The first ever, first-person story of America's private, paramilitary contractors at work around the world-from a man who performed these missions himself and has decades of stories to tell. This is a fascinating tale-and potentially the first-to describe the work of American contractors, men who run highly dangerous missions deep inside foreign countries on the brink of war. It will lift the veil and detail the ultimate danger and risk of paramilitary operations (both officially government-sanctioned and not) and show us in very intimate terms exactly what private soldiers do when the government can't act or take public responsibility. GRAY WORK combines covert military intelligence with boots-on-the-ground realism, following Jamie Smith through his CIA training and work as a spy in the State Department, to his co-founding of Blackwater following 9/11, to his decision to leave that company. As the founder and director of Blackwater Security, Smith's initial vision has undeniably shaped and transformed a decade of war. He argues that this gray area-and its warriors who occupy the controversial space between public and private-has become an indispensable element of the modern battlefield.
About the Author :
Jamie Smith served in the CIA before becoming the founding director of Blackwater Security. After earning a graduate degree, he went on to postgraduate studies at Boston University. In 2002, he started his own defense contracting company and has planned, led, and executed missions throughout the world from Africa to Asia and the Middle East.
Jeff Gurner has appeared on and off Broadway and in numerous regional theaters. His television credits include Law & Order: SVU, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Mercy, Third Watch, and Rescue Me. He is an award-winning audiobook narrator known for his work on New York Times-bestselling author Daniel Suarez's novels. Gurner is also one-half of the vaunted comedy music duo Joberg & Gurner. To learn more, visit jeffgurner.com.
Review :
"Espionage, trade-craft, politics, gunfights, explosions, assassinations, and covert operations around the world. Clancy, Griffin, and Ludlum use these in their novels, but only Jamie Smith has really lived them. Page after page, you can't help thinking 'this is all real.'"
-- "Col. Lee Van Arsdale, former branch chief, Counterterrorism Special Projects, US Secretary of Defense"
"No one knows more about the grit and reality of counterterrorism than Jamie Smith, or writes better about it. His insights are indispensable to our understanding of a shadowy and dangerous world."
-- "Richard North Patterson, New York Times bestselling author of Loss of Innocence"
"Patriot, warrior, spy. Smith may be a real life Jason Bourne."
-- "Fred Burton, author of Ghost"
"Smith takes you inside the Libyan revolution with a vivid and emotionally engaging account of the people and politics....This is a hugely interesting, entertaining, and heart-stopping read."
-- "Col. Rick Cantwell, US Army Special Forces, retired"
"Smith's experience in the military and intelligence worlds, and the insights he has gleaned along the way, provide indispensable reading for anyone who wants to understand, or profit from, our dangerous times."
-- "James Rosen, author of The Strong Man"
