The Untold Story of the Falcon and the Snowman (40th Anniversary Edition)

I absolutely recommend this book. It is so good that I could not put it down and read it in one day. It clearly shows the
insanity of our current parole process, the horrors of Federal Prisons, and the courage and bravery of Cait as she battles cancer
three times. An interesting, well written book about interesting people.

American Sons is everything the authors promised and more. I didn't just read the book, I walked in their shoes for a while. It's a can't put it down story of survival, of the fight for what's right and good, of love that survives impossible odds. Movie please!

One unsettling thing about the book is Christopher Boyce still seems to feel so sorry for himself. He writes a chapter pretty much whining on how hard it is for him to go into a bank as a customer, not a bank robber with a loaded gun. And he was such a polite bank robber too! But his story is interesting and told well enough.

Great book.2 very amazing individuals.Couldn't put it down.What an inspirational story.Would like to hear more from them.maybe another book.Vince's writting style made you feel in the story or that you know them personally.

As I devoured The Falcon & the Snowman, American Sons, a somewhat mis-titled book, telling
the story of one woman's determined - decades long - effort to win parole for two privileged
Southern California Watergate-era potheads turned convicted spies, The Band's great hit, "Up on Cripple Creek"
came to mind,

"Up on Cripple Creek she sends me
If I spring a leak she mends me
I don't have to speak, she defends me
A drunkard's dream if I ever did see one ..."

Replace "drunkard" with "jailbird" and I think you nail what the woman in question, Cait Mills
- the Rhonda Fleming of prisoner advocates, red-haired and gorgeous - truly meant to Daulton Lee & Chris Boyce,
two US Bureau of Prison tenants whose leases were of the verrrrrry long-term variety - as in "Life" and "65 years."

Cait Mills tells her story (and in quite earthy - take no bs from anybody - tones too.)
Because of her dedication and determination, both breathed free air at least a decade sooner
than would have been the case otherwise. Buried in the bowels of the US prison system probably even longer.
To say both men owe their lives to her would not be an overstatement - even slightly.

As a guy who's a few years younger (but by now maybe that should just be "less old") than Boyce & Lee,
I still remember clearly following the original news story. How it hit so disconcertingly
close to home when it broke right around the time of the original "Scared Straight" documentary.

A typical 1970s white punk on dope (not hard core but not too far removed either) the thought of
being locked up forEVER - I mean what's the difference when you're that young and hear the number or years
they both got? - the nightmarish reality of doing hard time sent a shudder down my spine.

And as the years went by I tried to follow the story. Especially after "the Falcon" made national headlines
again by escaping some prison out in California.
Wasn't easy to do in the pre-Internet days; but I read the two Robert Lindsey books each more than once,
and on occasion would hear news. The movie. The congressional hearing testimony. I think I even recall Boyce
getting interviewed by Ted Koppel on Nightline.

Speaking of the film, the soundtrack, by Pat Metheny & keyboard genius Lyle Mays,
stands out as an epic disc on its own. I wondered what it's like to have a song
in your name as Daulton and Chris each do. Stunningly good musical compositions as well.
I do think they'd both trade that privilege for the time behind bars tho. In a heartbeat.

25+ years ago now, but to me back then, Chris Boyce was a buccaneer; and I lived somewhat vicariously
thru his daring deeds. Him a post-Nixonian Willie Sutton. Me a Ronnie Reagan era Walter Mitty.
I cheered Boyce on but it was from the safe, soft cushion of a Lazyboy recliner (Levon Helm et al on the stereo
as I turned paperback pages between slugs from a cold bottle of beer.)

Who knew from Cait Mills tho?
And turns out she's the real star of the show. Entering the play after Act I was over - the books and the movie -
she's a real life heroine if I ever read of one.

A brassy dame with bal ... 'er make that gumption ... enough to get the original hanging judge
(and he said he really would've if he could've) to write a parole endorsement letter
to the board considering Lee's bid for early release.

Cait Mills was there for Boyce & Lee when I'm betting neither thought he'd ever see the free side
of a prison wall again.

