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Gypsy Spy: The Cold War Files
One orphaned Gypsy against two Superpowers. The World Order is in for a shakeup. Carlos de Leon lives a dream life in Spain with his father, Shane Leoppard. But the dream turns to nightmare when an assassin’s bullet cuts Shane down and he dies in his son’s arms. Twelve-year-old Carlos is left all alone in the world, with only his father’s training to keep him safe. But that might be all he needs. Shane taught him how to be deliberate, stealthy, and lethal. Carlos employs all these skills in his struggle to survive and find his father’s killers. Retribution road carries him from the roaming Roma clans of Western Europe into the American Ozarks, and back again as the body count rises and reason perches on a precarious edge. His quest for vengeance will alter the course of the Cold War. But will it cost him his soul? Cold War plots combine with supernatural encounters in this heart-pounding adventure. Author and pastor Nikolas Larum provides a unique look at espionage from a spiritual perspective. The Gypsy Spy will have to confront his demons to find his father's killer and save the world from war.
738 pages, Paperback
Published August 11, 2016
9 people are currently reading
413 people want to read
About the author
Nikolas Larum
9 books17 followersWhen I was five, my parents took my siblings and me on a grand adventure. The journey led us from California through Arkansas onto weeks of miles on the Appalachian Trail and ultimately into Francoist Spain, where we lived as Spaniards for five years. We returned to the Ozarks in 1976, where I felt more a foreigner than I ever did as an American in Spain. These experiences and perspectives have been a major source of inspiration for my writing. I have been a bi-vocational pastor for the past 30 years, ministering in churches large and small while working as a government contractor and in the recycling industry. I currently live in Chesapeake, Virginia with my wife, Heidi, and four of our children.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 8, 2017
This was an excellent book. It held my interest the entire time I was reading it.
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October 20, 2017Won in the Goodreads Giveaways
November 30, 2016
Gypsy Spy by Nikolas Larum is an exciting read. Larum provides the perfect combination of Cold War history, thrilling adventure, mystery, intrigue, and biblical truth in this excellent novel.
Larum brought the characters to life in a way that I would find myself wondering what Carlos was up to when I wasn’t reading. His writing style actively pulled me along from sentence to sentence drawing me into this engaging read.
I would love to share more on my favorite moments in Carlos’s life, but I like to read blind without any idea of where I’m being led. In fact, anytime I felt I knew where the story was headed, I found myself pleasantly surprised to be taken in a different direction. The twists and turns of the story enhance the beautiful cohesion of the novel.
I read a lot of Christian fiction and it is rare to find a Christian author who is able to weave biblical truth into a story without losing the art of telling a story. Larum successfully told an amazing story while also powerfully communicating grace, truth, and the power of God.
I recommend Gypsy Spy for your reading pleasure! Enjoy!
Larum brought the characters to life in a way that I would find myself wondering what Carlos was up to when I wasn’t reading. His writing style actively pulled me along from sentence to sentence drawing me into this engaging read.
I would love to share more on my favorite moments in Carlos’s life, but I like to read blind without any idea of where I’m being led. In fact, anytime I felt I knew where the story was headed, I found myself pleasantly surprised to be taken in a different direction. The twists and turns of the story enhance the beautiful cohesion of the novel.
I read a lot of Christian fiction and it is rare to find a Christian author who is able to weave biblical truth into a story without losing the art of telling a story. Larum successfully told an amazing story while also powerfully communicating grace, truth, and the power of God.
I recommend Gypsy Spy for your reading pleasure! Enjoy!
October 27, 2019
The truth that’s a running thread throughout Gypsy Spy is trust no one. Ever. This book is a thriller, and thriller should be spelled in capital letters.
Set mainly in Spain and France, this story delves deep behind the scenes of international politics and economies and how they are manipulated. It’s all chillingly realistic without ever naming specific events or heads of State. If you were a fan of the series Scandal, the TV show pales in comparison to the betrayals, secrets and intrigue rampant in Gypsy Spy. The novel is filled with scenes of both cold-blooded and impassioned violence, made even more vivid when carried out by a boy who is just a young teenager.
Twelve-year-old, Carlos, is witness to his father’s murder. He is left to survive anyway he knows how. He spent his early years cloistered world where every spare hour was spent with his father, learning challenging games of dexterity and gymnastic physical prowess. What Carlos thought were just games were actually survival skills. His father, Shane Leoppard, was training his son to survive the brutality of the life he would inherit if Shane were to die. As it soon turns out, Carlos witnesses his father’s violent death and, as he tries to track down his father’s killer, he becomes immersed in Shane’s secret life: espionage. His father was a cold-war operative.
As Carlos sets out to avenge his father’s death and trace Shane’s footsteps, he comes across a terrifying, secret research project—a weapon that is deadly beyond most human’s imagination. It is part of a power tug-of-war between those who wish to control their countries and the world. Carlos learns that his father was playing at being a double agent, and was determined that no one would ever be able to stock and use this weapon. Carlos is playing with the big boys. To stay alive he assumes different aliases and identities (a bit confusing at first, but readers can soon catch on.)
Early on Carlos finds his way into a gypsy camp where he discovers he has the tie of gypsy blood. He is eventually absorbed into the culture of the Romany gypsies, who manage to travel freely across borders. Carlos, through his continued obsession to kill those who killed his father, becomes the infamous gypsy spy, Rat-gêló. Along the way the reader is offered a special treat--a rare and fascinating look into the secretive society of the reticent Romany culture, right down to quotes in their language. This is a very closed culture.
Rat-gêló grows into an elusive devil, one who is able to confound and terrify multiple layers of secret agents, those above them, and everyone involved in this ugly side of the cold war. There is so much killing, some unintentional and horrifying, that Carlos finds himself plagued by visions of demons and his conscience eats away at him. He almost loses his mind along with his soul, as he travels from France and Spain to America on a quest to revenge not just his father’s murder, but that of his mother, wife, and everyone he holds close.
As I read through this novel the same thought keep repeating. How does this author, a minister, have such depth of knowledge of theatrical weaponry, the Romany culture, the inner workings of an espionage operative, and also has the ability to write about violent killings in such detail. I’m not sure I really want to know, but my curiosity was, and is still, piqued.
This book is a wild ride. It should be made into a movie.
Set mainly in Spain and France, this story delves deep behind the scenes of international politics and economies and how they are manipulated. It’s all chillingly realistic without ever naming specific events or heads of State. If you were a fan of the series Scandal, the TV show pales in comparison to the betrayals, secrets and intrigue rampant in Gypsy Spy. The novel is filled with scenes of both cold-blooded and impassioned violence, made even more vivid when carried out by a boy who is just a young teenager.
Twelve-year-old, Carlos, is witness to his father’s murder. He is left to survive anyway he knows how. He spent his early years cloistered world where every spare hour was spent with his father, learning challenging games of dexterity and gymnastic physical prowess. What Carlos thought were just games were actually survival skills. His father, Shane Leoppard, was training his son to survive the brutality of the life he would inherit if Shane were to die. As it soon turns out, Carlos witnesses his father’s violent death and, as he tries to track down his father’s killer, he becomes immersed in Shane’s secret life: espionage. His father was a cold-war operative.
As Carlos sets out to avenge his father’s death and trace Shane’s footsteps, he comes across a terrifying, secret research project—a weapon that is deadly beyond most human’s imagination. It is part of a power tug-of-war between those who wish to control their countries and the world. Carlos learns that his father was playing at being a double agent, and was determined that no one would ever be able to stock and use this weapon. Carlos is playing with the big boys. To stay alive he assumes different aliases and identities (a bit confusing at first, but readers can soon catch on.)
Early on Carlos finds his way into a gypsy camp where he discovers he has the tie of gypsy blood. He is eventually absorbed into the culture of the Romany gypsies, who manage to travel freely across borders. Carlos, through his continued obsession to kill those who killed his father, becomes the infamous gypsy spy, Rat-gêló. Along the way the reader is offered a special treat--a rare and fascinating look into the secretive society of the reticent Romany culture, right down to quotes in their language. This is a very closed culture.
Rat-gêló grows into an elusive devil, one who is able to confound and terrify multiple layers of secret agents, those above them, and everyone involved in this ugly side of the cold war. There is so much killing, some unintentional and horrifying, that Carlos finds himself plagued by visions of demons and his conscience eats away at him. He almost loses his mind along with his soul, as he travels from France and Spain to America on a quest to revenge not just his father’s murder, but that of his mother, wife, and everyone he holds close.
As I read through this novel the same thought keep repeating. How does this author, a minister, have such depth of knowledge of theatrical weaponry, the Romany culture, the inner workings of an espionage operative, and also has the ability to write about violent killings in such detail. I’m not sure I really want to know, but my curiosity was, and is still, piqued.
This book is a wild ride. It should be made into a movie.
May 17, 2023
Something different
I've read thrillers before, but none like this. It has just a touch of fantasy--it's so light that you barely notice it. I love the culture and language details grafted into the story fabric, along with the vivid character development. The romance feels real and uncliched, which is very hard to pull off. And the violence is not gratuitous, and the author deals honestly with the cost of that violence, which I always appreciate. So many other genres blend into this, making it feel full and immersive. The writing is clear, easy to read, and a sensory delight. I'll definitely be reading more by Mr. Larum!
I've read thrillers before, but none like this. It has just a touch of fantasy--it's so light that you barely notice it. I love the culture and language details grafted into the story fabric, along with the vivid character development. The romance feels real and uncliched, which is very hard to pull off. And the violence is not gratuitous, and the author deals honestly with the cost of that violence, which I always appreciate. So many other genres blend into this, making it feel full and immersive. The writing is clear, easy to read, and a sensory delight. I'll definitely be reading more by Mr. Larum!
May 12, 2018
Needs an Editor
This book is a mess. It is confusing with absurd plot lines, and is badly in need of an editor. It is bloated and overwritten, and could easily have been cut by at least a third. Not recommended.
This book is a mess. It is confusing with absurd plot lines, and is badly in need of an editor. It is bloated and overwritten, and could easily have been cut by at least a third. Not recommended.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews