The Day of the Jackal(1971)

Frederick Forsyth

In the spring of 1963, after the last conventional attempt to assassinate President de Gaulle had failed, Colonel Marc Rodin, Operations Chief of the OAS, launched the plan of the Jackal.

The Jackal was an anonymous Englishman who came literally within an inch of destroying de Gaulle and possibly changing the course of world history. Frederick Forsyth's brilliantly researched novel reveals how the assassin was recruited; how much he was paid; the intricate planning that went into the attempt; the international security net that was set up (but failed) to trap him; the fantastic chase across the Continent in which he kept only a step ahead of his pursuers; and the unprecedented security measures the French were compelled to adopt to save the President from the most ruthless assassin known to modern times.