Research Catalog

Title

The spy and the traitor : the greatest espionage story of the Cold War / Ben Macintyre.

Author

Macintyre, Ben, 1963-

Publication

New York : Crown, [2018]

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Description

viii, 358 pages, 32 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), map; 25 cm

Summary

• "Oleg Gordievsky was a spy like no other. The product of a KGB family and the best Soviet institutions, the savvy, sophisticated Russian eventually saw the lies and terror of the regime for what they were, a realization that turned him irretrievably toward the West. His KGB career took flight in Copenhagen in 1966 and eventually brought him to the highest post in the KGB's London station--but throughout that time he was secretly working for MI6, the British intelligence service. Gordievsky was a spy of tremendous consequence. As the Cold War heated up in the era of Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher, he provided critical information that foiled Soviet plots, exposed spies in the West, and ultimately avoided catastrophic nuclear escalation between the great powers. When Thatcher declared in 1984 that Mikhail Gorbachev was "a man one could do business with," it was largely because of information provided by Gordievsky. No Western country had ever run a spy so high up in Russian intelligence, which is why M16 fiercely guarded Gordievsky's identity, even from the CIA. But the American spy agency was bent on discovering the British source, unaware that their head of counterintelligence--Aldrich Ames--was secretly spying for the Soviets. A riveting story of intrigue set in the Cold War's twilight, [this book] sounds frightening echoes of today, when Russian spies are once again front-page headlines and superpower conflict dominates the globe. Writing with deep access to all of the key players in a drama that has never before been fully revealed, Ben Macintyre has produced a masterpiece of narrative nonfiction, a thrilling tale of impossibly high stakes and one man's brave gamble on his belief in democracy and freedom."--Jacket.
• The son of two KGB agents and the product of the best Soviet institutions, Oleg Gordievsky grew to see his nation's communism as both criminal and philistine. He took his first posting for Russian intelligence in 1968 and became the Soviet Union's top man in London, but from 1973 on he was secretly working for MI6. Desperate to keep the circle of trust close, MI6 never revealed Gordievsky's name to its counterparts in the CIA, which in turn grew obsessed with figuring out the identity of Britain's obviously top-level source. The CIA officer assigned to identify him was Aldrich Ames, who would become infamous for secretly spying for the Soviets. -- adapted from jacket.

Alternative Title

Greatest espionage story of the Cold War

Subject

• Gordievsky, Oleg
• Soviet Union. Komitet gosudarstvennoĭ bezopasnosti > History
• Soviet Union. Komitet gosudarstvennoĭ bezopasnosti
• Cold War (1945-1989)
• Spies > Soviet Union > Biography
• Intelligence service > Soviet Union > History
• Cold War > Biography
• POLITICAL SCIENCE > Intelligence & Espionage
• Intelligence service
• Spies
• Soviet Union

Genre/Form

• Biographies.
• Biography.
• History.

Bibliography (note)

• Includes bibliographical references and index.

Contents

Introduction: 19 May 1985 -- The KGB -- Uncle Gormsson -- SUNBEAM -- Green ink and microfilm -- A plastic bag and a Mars bar -- Agent BOOT -- The safe house -- Operation RYAN -- Koba -- Mr. Collins and Mrs. Thatcher -- Russian roulette -- Cat and mouse -- The dry cleaner -- The runner -- Finlandia -- Epilogue: Passport for Pimlico -- Codenames and aliases.

Call Number

JFE 19-1087

ISBN

• 9781101904190
• 1101904194
• 9781101904213
• 1101904216

LCCN

2018024662

OCLC

1039191063

Author

Macintyre, Ben, 1963- author.

Title

The spy and the traitor : the greatest espionage story of the Cold War / Ben Macintyre.

Publisher

New York : Crown, [2018]

Edition

First edition.

Type of Content

text

Type of Medium

unmediated

Type of Carrier

volume

Bibliography

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Other Form:

Online version: Macintyre, Ben, 1963- Spy and the traitor. New York : Viking, [2018] 9781101904206 (DLC) 2018026376

Research Call Number

JFE 19-1087