5 Fast Facts: SPYMASTER

September 20, 2018

CIA Counter Terrorism Center

In SPYMASTER, one of Reed Carlton’s most highly regarded achievements is having helped to establish the CIA’s Counter Terrorism Center (CTC). In real life, the CTC was established in 1986, “to prevent and disrupt terrorist threats” around the world.

NATO/ Article 5

Brad opens SPYMASTER with a passage from the 1949 North Atlantic Treaty. Later in the book, he includes the language from Article 5: “that an armed attack on one or more (member of NATO) shall be considered an attack on all of them.” NATO was formed in the aftermath of World War II to provide a common defense and discourage future war.

Marxist Leninist terror groups of the 1970s

Scot Harvath compares the “People’s Revolutionary Front,” a group responsible for several attacks in SPYMASTER, to the Red Brigades and the Red Army Faction – terror groups responsible for bombings and assassinations across Europe in the 1970s. This is another example of Brad’s use of “faction” to spin his gripping, true-to-life thrillers.


Russia House Restaurant and Lounge

Polish intelligence officer Arthur Kopec chooses the Russia House for an important meeting with Lydia Ryan in SPYMASTER. The restaurant’s rich décor, Russian delicacies, and legendary vodka menu make for an authentic and festive experience. Brad is pictured at the restaurant during a recent trip to Washington, D.C.


Russian Attacks on Estonia

Following a series of cyber attacks in SPYMASTER on Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, U.S. Ambassador Rebecca Strum compares them to (actual) cyber attacks on Estonia in 2007. The real-life, three weeks of attacks began after the Estonians removed a Soviet World War II memorial, which Moscow had threatened would be an unacceptable affront to their nation. Several days after the removal, the cyber attacks on the Baltic state commenced. Moscow has consistently denied responsibility. 


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