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JAKE GIBBS

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Full Name: Jake Gibbs
Series Name: Patriot Spy
Nationality: American
Organization: Presidential Agent
Occupation Agent

Creator: Jim DeFelice
Time Span: 1995 - 1996

ABOUT THE SERIES

Jake Gibbs is an agent for the American President.

Actually that is totally inaccurate while still being true. Since the activities of this operative first take place in 1775 and there is not yet a country let along a Chief Executive, working for the President is wrong. However, as the first man to take that position would be George Washington and Gibbs is a spy working on that man's orders, it is also correct, albeit presumptive.

We come by these adventures of Gibbs on behalf of the budding nation by way of the discovery of "old manuscripts in the root cellar of an eighteenth century farm .. in upstate New York".

"The papers purport to document the adventures of a heretofore unknown Revolutionary War hero, Jake Gibbs. A member of George Washington's Secret Service, the Philadelphia native handled a wide range of duties during the war, from spying to sabotage. The son of a wealthy merchant in the apothecary or pharmaceutical trade, Gibbs was educated in England and served briefly as a secretary to Sir Guy Carleton, later the governor of Canada. In his early twenties during the war, he seems to have been part man of action, part scholar, part lady-killer."

Gibbs holds the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and when in his dress uniform, this handsome fellow presented an impressive image, especially to the ladies. He is definitely not just the looks, though, considering the actions that he takes part in on behalf of America's independence. Already before the first recorded adventure, we are told that "Gibbs' adventures in New York and the Jerseys this past month and a half alone were literally the equivalent and worth of three brigades: the first had been saved because his intelligence had helped it avoid an ambush, the second was not needed for his single-handed capture of a high-ranking British officer traveling behind the lines to Philadelphia, and the third had been freed from prison through his planning and leadership of a daring midnight raid on a small town near Brunswick."

Those exploits will be joined by even greater adventures and accomplishments as this son of New England will take his knowledge of the area and use it to combat England, a country he also loved but which chose to oppose to get independence in America.

BOOKS

Number of Books:3
First Appearance:1995
Last Appearance:1996

1 The Silver Bullet The Silver Bullet
Written by Jim DeFelice
Copyright: 1995

The date is May of 1777. Jake Gibbs is tasked by George Washington to infiltrate the British to travel to Montreal to learn what the plans of English General Burgoyne are. The orders are hidden inside a silver bullet and Gibbs' job is to get those orders and replace them with fake one.
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2 The Iron Chain The Iron Chain
Written by Jim DeFelice
Copyright: 1995

The date is June of 1777. Learning of a group of Tory rangers operating in the Hudson River Valley, Jake Gibbs goes back undercover to learn how that group is able to avoid the American barriers. When his identity is discovered, just staying alive is hard enough.
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3 The Golden Flask The Golden Flask
Written by Jim DeFelice
Copyright: 1996

It is the Summer of 1777. George Washington is in possession of a golden flask holding a potentially vital enemy message talking of a planned massive attack by the British. To counter it, he will have to commit all his troops. Is the message real, though, or a trap? Jake Gibbs must go again into enemy lands to learn the truth.
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MY COMMENTS

The publishers chose to refer to these three adventures in their blurbs as "rollicking, fast-paced adventures". Considering that the definition of that first word is "exuberantly lively and amusing", I would happily attest to the veracity of that description.

These are fun, exciting, and fast stories and it is not long before the reader finds himself (well, I did) deeply into each book and having no desire to stop. Gibbs is a great guy to follow as he is as adventurous as I would like to pretend I could be and even better with the ladies than I would aspire to.

But he is definitely not just a skirt-hound. This operative is serious about his missions and serving General Washington and he is very, very good at it.

The author would leave the historical adventure writing for far more serious storytelling, although most of it still deeply routed in spy fiction. It was in these later tales that I would learn what a terrific writer he is. I never knew until just recently what a deft hand he had with a bit of lighter fare such as these enjoyable adventures.

GRADE

My Grade: B+

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