The book's a love story too. And I mean as in Ali McGraw / Ryan O'Neal Love Story style.
Only with a happier ending. And good for Cait because her story and her efforts certainly deserve it.
Sounds like she did break a snowman's heart along the way, but walking out of a prison gate a free man
must have salved the guy's wounds some. Better to have loved and paroled than never gotten sprung at all.
Pardon me Lord Tennyson. (And thank you Google search I thought it was Will Shakespeare.)

The only - glaring - omission in an otherwise good read is that Boyce leaves out the part about
his exploits on the lam as a lumberjack John Dillinger, pulling hit&run bank jobs up in the Pacific Northwest.
Sticking loaded handguns in women bank tellers' faces ain't very romantic tho, so makes sense
that chapter got left out. The seamy side of the story no doubt but kinda a gaping hole in the saga
you ask me.

Not to end this review on a snarky note, tho.
American Sons is well written, bouncing back & forth between time frames and storytellers' perspectives,
a few unexpected twists & turns too. The cliche holds, it is a "page turner." With pics and even
a hand drawn map of Chris's uber-ballsy prison break. A high point of the book for me for sure.

And it was gratifying to read two guys from the right side of the tracks survived what
must've been a living hell for them. I guess the moral of the story is "hang in there" you never know ...
an angel (with a law library card) might just turn up.

No joke tho, here's to Cait Mills Boyce - a rare bird indeed. Two SoCal cons were very damn lucky she decided to
fly into their lives. May all three, Boyce, Lee, & Boyce (nee Mills) long enjoy the freedom of their days.

This book equals,if not exceeds, the original spy saga. A whimsical yet almost unbelievable story that seems like a work of fiction due to its bizarre happenings,nonetheless, it is very real! A history lovers delight!

Read the first book. Was glad to read this sequel and get the update. Pretty compelling read showing the obstacles that can be overcome with lots of persistence, a great partner in Cait and a bit of luck.

Rich S - Naperville, IL

Just finished the book today. It was fantastic, I could barely put it down. What a remarkable story. Whatever folks may think about the choices Chris made in life, nobody could argue that this isn't a compelling, very well told story.

Completely new to this infamous, but true tale, I wondered how interested I'd be in this story and was surprised to find from day one that I couldn't put it down. This book paints an alluring & clear picture of each character. Beautifully written, full of emotion and a compelling story. I highly recommend this book!

Simply put, I found this book both instructive and inspiring.
The story is heartbreaking.
The writing is compelling and brutally honest.
The reality of our prison system is dehumanizing and infuriating.
Read it if you dare.
It may change the way you think about a lot of things.

After reading the Falcon and The Snowman I wanted to read the "untold story" and it did not disappoint.
It's been awhile since I read it so it's hard to remember all the details. I do remember that I found it very interesting and was happy that I chose to read it.

The plot line about a surfer wahine springing three people from tombs of one sort or another (prison, cancer) proved surprisingly compelling. Also an interesting update on a tortured soul known as @codenamefalcon. A one-of-a-kind, even epic story, artfully woven from distinct voices, across a real-life tableau to eclipse Forrest Gump. Give the gift of hope: a story of freedom against all odds. #controversial #edgy #uplifting #ultraviolence

A really really great book. Anyone who was a fan or interested in the case involving chris Boyce and Andrew daulton must read this book. The book and movie of "falcon and the snowman" is a really amazing story of two friends who sold secrets to the Russians. But the movie and book leave a lot of questions unanswered. This book tells the story about life after the book and movie. It's amazing that Chris Boyce was able to come out of jail with any bit of sense after being in solitary confinement for years and years with no man contact.

What an amazing story. Here in Australia I recall seeing the 'Sixty Minutes' interview that is spoken about in the book. It was very significant to me because of the political implications. But leaving all that behind this book was a journey. An emotional roller coaster ride that took you to the depths of human endurance and released you with a hope for a better world. Thank-you Cait, Thank-you Chris. Thank-you Andrew. God bless you all.

