Simon & Schuster imprint wins bidding war for twist-filled memoir by U.S. intelligence officer tangled up in mysterious military program
EXCLUSIVE: Simon & Schuster imprint Gallery Books has won a bidding war for North American publishing rights to a twist-filled true story rooted in intrigue surrounding a U.S. Air Force program.
The logline for the memoir by Scott Andrews takes some time to unpack, but it’s a doozy. Andrews is a former senior U.S soldier and decorated intelligence officer who conducted global counterterrorism operations on behalf of the United States during a 36-year military career. Shortly after returning from an overseas mission, he began to suffer from rare, life-threatening ailments that defied medical explanation. Rather than succumbing, he instead began to experience special, inexplicable abilities such as remote viewing, and his body began to heal, baffling doctors.
As he sought more information about his health, Andrews came across a file compiled for him by his late father. It contained records from a past he did not remember, including documents indicating he was removed from school for weeks every year, from the first through 12th grades. The records also contained a shocker, that he received an honorable discharge from the U.S Air Force and worked in space intelligence communications as a minor. Andrews maintains he has no memory of having served in the U.S Air Force.
Referred to a classified White House National Security Council program, which had been delegated to the Department of Defense, Andrews then met a man who ran the highly classified program, who introduced him to a doctor. The doctor had worked for the CIA and had expertise enabling him to help Andrews start to piece together what has happened to him and others like him. Soon after connecting with the doctor, Andrews says he experienced symptoms associated with the Havana Syndrome, a phenomenon first reported by military personnel working at the U.S. Embassy in Havana, Cuba, in 2016. The syndrome has generated significant media attention in top-tier outlets including 60 Minutes and The New York Times in recent years. An investigation went on to determine that Andrews had been targeted with an advanced energy weapon.
The memoir is repped by manager and producer Dan Farah, who is also handling life rights and producing the adaptation for film or TV, as well as book agent Yfat Reiss Gendell of YRG Partners. Foreign publishing rights will be shopped at next week’s London Book Fair.