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Kennedy's Coup: A White House Plot, a Saigon Murder, and America's Descent into Vietnam
Combining the dark intrigue of a Cold War thriller and the propulsive writing of a novel, Kennedy’s Coup is a landmark work that will change your understanding of America’s involvement in one of the most controversial and consequential wars in our history.
Based on a decade of research and writing, enriched by eyewitness interviews and revealing documents obtained through dozens of freedom of information requests, Kennedy’s Coup vividly recreates the Kennedy Administration’s secret encouragement of the fatal 1963 military coup against South Vietnam’s defiant president.
The brutal assassination of Ngo Dinh Diem by his own generals—which capped weeks of bitter White House infighting amid JFK’s wavering—led to dreadful consequences for the United States, opening the door to nine years of costly and futile warfare in Vietnam. A meticulous researcher and fluid writer, Jack Cheevers etches unforgettable portraits of the people behind this fascinating the kindly, philosophy-loving American ambassador who tried to save Diem; the powerful Pentagon and State Department figures who battled for JFK’s ear; the hard-driving young American journalists in Saigon who braved police beatings and death threats to dig out the story; the adder-tongued Madame Nhu, Diem’s beautiful sister-in-law, who enraged critics with outrageous insults; the scheming South Vietnamese generals who slowly tightened a noose around their commander in chief; the hard-drinking CIA agent who carried secret US messages to the generals; and Diem and his Machiavellian brother Nhu, head of the feared secret police, who tried but failed to outwit both the Americans and their traitorous generals.
While many Vietnam books mention Diem’s murder in passing, this gripping account delves into the participants’ personalities, motives, and actions in greater detail than ever before. The definitive history of one of the most catastrophic decisions ever made by a US president, shedding new light on events that altered the world, Kennedy’s Coup will be a work of lasting importance.
Based on a decade of research and writing, enriched by eyewitness interviews and revealing documents obtained through dozens of freedom of information requests, Kennedy’s Coup vividly recreates the Kennedy Administration’s secret encouragement of the fatal 1963 military coup against South Vietnam’s defiant president.
The brutal assassination of Ngo Dinh Diem by his own generals—which capped weeks of bitter White House infighting amid JFK’s wavering—led to dreadful consequences for the United States, opening the door to nine years of costly and futile warfare in Vietnam. A meticulous researcher and fluid writer, Jack Cheevers etches unforgettable portraits of the people behind this fascinating the kindly, philosophy-loving American ambassador who tried to save Diem; the powerful Pentagon and State Department figures who battled for JFK’s ear; the hard-driving young American journalists in Saigon who braved police beatings and death threats to dig out the story; the adder-tongued Madame Nhu, Diem’s beautiful sister-in-law, who enraged critics with outrageous insults; the scheming South Vietnamese generals who slowly tightened a noose around their commander in chief; the hard-drinking CIA agent who carried secret US messages to the generals; and Diem and his Machiavellian brother Nhu, head of the feared secret police, who tried but failed to outwit both the Americans and their traitorous generals.
While many Vietnam books mention Diem’s murder in passing, this gripping account delves into the participants’ personalities, motives, and actions in greater detail than ever before. The definitive history of one of the most catastrophic decisions ever made by a US president, shedding new light on events that altered the world, Kennedy’s Coup will be a work of lasting importance.
688 pages, Hardcover
First published February 17, 2026
12 people are currently reading
135 people want to read
About the author
Jack Cheevers
3 books17 followersJack Cheevers is the author of "Act of War: Lyndon Johnson, North Korea, and the Capture of the Spy Ship Pueblo," winner of the 2014 Samuel Eliot Morison Award for Naval Literature. He worked as a newspaper reporter and editor for twenty-seven years, including stints at the Los Angeles Times, the Oakland Tribune, and the Associated Press and United Press International bureaus in San Francisco. His work has been published by The New York Times, Politico magazine, Mother Jones, San Francisco magazine, Reader's Digest, ResponsibleStatecraft.org, Boston Globe, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and many other newspapers. He has spoken before the Marines' Memorial Club of San Francisco, the Naval Order of the United States New York Commandery, the Bohemian Club of San Francisco, the Military Officers Association of America, and other groups. A Massachusetts native, he is a proud graduate of the University of California at Berkeley. He lives on a pond in New Hampshire with his rescue dog, Lupe.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
Review of advance copy received from Author
JFK is one of those people who invite strong reactions whether positive or negative. In Jack Cheevers' Kennedy's Coup, we see a JFK who doesn't quite have a handle on the subject of Vietnam while being torn between two polar opposites. The question is whether or not to support the coup against Vietnam's president, Ngo Dinh Diem.
Vietnam is so divisive that I hesitate to dive too deep into the specifics of the book. Suffice to say, JFK was faced with various different perspectives from all of his advisors who seemed to be fighting each other more than anything else.
There is no doubt Cheevers did tremendous research to put this book together. Clocking in at over 600 pages, there is a lot to unpack. Ironically, while the title references JFK, the book is not as interested in him. Instead, you have those advisors, journalists, and Vietnamese figures who fill out the narrative. It's big, dense, and well-written. If you want to know more about how we got pulled further into Vietnam, then this needs to be on your list.
(This book was provided as a review copy by the author.)
Vietnam is so divisive that I hesitate to dive too deep into the specifics of the book. Suffice to say, JFK was faced with various different perspectives from all of his advisors who seemed to be fighting each other more than anything else.
There is no doubt Cheevers did tremendous research to put this book together. Clocking in at over 600 pages, there is a lot to unpack. Ironically, while the title references JFK, the book is not as interested in him. Instead, you have those advisors, journalists, and Vietnamese figures who fill out the narrative. It's big, dense, and well-written. If you want to know more about how we got pulled further into Vietnam, then this needs to be on your list.
(This book was provided as a review copy by the author.)
March 9, 2026
Most books I have read on the Vietnam War have the tendency to overlook the assassination of South Vietnamese President Ngo Dinh Diem and his younger brother Ngo Dinh Nhu devoting little more than a page to it in the overall study of the conflict.
This I feel is a misstep because the deterioration of the situation in South Vietnam to me serves as a major catalyst in the escalation of the conflict that would draw the US into a war that they had no hope of ever containing.
Here is the book I have been waiting to read about how the increasing dissatisfaction with the Ngo regime would lead the coup that would have dire consequences for the South Vietnamese.
This I feel is a misstep because the deterioration of the situation in South Vietnam to me serves as a major catalyst in the escalation of the conflict that would draw the US into a war that they had no hope of ever containing.
Here is the book I have been waiting to read about how the increasing dissatisfaction with the Ngo regime would lead the coup that would have dire consequences for the South Vietnamese.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 9, 2026
We uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh did not do a good job in 'Nam
March 16, 2026
What a book! A very good explanation on how we got sucked into a ground war in Vietnam.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews