I found the story gripping from start to finish and I was surprised that I was impressed with the Jackal's clinical precision and professionalism. I would highly recommend this book to anyone, it is a pure classic!


Compulsive to the last   August 23, 2003
 7 out of 8 found this review helpful

Such a celebrated thriller as this needs no introduction, but here goes anyway: In 1963, a secret para-military group, desperate to overthrow French President Charles de Gaulle, contracts an anonymous young Englishman, given the code-name Jackal, to assassinate him.

That's pretty much it. What follows is 400 and odd pages of incredibly detailed and exciting story, with the Jackal, on one hand, crafting a convoluted and intricate plan to kill de Gaulle during an very public event, and on the other a French detective named Lebel who's desperately trying to piece the Jackal's jigsaw together and catch him first. The two stories collide in an incredible climax.

What appealed to me most about this book was the author's amazing picture of the Jackal. He's described by Forsyth as an inhumanly methodical and careful man, who only shows brief glimmers of any humanity whatsoever. Lebel, on the other hand, is driven to distraction trying to chase him as he chameleonically changes his identity a number of times, and having to cope with de Gaulle's total refusal to admit there is even any danger.

This is what thriller-writing is all about.


Yes - believe the hype!   April 6, 2003
 3 out of 4 found this review helpful

If you look at the rest of these reviews without having read this book, the cynical out there may think "It can't be THAT good..." Wanna bet?
No it's not a good book - it's a GREAT book. Superlatives are not enough.
Front start to finish, it cannot be faulted.


Jackal of all trades   January 17, 2003
 5 out of 5 found this review helpful

I've never been tempted to write one of these reviews before so it took something pretty special to change my mind. 'Day of the Jackal' is pretty special, so here I am, after staying awake most of the night reading it through to the end, writing my first review. And what a book. Written from an almost historical point of view, the author clearly researched the background for the story with painstaking precision: the places he describes are vividly real; no character, however small the part, is introduced without a past; and the machinations of the various European police forces and politicians are a joy to read.

The Jackal himself is brilliantly portrayed as an heroic villain: almost robotic and often terrifying, yet there was a guilty thrill watching him stay one step ahead of the chasing authorities. Against him is the quiet French detective Lebel, tasked to track him down against overwhelming odds, and tensions run at fever pitch as the two get closer to meeting.

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. As a debut novel it is unsurpassed, and as a crime thriller it will suck you in and leave you breathless at the end.