While researching and writing Quantico, I read and referred to a number of fascinating works about law enforcement, bio-terror, and terrorism in general, as well as the FBI. Here’s a large selection of the most important references you’ll find on my shelf, sorted by topic:

The FBI

THE BUREAU: Inside the Modern FBI by Diarmuid Jeffreys, Houghton Mifflin, 1995. Companion volume to the PBS series Inside the FBI. Brisk and informative, still a fine introduction and overview, although there have been many changes at the Agency since it was written.

THE BUREAU: The Secret History of the FBI by Ronald Kessler, St. Martin’s Press, 2002. A thorough and fascinating examination of the nation’s premier federal law enforcement agency. Kessler’s earlier book, THE FBI (Pocket Books, 1993), remains useful.

A G-MAN’S JOURNAL by Oliver “Buck” Revell, Pocket Books, 1998. An insider’s point of view, intelligent, swift, and on many issues, remarkably candid. Revell’s actions and career are examined in critical detail by Kessler and Jeffreys (above).

SPECIAL AGENT: My Life on the Front Lines as a Woman in the FBI by Candice DeLong, Hyperion, 2001. A candid professional autobiography. DeLong is often interviewed on television news shows. A key reference for constructing the life and career of Quantico’s Agent Rebecca Rose.

NO BACKUP: Battling the Kidnappers, Terrorists, and the Destructive Culture that Handcuffs the Bureau by Rosemary Dew and Pat Pape, Carroll and Graf, 2004. Another key volume to help understand the experience of female FBI agents. A sometimes infuriating critique of major cultural problems within the FBI. Compare with Thomas Harris’s view of a male-oriented FBI in his Lecter novels.

COLD ZERO: Inside the FBI Hostage Rescue Team by Christopher Whitcomb, Little, Brown 2001. Excellent source for the internal voice and psychology of a dedicated agent.

TAINTING EVIDENCE: Inside the Scandals at the FBI Crime Lab by John F. Kelly and Phillip K. Wearne, Free Press, 1998. Another aspect of FBI internal practices and culture, examined critically.

You can’t understand the FBI without understanding J. Edgar Hoover, one of the strangest, most capable, most flawed, and most powerful men in American history. Two excellent biographies of Hoover are:

SECRECY AND POWER: the Life of J. Edgar Hooverby Richard Gid Powers, Free Press, 1987.

THE BOSS: J. Edgar Hoover and the Great American Inquisition by Athan G. Theoharis and John Stuart Cox, Temple University Press, 1998.

Theoharis has also put together:

THE FBI: A Comprehensive Reference Guide by Athan G. Theoharis with Tony G. Poveda, Susan Rosenfeld, and Richard Gid Powers, Checkmark Books/Facts on File, 2000. Thorough and very useful.

Would-be agents might refer to:

FBI CAREERS: The Ultimate Guide to Landing a Job as One of America’s Finest by Thomas H. Ackerman, JIST Works, 2002. Lots of info on hiring and training, preparation and education, as well as an assessment of the FBI as an employer.

Law Enforcement Beyond the FBI

COPS: Their Lives in Their Own Words by Mark Baker, 1985, Simon and Schuster. Excellent view from the inside. Again, there have been changes in law enforcement since it was written, but it still shows what it’s like for the people who wear the uniforms.

THE SECRET SERVICE: The Hidden History of an Enigmatic Agency by Philip H. Melanson, Ph.D., and Peter F. Stevens, Carroll and Graf, 2002.

The recent conglomeration and reassignments of agencies carried out by the Bush Administration, leading to the formation of The Department of Homeland Security, requires research on the Web for up-to-the-minute schematics on who is doing what and where in the War on Terror, and how that affects criminal investigations.

Criminal Patrol  

Quite literally where the rubber meets the road. Criminal Patrol is the heart of all law enforcement, and cops on the beat—or in patrol cars—are often overlooked.

At one conference in Maryland in 2003, just before the Iraq invasion, I naively suggested that perhaps a concerted military response to international terrorism was less advisable than a ramped-up international law enforcement response. That is, cooperation, investigation, and arrest rather than invasion and bombing.

A former law enforcement officer, retired after eighteen years, called me down, saying, “Law enforcement doesn’t prevent crime. Law enforcement is about arrests and convictions, not prevention.”

That’s a lot of hooey, of course—more than half of criminal patrol is about keeping track, extending a strong and obvious presence, cleaning up neighborhoods, and preventing crime before it happens. Recent activity in the U.S. and the U.K. involving setting up sting operatations have caught terrorists and terrorist-wannabes. These are all part of old-fashioned law-enforcement.

