in this novel, they show us plainly how the end result of communism (or similar systems, but the USSR in particular here) is just how Ayn Rand showed (one of her novels has Kira slowly bleeding to death, shot in the back, at its end). DeMille, writing less as a "realist" and more of a "larger than life" novelist, still is able to bring some basic and often forgotten truths to the page.

But don't let all that talk of politics scare you off from reading this page turner fictional story, it's a great spy thriller with all the trimmings and a great story line, I just happen to think it's much more. If you enjoy this type of fiction, I give this a strong recommendation, if you're new to this type of work, but think you might enjoy a spy thriller with lots of action and a bit of romance, give it a try, I'm betting you'll enjoy the ride.

Rating:
Summary: Wow - what a book
Review: No comments needed - really good - may be from another era but relevant and interesting forever.

Rating:
Summary: Airplane consensus
Review: I work in airplanes and I'm always looking to see what people are reading. When I see Nelson DeMille, I ask if it's their first or if they are a fan. For the first time DeMille-ers, I tell them to pick up Charm School. For those that say they are fans, their number one pick is ALWAYS The Charm School. I have to agree! The Charm School had me hooked from the first page and I just couldn't put it down. It's made me a fan of Mr. DeMille's books and I've read them all. The Charm School is still my number one favorite book of his. Read it. You'll be a fan, too!!