At first I thought the writing was..........different, but after seeing the interview on CNN I realized that the writing is just how Christopher Boyce speaks and that makes the book very personal. Kate Boyce did not speak much during the interview but her portions of the book were very concise and informative. I have been somewhat obsessed with this story since the onset and this book answered many questions I had. Thank you for writing this book and may the remainder of your life be lived in relative peace, quiet and happiness. You have paid your price and then some.

I was engrossed from the very first chapter and found myself feeling the emotions, highs & lows throughout....never wanting it to end. I'd been following this story for decades, yet I happily discovered many things which I was unaware about, which made it all the more thrilling!
I thoroughly recommend this book to everyone.
I feel there is nothing better than non-fiction, that has heart & soul.
Please read and enjoy!

This book captures the emotion and feelings of the Chris & Cait as they separately (then together) work towards gaining Chris's release from jail and their building a life together, free from apprehension.

The clear dates and order of chapters provided good context for the events and emotions of the participants.

I have been intrigued with the story of "The Falcon and the Snowman" since I've first seen the movie of the same title in the late 80's. Personally I would like to hear more from Andrew Daulton Lee as I believe he has been marginalized or wrongly portrayed in the literature I have read (not this one). It's probably his personal wishes to put this ordeal behind him so I respect his desires if so.

This book is pretty straight forward and contains a lot of personal emotions with some facts related to the cases of each man. I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in the story with more personal insight.

The book was very vivid. The writer Vince Font did a fantastic job portraying Chris and Cait! I felt the emotions in every chapter. I had never read espionage before, nor did I think I would ever enjoy it! But I did and highly recommend this fantastic book!

I found myself not wanting to put it down. Feeling the emotion and getting the visual of every thought and situation that they went through. Even getting a giggling from situations that had occurred. This is such a great book.

I enjoyed the book and I appreciated the honesty. However I don't understand the last chapter where Chris burns the letter to daulton, but is able to remember every word that was written? Did Chris and daulton ever speak again?

Having followed The Falcon and the Snowman in the previous two published books when they were first published I snapped this one up as soon as I came across it . I was not disappointed. Basically it picks up where the Flight of the Falcon leaves off but it cover Chris's prison account including his escape and capture from his perspective. I chose the book because it was about Chris, but was captivated by it because of Cait. Wow, what a lady; her dogged determination, brilliance of getting things done - no matter what the obstacle is what makes this book great. Without Cait, Chris's story would have ended in the mid 80's, never to be heard from again. You're one lucky dude.

Its interesting that the information he passed on to the Soviets was of no use to them, but yet he had to spend over 25 years in prison because he leaked info regarding our spying on our Australian counterparts.

The story of his escape and Cait's perseverance would make a much better movie than Falcon and the Snowman which is a 4 star movie. I hope that he is able to capitalize on his life story and I'm sure with Cait behind him its a given that he will.

I wish he and Cait had picked a better writing partner as the book could have flowed better given someone with better writing skills than Vince Font. The editor owns this mistake.

I was disappointed with the book. I was hoping to hear more about Chris' time when he was on the loose. There was too much about the romance between Chris and Cait. More of the details about exactly was done to get him paroled. Also, what is he doing now as a free man?

Lynnette B. Cullen

Having lived where Boyce was in a federal prison I was intrigued about the espionage and break out. I read the 2 previous books about Lee and Boyce. This book gives details of things from Cait who fights for their release.

There is no untold story. Yes, the sentence was unduly harsh. Yes, federal prisons are not a place I'd want to spend 10 minutes let alone over 10 years. But there was no new information regarding the case against them.

this book is written by two authors, chris boyce and his wife, cait boyce. however, it would have been better if it was just written by chris alone. the chapters written by cait were irrelevant, poorly written and ruined the momentum of the story. also, it was wholly unnecessary that the second half of the book was devoted to cait's cancer. if this story was left in the hands of a more capable writer it would have made a thrilling read.

I first encountered Cait Boyce on a Facebook group for women sailors. We struck up a friendship based on our mutual love for our boats, color, humor and compassion. She’s an amazing woman. Somewhere along the way she asked: ‘you do know who I’m married to, right?’ I hadn’t thought about it, but when I remembered her husband’s first name was Chris, the penny dropped.

I’m of an age to remember the drama surrounding the Falcon and the Snowman. The cold war was in full swing, and the USSR was our sworn enemy. Two young punks, as they were then characterized, sold us out to the bad guys, or so the story went. With any narrative, there are always elements of ‘he said, she said’. Somewhere in the middle is the truth.

The first thing that struck me about this story was Chris’ description of how he was vetted for the highly sensitive position he occupied – he wasn’t. As another reviewer commented, hopefully Chris’ testimony to the Senate caused them to review their practices. Obviously, had there been any serious oversight, Lee would not have passed muster, given his questionable personal life to that point.

Moving along, I read with a growing sense of horror of Boyce and Lee’s interminable months in solitary confinement – under the guise of being for their ‘safety’. Subconsciously I guess I knew things like this occurred in our penal system, but the scope of the inhumanity floored me.

As far as personalities, suffice it to say my respect, admiration, and fondness for Cait, increased ten-fold. Her parts of the story are told in the first person, and her delightful wit comes through loud and clear. I found myself chuckling often as I read her internal monologues about Boyce and Lee. Even though I know her now, years later, her recurring battle with cancer made me pray she’d make it through.

Chris’ portions are third person narratives. From the anecdotal evidence I have, I should have expected this. I’m guessing that he’s a man of a few well-chosen words. I can only imagine how incredibly difficult lack of access to the outdoors must have been for the falconer.

For me, Lee is a challenging person for whom to have any empathy. He comes across as petty, pretty much always blaming others and accepting no blame himself. I have to credit Cait on her ability to retain a sense of humor during her sessions with him. I’m pretty sure I would have smacked him.

I wasn’t excited about reading this book – call it a labor of love. I’m truly happy, however, that I did. It has opened my eyes to some hard realities that exist in this weary world of ours. I plan to now go back and read Robert Lindsey’s two books about Boyce and Lee. Bravo to Cait, Chris and Vince on a well-crafted offering!

I was in elementary school when our town was thrust into the national spotlight following the arrests of locals Christopher Boyce and Daulton Lee. I didn't understand it then. I saw the film Falcon and the Snowman when I was in my teens--loved it but totally missed what I now see was a heroic effort on Boyce's part to expose the CIA's immoral and illegal manipulation of other countries to the extent of unseating legally elected Heads of State. How many young adults in the 70's were selflessly willing to expose the ugly truth? One in particular, Christopher Boyce.

American Sons tells the story of what happened to Boyce and Lee following their arrests as seen through the eyes of Boyce and the attorney (Cait Boyce, now married to Boyce) who dedicated her own life towards getting their early parole against impossible odds.

Miserable prison conditions, Boyce's escape and recapture and amazing Cait in the middle, keeping Boyce and Lee alive by giving them hope and ultimately, their freedom.

American Sons is written with clarity and honesty. The intense emotion and drama is almost understated, certainly without embellishment as it needed none. I found it hard to put down and when I did take a break, I realized I really needed it. That's how powerful it is.

Boyce was ahead of his time and a true American for wanting to expose the very wrong turn our Government has taken. We should be grateful for his efforts. Lee, too, though I'm less clear as to what his motivation had been, Boyce clearly feels responsible for his involvement and both suffer from what became of their friendship. Cait, a miracle worker who's life was destined to intersect theirs, eventually finding peace, love and partnership with Boyce. What an amazingly honest and totally unsappy love story. The best.

Update of my review for the store.com. I was notified by the store that Cait had made a comment about my review which the store took down because it didn't abide by their guidelines. More than 50% of the 5 Star ratings for this book, the "reviewers" only reviewed this book. An author friend I know asked her friends to go onto the store.com and write a review of her book, hoping for better sales. I advised her not to that as it becomes obvious with two or three sentences of review, many times not well written themselves and all 5 Star; it comes across as the author's friends doing it.

I'd rather read a few more in depth reviews; and get the balance from there to make my decision to read or not to read the book. I see this author on a few other reviews that were not 5 Star jumped in and defensively commented on the reviewer's review. I would advise authors not to do that. Coming across as attacking book reviewers does not seem like a good move to get readers to read your book.

