Famous Actor Jean Reno Releases Spy Novel Dedicated to Abduction of Ukrainian Children to Russia
In early April, French publishing house XO Éditions released the actor's book L’Évasion ('The Escape').
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The main theme of the novel is the abduction and deportation of Ukrainian children by Russia during the war, writes Suspilne.
The publisher's website notes that the novel combines elements of a spy thriller with a documentary basis, and is inspired by the events of Russia's war against Ukraine, aiming to draw the attention of the international community to the problem of illegal deportation of children.
At the center of the plot is Emma, a former masseuse, who is recruited by the French foreign intelligence service DGSE. Under cover, she goes to Siberia to infiltrate a so-called 'rehabilitation camp' for Ukrainian teenagers and document crimes, including forced detention and ideological indoctrination of children.
According to Reno in an interview with Télé 7 Jours, the impetus for writing the book was the real stories of abducted Ukrainian children. He noted that he was 'extremely shocked' by the scale of the crime.
"I thought it was madness that these children are being abducted for brainwashing. I'm not making a political statement; I wanted to turn this into a novel," says the actor.