The Phantom by Bob Drury and Tom Clavin ~ a Review

by Donna Huber

Soldier, spy, scout, saboteur, and French Resistance leader in the heart of Nazi-occupied Europe--the untold story of Marine legend Pete Ortiz.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

October 2026; St. Martin's Press; 978-1250285850
audio, ebook, print (352 pages); history

As  I became more enthralled with biographical fiction, particularly that set during WWII, I decided I needed to balance these fictionalized true stories with actual non-fiction accounts. About five years ago, I read Tom Clavin's Lightning Down: A World War II Story of Survival and noted that it had "the emotional connection of a novel with the factual information of nonfiction." I love espionage thrillers, so I jumped at his new book about "the American Marine the Nazis could not kill."

I have a little familiarity with the beginnings of the international spy organization that would become the CIA after reading John Lisle's book The Dirty Tricks Department. But Drury and Clavin cover a little bit different information and are more focused on one man.

The Phantom was a little harder to get into than I was expecting. There is plenty of action described throughout the book, but I didn't feel an immediate emotional connection to Pete Ortiz. And I think that is why it felt slow in the beginning. 

I realized while reading this book that I didn't know a lot about WWII as it pertained to North Africa. Most WWII books I've read are set in Europe, with a few in the Pacific Theater. I think I might have only read one book set in North Africa. I can't remember the exact novel, but I think it was about the Australian or New Zealand military. I digress.

I liked that I got a little more information about this part of the war. As Ortiz, who was a bit of a daredevil, was also in the French Foreign Legion before joining the U.S. Marines. I learned a lot about that organization. Outside of hearing about people being part of the French Foreign Legion, I didn't really know what it was. 

Like in Lightning Down. Clavin and Drury go down side roads to tell the stories of other people and set the scene while keeping Ortiz's story as the core. There is quite a bit about "Wild Bill" Donovan, who I knew of from other books, but I felt that they drew a slightly different picture because they focused on his relationship with top brass and Roosevelt. 

I'm again reminded of how much there is still to know and personal stories to hear from the WWII era.

If you like history, particularly military or WWII history, then this would be a great book for you. If you are prepping for Nonfiction November, be sure to add this book to your list.

Buy The Phantom at Amazon

Donna Huber is an avid reader and natural encourager. She is the founder of Girl Who Reads and the author of the how-to marketing book Secrets to a Successful Blog Tour.

Enjoyed this post? Never miss out on future posts by following us. Get even more book news in your inbox, sign up for our newsletter today! Or Follow Girl Who Reads with Bloglovin. Girl Who Reads is an Amazon advertising affiliate; a small commission is earned when purchases are made at Amazon using any Amazon links on this site. Thank you for supporting Girl Who Reads.