Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Gray Work: Confessions of an American Paramilitary Spy
    Gray Work: Confessions of an American Paramilitary Spy
    Gray Work: Confessions of an American Paramilitary Spy
    Audiobook15 hours

    Gray Work: Confessions of an American Paramilitary Spy

    Written by Jamie Smith

    Narrated by Jeff Gurner

    4/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    The first ever, first-person story of America's private, paramilitary contractors at work around the world-from a man who performed these missions himself and has decades of stories to tell. This is a fascinating tale-and potentially the first-to describe the work of American contractors, men who run highly dangerous missions deep inside foreign countries on the brink of war. It will lift the veil and detail the ultimate danger and risk of paramilitary operations (both officially government-sanctioned and not) and show us in very intimate terms exactly what private soldiers do when the government can't act or take public responsibility. GRAY WORK combines covert military intelligence with boots-on-the-ground realism, following Jamie Smith through his CIA training and work as a spy in the State Department, to his co-founding of Blackwater following 9/11, to his decision to leave that company. As the founder and director of Blackwater Security, Smith's initial vision has undeniably shaped and transformed a decade of war. He argues that this gray area-and its warriors who occupy the controversial space between public and private-has become an indispensable element of the modern battlefield.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperAudio
    Release dateJun 30, 2015
    ISBN9780062433442
    Gray Work: Confessions of an American Paramilitary Spy
    Author

    Jamie Smith

    Jamie Smith is a veteran bike racer and bike race announcer. He has been a bike racer since 1983 working his way up through the ranks of amateur cycling, and a bike race announcer since 1985 traveling with some of the world's greatest cyclists. He spent several years in public relations for a sleepy Detroit suburb, receiving one Emmy nomination and several Telly Awards. Writing repetitive press releases and boring speeches inspired him to find something more exciting to write about: bike racing. A graduate of Central Michigan University's Broadcast and Cinematic Arts program, Jamie has become adept at describing cycling's most complex intricacies to normal people. His first book, Roadie: The Misunderstood World of a Bike Racer, was selected as a 2009 Notable Book by the Library of Michigan. He has since taken on the role of sport director to translate the complexities of bike racing for befuddled bike racers who mistakenly chase down their own teammates, miss the winning breakaway, and consistently finish one place out of the money. He currently lives in Rochester, Michigan, with his 11 bikes, 2 surfboards, 1 rowing scull, and 5 pair of cross-country skis.

    Related to Gray Work

    Related audiobooks

    Wars & Military For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      THE secret LIFE OF A CIA AGENT

      Dec 30, 2019

      THE secret LIFE OF A CIA AGENT
      7 min read

    • Article

      The Moscow Rules

      Apr 14, 2020

      The Moscow Rules
      2 min read

    • Article

      I, Spy

      Aug 7, 2018

      Many things happened to me for the first time on a night in April 1944. I rode in a Black Maria; I jumped from a bomber with a tangled parachute; and I began my mission in wartime France as a British secret agent. We drove in the Black Maria from Int

      17 min read

    • Article

      Vietnam My Son, The Soldier

      Sep 1, 2021

      Vietnam My Son, The Soldier
      9 min read

    • Article

      Holy Week: Overcome

      Mar 14, 2023

      Holy Week: Overcome
      24 min read

    • Article

      From Hell To The Heavens

      Oct 12, 2021

      From Hell To The Heavens
      8 min read

    • Article

      From Hell To The Heavens

      Oct 12, 2021

      From Hell To The Heavens
      8 min read

    • Article

      From Hell To The Heavens

      Oct 12, 2021

      From Hell To The Heavens
      8 min read

    • Article

      Quotients

      May 7, 2020

      Quotients
      8 min read

    • Article

      Suffer The Little Children

      Dec 24, 2019

      Suffer The Little Children
      4 min read

    • Article

      Exit Plans

      Mar 15, 2024

      Exit Plans
      7 min read

    • Article

      Exit Plans

      Mar 15, 2024

      Exit Plans
      7 min read

    • Article

      Letters

      Jan 5, 2022

      CONTACT US BY POST: PO BOX 1200, WHITSTABLE CT1 9RH, OR E-MAIL SIEVEKING@FORTEANTIMES.COM PLEASE PROVIDE US WITH YOUR POSTAL ADDRESS I have submitted an account of strange occurrences in my house [‘Hexham fairies’, FT380:76, June 2019] and I read “It

      10 min read

    • Article

      A LIFE OF WANDER & WONDER

      Jul 27, 2018

      A LIFE OF WANDER & WONDER
      10 min read

    • Article

      Gunsapalooza!

      Apr 13, 2023

      Gunsapalooza!
      21 min read

    • Article

      HOUSE OF horror

      Jan 21, 2020

      HOUSE OF horror
      4 min read

    • Article

      Kidnapped!

      Mar 8, 2023

      Kidnapped!
      5 min read

    • Article

      Who Murdered Tupac Shakur? Only One Man Knows For Sure

      Aug 6, 2023

      The 1990s music scene produced two moments of great darkness. If the 1994 death of Kurt Cobain somehow symbolised young white alienation, the murder of Tupac Shakur two years later continues to resonate, not just because it was another deep and painf

      11 min read

    • Article

      It Happened To Me…

      Feb 23, 2023

      It Happened To Me…
      5 min read

    • Article

      In Search Of Sanctuary

      Jan 5, 2024

      In Search Of Sanctuary
      16 min read

    • Article

      One Morning in Baghdad

      Mar 20, 2018

      One Morning in Baghdad
      10 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Gray Work

    4/5

    64 ratings11 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 1/5
      I was really enjoying this book until I read several news stories about the author. Look this guy up, apparently he was never a CIA operative, did not attend Harvard, and was never a navy SEAL. According to several news articles he was booted out of the national guard for refusing to train.

      4 people found this helpful

    • 1/5
      Jamie Smith is a proven fraud. He was never in the CIA, or Navy SEALs. He defrauded a couple of all their money to start his business and was taken to court by them. All of his stories are total fiction. This is not my opinion- it has been well documented by several journalists and state bodies. This book should be in the fiction section

      2 people found this helpful

    • 1/5
      Garbage. I smell bullshit a mile away. So much so that I had to stop and do a little digging into this... and wouldn't ya know, he's a fraud.
    • 1/5
      Given that the author is now being questioned about his business dealings, scamming people out of money and not getting the training they expected, not at all surprising that this book reads like one man's personal pipe dream.
    • 1/5
      Poorly written. Too bad, because the stories could have been interesting.
    • 1/5
      All fake. Research this guy. He made it all up and defrauded people of their hard earned money.
    • 1/5
      Reads like a prepubescent day dream, a waste of time.
    • 5/5
      Great book. Very insightful on contract work for the government.
    • 3/5
      I thought it was ok. Based on controversy surrounding the author I have to take this with a grain of salt.
    • 2/5
      About as true to life as a James Bond novel. Double-oh-nothing: the Spy Who Lied to Me. Some sort of recruitment/propaganda piece for the CIA and the US government in general.

      ...still, it's so over the top and ridiculous, it's kind of entertaining. It's the story of Jamie McBadAss, a true god fearing American Patriot spreading Freedom to the middle-east with bullets and gritty one-liners. The way he writes himself into every important historic event makes me think of Forest Gump except as if it was written by Andy McNab. It's full of many biographical elements and needless dramatisation including dialogue and an omniscient narrator.

      The author has no self-awareness. He's making scathing comments about foreigners (or as he calls them: bad guys) being savage religious zealots who are the only thing stopping this world from being heaven on earth (them and Obama) whilst himself name dropping Jesus every other line and promising his second coming like some crazed prophet who just happens to make a living from *killing people for money*.
    • 4/5
      Smith makes a compelling argument for the continued use of private contractors in today’s world of political and military unrest. His story is an interesting one as he describes how he worked for the CIA and from there became involved in the increasing world of private contractors in a variety of settings. His story is more interesting than fictionalized stories in the same venue because his tales are true, at least as far as his telling can be. I enjoyed the different perspective he provides for events in history and see where much can be learned from those working outside the box.