I enjoy reading reviews from folks both negative and positive that has meat to the details, are well written that I can get a picture of both the book and the reviewer. Then I make my decision. For me seeing the gaps in a book intrigues me. I get curious about authors myself. I've sometimes enjoyed a memoir written by an author more than I liked their books. Like Michael Crichton's memoir; it also showed me where his stories came from, the root in his life's adventures.

Here's my original review:

The book was chunky, has sectional pieces from future to past, back to future and at times written in third person narrative; at times first person narrative. Having had a relative in the 1980s who worked on a secret project in northern California, those young employees disaffected by their jobs as well as Boyce had been; who bored would poke their supervisor by making jokes, like being on the phone speaking in "spy voices" and say, "The Snow is Cold"; running across this book intrigued me.

Finding this book disjointed as well as it really doesn't say much about Andrew Daulton Lee today except basically that he's OK, even though the title of the book prominently lures the reader in with "...American Sons". Something seemed missing about how Cait first came into this story to begin with about two upper middle class kids in California so I went and read Robert Lindsey's 1979 book, "The Falcon and the Snowman" and his 1983 book "The Flight of the Falcon". I watched the DVD film as well.

Robert Lindsey wrote on page 314 of his 1983 book: "Andrew Daulton Lee, Christopher Boyce's childhood friend and partner in espionage, also made plans to be married, to a woman who had read about him in "The Falcon and the Snowman" and had written an unsolicited letter to him in prison offering to help him fight for a new trial. But the effort to obtain a new trial failed, and prison authorities rejected his application to marry..."

Who is Cait, the Cait who went out of her way for over a decade to be involved with both these men? The book doesn't answer that. That the book came out 2013 after Edward Snowden blew the whistle may say more about the timing and motivational factors of this book's appearance. It is clear Chris Boyce was not or is not a whistle blower. A whistle blower goes public to we the people of the USA not to the KGB of the Soviet Union. He could have blown the whistle to at least Australia, but instead he went to the KGB to sell CIA documents. That is not a whistle blower.

In her book she wrote to Chris Boyce on July 31, 1982 and this letter is confusing as to the kind of questions she asked him as they were not pieces of information for a parole hearing it seemed, but as Lindsey wrote, more like questions for a new trial which ties it in the quote from Lindsey's book. Cait's original offer of help was for a new trial?

Cait's book hypes up Chris' ill treatment, danger in prison and being put into solitary.

From Lindsey's "Flight of the Falcon" book on page 315 after getting recaptured and put back in prison: "He was a celebrity who seemed to enjoy his special status and his sense of humor and boyish shyness seldom failed to ingratiate the people who guarded him." Lindsey goes on to report that after being on Australia's "60 Minutes" where Chris expressed contempt for the CIA and USA, the Aryan Brotherhood in prison beat him up; and he was transferred and put in solitary so he wouldn't be killed. While in prison he enrolled in a Russian language course. From page 318 of Lindsey's book Chris sent a representative to the Soviet consulate in San Francisco to make a proposal to the Soviets to help him by making exchange; to get him out of prison and to the Soviet Union. The Soviets made no response to his appeal.

Cait writes about the letter she wrote to Chris. When she told Daulton about this letter; there is nothing in the book that Daulton demanded to read the letter which seems highly unusual given the picture we have of Daulton in Lindsey's book. Daulton does not seem to be a shy man. He comes off repeatedly as being aggressive and demanding. This is a guy who slipped through the Soviet gates in Mexico City a number of times after the Soviet KGB told him to "stop" coming there! He'd want to read that letter.

Some of the stories don't make sense in this book. Cait is having some mysterious meeting with a guy named Guy Blake in a parking lot, a police car suddenly is there, the spotlight glaringly on both of them; she talks to the police then looks back to mystery guy and he isn't there. Made me think of the scene from "All the President's Men" where Deep Throat disappeared on Woodward in the parking garage. It seems the police man would have reacted to mystery guy running off.

