To create a protagonist that felt globally credible, de Villiers avoided a French hero, famously stating that "besides cheese and wine, nothing about us is credible abroad". Instead, he created , an Austrian prince and "His Serene Highness" ( Son Altesse Sérénissime or S.A.S.).
He meticulously researched every book by traveling to conflict zones for 15 days, followed by a six-week writing sprint. La - Gerard De Villiers
Perhaps the most enduring part of de Villiers' legacy is his "uncanny knack" for anticipating major global events before they happened. To create a protagonist that felt globally credible,
His novels often functioned as "drop boxes" where intelligence agencies leaked information they couldn't officially release, allowing them to see their own secrets mirrored in fiction. 2. A Knack for Prophecy Perhaps the most enduring part of de Villiers'
De Villiers’ "secret sauce" was his background as a foreign correspondent. Unlike other thriller writers who relied on imagination, he spent decades cultivating a global network of intelligence officers, arms dealers, and diplomats.
His 2012 novel Les Fous de Benghazi detailed the threat of Islamist groups in Libya and the role of the CIA six months before the raid that killed U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens.