Synopses & Reviews
Drummond Clark was once a spy of legendary proportions. Now Alzheimer's disease has taken its toll and he's just a confused old man who's wandered away from home, waiting for his son to fetch him.
When Charlie Clark takes a break from his latest losing streak at the track to bring Drummond back to his Brooklyn home, they find it blown sky high — and then bullets start flying in every direction. At first, Charlie thinks his Russian creditors are employing aggressive collection tactics. But once Drummond effortlessly hot-wires a car as their escape vehicle, Charlie begins to suspect there's much more to his father than meets the eye. He soon discovers that Drummond's unremarkable career as an appliance salesman was actually a clever cover for an elaborate plan to sell would-be terrorists faulty nuclear detonators. Drummond's intricate knowledge of the device is extremely dangerous information to have rattling around in an Alzheimer's-addled brain. The CIA wants to contain him — and so do some other shady characters who send Charlie and Drummond on a wild chase that gives father and son quality time a whole new meaning.
With Once a Spy, Keith Thomson makes his debut on the thriller stage with energy, wit, and style to spare.
Listen to a clip from the audiobook:
Review
"First-novelist Thomson has his tongue firmly in cheek in this clever, engaging, and frenetic tale....His knowledge of spook's tools, techniques, and mind-sets builds verisimilitude....A terrifically entertaining thriller." Booklist
Review
"[A] breakneck thriller....Thomson's sharp humor, swift pacing and surprising twists are refreshing antidotes to the sober, overcooked, underwritten thrillers crowding the market." Kirkus Reviews
Synopsis
With Once a Spy, Thomson makes his debut on the thriller stage with energy, wit, and style to spare. A former spy now ravaged by Alzheimer's is thrust back into danger — and now his son is in deep as well.
Video
About the Author
Keith Thomson is a former semi-pro baseball player in France, an editorial cartoonist for Newsday, a filmmaker with a short film shown at Sundance, and a screenwriter who currently lives in Alabama. He writes on intelligence and other matters for the Huffington Post.
Exclusive Essay
Read an exclusive essay by Keith Thomson