Then the story of Chris going into the bank and getting $17,000.00 in cash for Cait ends with the two bank tellers looking at each other after Chris leaves the bank, making an odd comment about him. How does the author or authors know this?

Lindsey's book reports that Daulton finally got off of drugs in prison. That book tells us both knew from the first sentencing they could be out on parole by 1995. Daulton was doing his time and Chris escaped into what looks like another persona, bank robber in the wild wild West holed up in Idaho. Chris in his time at TRW was reading spy novels. I was looking for who Chris really was in all these books; and he doesn't seem to be there.

From Cait's book we know Chris came out of prison into having to do mundane, working man type jobs and to his credit he wants to do them; and it appears she is the breadwinner taking care of him. She stands by her man.

We don't know about Daulton except he's seems to be very much still within his family and worked for Sean Penn for at least awhile; hung out with Sean and Madonna. Daulton's family was the wealthier family of the two; and from Lindsey's book the parents seemed well aware of his drug running capitalist company venture; but the shock when they found out it wasn't only drugs but this other thing against the USA, selling classified documents to the Soviet Union; as Daulton's father had been FBI. Yes, two fascinating if incomplete stories here. Daulton's father died the day after Daulton started his prison sentence in 1977.

Cait's book is probably more fascinating for what it doesn't say or share. When did her plan to marry Daulton flop over to marrying Chris? If some deep abiding love was unfolding there are no love letters in the book that manifest such a fairy tale. The marriage proposal itself falls short of fairy tale. Who is Chris Boyce seems yet unanswered and unknown.

In the mental health circles at least when these kids were young the manual for diagnosing folks said you could not diagnose anti-social personality in kids because being anti-social was not pathological in kids, it was deemed a normal developmental stage. Then who gets stuck at that stage? Kids who don't get consequences for anti-social behavior which seems to fit both of these "kids". Wealth has its privilege as well as Daulton's attorney we learn from Lindsey's book was THE attorney to those upper crust young drug dealer entrepreneurs from the '70s.

Another later study found that convicts those with repeat bad behavior who got consequences of prison for that behavior; that in their forties their anti-social behaviors seemed to dissipate. They left prison and became just citizens obeying the social laws of their communities. The study found they'd finally gotten enough consistent consequences that they finished moving through that developmental stage and into adulthood.

From Cait's book and reading the other two it's not clear if she had that big of an impact. She counsels Daulton on going before the parole board, "You need a better act of contrition". This to a young man who had a whole repertoire of contrition acts if you read the other two books that got him released time and time again. Certainly that suggestion could not have been new to Daulton.

Cait had guts in contacting the judge to write a letter of recommendation. She researched the judge's background, found out he liked tennis; and Daulton was a good tennis player in prison; she let the judge know that; seeming to perhaps think that commonality might be the ticket that would cause the judge to write such a recommendation? But it may have been just the work Daulton did in prison that moved the judge not the tennis playing? He'd become a dental technician, good behavior; she basically just put together his resume and identified other justice type officials who recommended parole.

From her book it was Daulton himself who gave Cait the key to Chris' getting out by suggesting she compare other spies like Earl Edwin Pitts and James Nicholson who got lighter sentences and that helped get Boyce out.

Christopher Boyce has been out over ten years and maybe like that study he finally moved through his adolescent anti-social development stage has passed into adulthood and a life of being taken care of by his wife; having his falcons which continue to have a meaningful, peaceful place in his life; and a happy marriage which ties up the ending to the Falcon part of the story.

The Snowman part of the story isn't complete in this book, in my opinion; and that leaves me curious. From the photos included in the book, non-verbally it looks like Daulton is the happier and more outgoing of the two men?

If you are intrigued by gaps in stories read this book along with Robert Lindsey's other two books.

Although both authors probably got too involved personally with their subject matter in writing their books, Lindsey's is probably the more objective, detailed book, both of his books flow better in terms of trying to follow the narrative storyline.

The gaps is his book seem to be that he was not in a position to investigate the family history of both these young men's families or perhaps the families would not have cooperated with him?