Even on an international scale, outreach, research, and investigation—including major efforts by the Secret Service, DSS, and FBI—have been most effective in busting terrorists. Troops, by and large don’t have that experience, and of course cannot be sent into sovereign nations—at least not in force—without major international consequences.

Cops—especially cops with foreign language skills and cultural understanding of their neighborhoods—are better than cruise missiles and tanks in most circumstances. And they kill far fewer noncombatants and civilians.

At their best, cops here and abroad—working in cooperation with their foreign counterparts—represent a society that believes in justice, respect for other cultures, and the rule of international law.

Ultimately, it’s all about criminal patrol.

Here are some excellent texts on domestic patrol:

TACTICS FOR CRIMINAL PATROL: Vehicle Stop, Drug Discovery, and Officer Survivalby Charles Remsberg, Calibre Press, 2001.

THE TACTICAL EDGE: Surviving High-Risk Patrolby Charles Remsberg, Calibre Press, 2002. Fascinating and often grimly informative “how-to” manuals for professionals. They’re also excellent for understanding law enforcement voice and psychology. Remsberg is a fine writer and his books are much more than just textbooks. These are likely collectors’ items for cops and mystery writers alike.

BASIC PATROL PROCEDURES by Tim Perry, Sheffield Publishing Company, 1998. A textbook with a distinct Washington State flavor. Comprehensive and detailed guidelines, including charts and photos.

HIGH-RISK PATROL: Reducing the Danger to You by Gerald W. Garner, Charles C. Thomas Publisher, 1990. Older text, but still useful.

Special Weapons and Tactics

BOMB SQUADS by S. F. Tomajczyk, MBI Publishing, 1999. Photographic essay on bomb squad units and tactics.

SWAT TEAM: Police Special Weapons and Tacticsby Hans Halberstadt, MBI Publishing, 1994. Same series as above.

Criminology

THEORETICAL CRIMINOLOGY by George B. Vold, Thomas J. Bernard, Jeffrey B. Snipes, Oxford University Press, 1998. High-level sociological and analytical study of crime and criminals.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE TODAY: An Introductory Text for the 21st Century by Frank Schmalleger, Ph.D., Sixth Edition, 2001. Standard text for professionals. Comes with a very interesting and useful CD-ROM. Test yourself on your own crime scene reactions!

Terrorism

AMERITHRAX: The Hunt for the Anthrax Killer by Robert Graysmith, Berkley Books, 2003. Minute-by-minute examination of one of the strangest and most significant terrorism attacks within the United States.

RELENTLESS PURSUIT: The DSS and the Manhunt for the Al-Qaeda Terrorists by Samuel M. Katz, Forge Books, 2002. The Bureau of Diplomatic Security—an independent agency within the State Department, with its own investigative arm—is tasked with protecting U.S. diplomats and state department officials. DSS has been key in apprehending international terrorists.

THE FINANCING OF TERROR by James Adams, Simon and Schuster, 1986. Terrorism has a metabolic/financial structure and a kind of shadow government, well-detailed in this book. Most of the major players are still in place and at work. Some—the IRA and Red Brigades—have gone into retirement, or semi-retirement. Right now we’re in a period where we focus on ultra-conservative and Islamic terrorism; it’s easy for many to forget that there was a time when European left-wing terror was united with the PLO. There’a also material on animal rights extremists and eco-terrorists, both of which are high-priority in domestic United States and UK terror investigations. Anarchists of this sort have been around for centuries, though their political orientation often seems confused at best.

1000 YEARS FOR REVENGE: International Terrorism and the FBI by Peter Lance, Harper Collins, 2003. Chronicles the history and blunders that eventually allowed 9-11 to happen. Helpful to understanding our failed past approaches to preventing terror.   

THE AGE OF SACRED TERROR by Daniel Benjamin and Steven Simon, Random House, 2002. New terrorism tactics and missed opportunities described by two former National Security Council directors on counterterrorism.

TERROR IN THE NAME OF GOD: Why Religious Militants Kill by Jessica Stern, Ecco/HarperCollins, 2003. A wide-ranging investigative examination, based on many interviews conducted around the world. Explores motivations for religious militants, including Jews and Christians. Frightening and essential.

I relied on dozens of books on Islam and the Hajj. These were among more useful general volumes:

GOD HAS NINETY-NINE NAMES: Reporting from a Militant Middle East by Judith Miller, Simon and Schuster, 1997. Judith Miller writing before Valerie Plame and the coining of “weapons of mass destruction.” A readable and thorough examination.

THE CONCISE ENCYCLOPEDIA OF ISLAM by Cyril Glassé, Harper and Row, 1989. Personal examination of the religion and culture, in encyclopedic form.