Well written, I'll give it that. But ***completely*** self-serving to both Boyce and Lee. Boyce pointed guns at people, he robbed banks. That the victims of those crimes reportedly forgave him,.... so what? Boyce is violent man who (with a lot of help from Cait) has gamed the system to gain his freedom, when he should be rotting in prison.

Prisons were made exactly for people like Boyce. That's where he should be.

I rarely do reviews but feel compelled to write one for this book. My family and I have followed Chris and Daulton's story since it first broke. I still remember reading it in the LATimes. My family and the Boyce's family had a friend in common and we saw first hand the anguish and sorrow that it caused this family friend. We lived in Manhattan Beach and had friends and family who worked at TRW. The fallout to the families, friends, coworkers and the community cannot be understood unless you lived through it.

I found the book both fascinating and disappointing. I am not sorry that I read it, only that I have the distinct feeling that despite the "tell all" nature of the book there is much more that has been left out. Christopher Boyce remains an enigma. He is a quiet, introspective man and is probably exposing himself to this scrutiny so as to earn a bloody buck. I don't blame him. I just feel sad that he has to open up to total strangers about a shameful and embarrassing past. There is a sense of self-serving, self censorship in the parts told by Chris. I am sure that this was done to protect himself and others from criminal liability. Daulton Lee remains a low rent criminal with better manners than most.

The most interesting and saddest parts were the prison tales of isolation, fear and paranoia. This is indeed cruel and unusual punishment. How he coped is beyond me.

Chris, I wish you a quiet and uneventful life filled with your birds, your dogs, and your friends. However, I have a feeling that this will haunt you till break free of these earthly shackles. Bon chance!

After several years of being limited to Robert Lindsey's interpretation of events surrounding Christopher Boyce and Daulton Lee, we finally have a book that gets us inside what really happened since all that went down. And the book is written by three authors, Christopher Boyce, his wife, Cait Boyce, and Vince Font. I have been fascinated by this story since I discovered it in the 90s. First of all, this book is well written. Despite having three different authors, it manages to maintain a flow and consistency that I imagine may have been difficult.

Some of the most intersting chapters in the book are Cait Boyce's. Her passages about the endless days and nights in the town of Lompoc really humanizes the experience of anyone who has had to travel miles, hours, maybe even days to visit friends and relatives in prison. Cait allows us to really feel the exerience of being an advocate for the forgotten buried inside the belly of the prison industrial complex.

This book not only touches on Christopher Boyce's exploits in espionage, it also touches on the inhuman and degrading conditions inside our federal prison complexes. I think that Chris' description of prison life should spur us all to action and cause the reader to question the purpose of prison. What are our prisons ultimately designed to do? Are we serious about rehabilitation or are we merely focused on retribution and incapacitation? And if the latter is the case, what type of human beings are we releasing back into society?

Another fundamental question American Sons brings into relief is the machinations of a foreign policy bent on domination of not only enemies, but also our "allies." And in light of recent events surrounding brave whistleblowers like Chelsea Manning and Edward Snowden, it serves as a warning and an educational--these things are not new to the 21st Century. The authors have done an excellent job in describing what happens when an individual confronts injustice, true injustice, on a sytemic level in the United States involving the criminal misdeeds of our intelligence agencies. Although I cannot condone or condemn Chris' actions, I ask what other avenues would have been available to him to seek redress? Furthermore, would those "legal" or "acceptable" channels have had the same impact? Would we be discussing them now? Would we even know about circumstances surrounding the overthrow of the Gough Whitlam government in Australia?

American Sons is a book born out of something that the US government has been doing and is still doing: overthrowing democratically elected governments to install coporate friendly dictators. Chris has paid a heavy price for exposing it in the manner that he did, but his writing and the writing of Cait Boyce and Vince Font has kept it in the national dialogue. This is important work.

Hopefully we will have a similar chance to read about the personal experiences of Ms. Manning and Mr. Snowden at some point in the near future. And, hopefully they will be as well written as this one.

This was an extremely well written book. I really enjoyed taking the journey with Chris as we pick up where the movie left off. There are a series of events that happen to Chris, and at times you wonder how one person could endure so much. No matter what I felt politically about the situation, I had nothing but empathy for a young man who made such powerful enemies. Let's just say I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. And yes, there are far worse criminals than Chris, and it did seem that his sentence was extreme. Thank God that Cait was paying attention to the sentencing guidelines. I'd say more but I don't want to give away any spoilers.

But I must admit that I loved the introspective journey Chris took and (without giving away any spoilers) the fact that was able to make peace with himself in the end. Highly recommended.

This was an extremely well written book. I really enjoyed taking the journey with Chris as we pick up where the movie left off. There are a series of events that happen to Chris, and at times you wonder how one person could endure so much. No matter what I felt politically about the situation, I had nothing but empathy for a young man who made such powerful enemies. Let's just say I wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy. And yes, there are far worse criminals than Chris, and it did seem that his sentence was extreme. Thank God that Cait was paying attention to the sentencing guidelines. I'd say more but I don't want to give away any spoilers.

But I must admit that I loved the introspective journey Chris took and (without giving away any spoilers) the fact that was able to make peace with himself in the end. Highly recommended.

This has always intrigued me. I lived in the area and am only slghtly older than Chris.

So, I DID want to know what happened.

This book told me. Utterly fascinating and it resolved most of my questions. Best to view his Senate testimony on YouTube just as you reach that part of the book. It gave me chills to see knowing what he was going through.

I'm not taking sides. But purely as history it is compelling.

This story told more than just facts but delved into the emotions of those involved. As I read the book I was like an outsider looking in and it gave more depth to to it. I would recommend this book to those who like endings that are truly beginnings.

A fascinating story for anyone interested in the people and events that inspired The Falcon and the Snowman. Adequately written but passionately told, Chris Boyce and his wife (and savior) Cait relate the story of Chris's escape, prison experience and eventual parole. The reader learns not only what happened, but what it felt like, how relationships were established (and fractured), and first-hand about the random cruelty of incarceration in America. There's a good amount about the authors' relationship and marriage, but it only adds to the story's personal quality. I'd like to hear more about what's become of Daulton Lee, but I guess this isn't really his book. Nevertheless, a gripping and compelling read.

Interesting book about the years after The Falcon and the Snowman for Lee and Boyce. It tells of Boyce's escape, their paroles, and Boyce's marriage. Good follow-up for those who enjoyed the original book.

I have a burning question about reviews.. Why do so many peoples reviews actually seem like they are narrating the book.. Sometimes after reading ones review you don't even need to read the book.. I just don't get that? and then of course the spoilers.. really? these are suppose to be comments about whether you liked the book or not... Just needed to get my annoyance out.. Thanks

I have long followed this story and am grateful that the Falcon broke his silence to complete the picture of his life since escaping from FCI Lompoc. I guess what's remarkable in this story--and what one wouldn't have known without its telling--is the incredibly good fortune both Daulton Lee and Chris Boyce had in having Cait Jones as the pitbull in their corner fighting for their parole. While Daulton Lee might still have been paroled without her able assistance (he was a model prisoner), there is no chance Boyce would have. She saved him and she is the real hero of this story. I read both Robert Lindsey books and even though I enjoyed those books very much for the action and the pacing, this book will give you a much deeper understanding of Boyce the human being. I feel likeI have a true sense of the personal Boyce, though Lee remains more of an enigma. Having personally delivered the final epitaph on his story through this book, may the Falcon live out his years in the peace and tranquility of Central Oregon, in the company of his birds and his bride. We as a society need ask nothing further of him. This story is done and he has had the last word.

Writer Vince Font did a brilliant job capturing the voices of Christopher and Cait Boyce...writing in a beautiful cinematic style that allows the reader to visualize the action as it unfolds.
Cait's struggle with cancer amid her efforts to free Boyce and Lee are heroic.
This story is more relevant than ever with Bradley Manning and Edward Snowden making headlines. But it's not a political book...it's a book about humanity, regret, struggle and love.
It would be a shame not to see this book turned into the long awaited sequel to the original movie.
It's a well crafted, expertly executed finale to the Christopher Boyce saga. I could not put it down.