5/31/2023 0 Comments The spy and the traitor book![]() ![]() ![]() You may be wondering why Macintyre applies the label “spy” to the double agent Gordievsky while applying “traitor” to the double agent Ames. The book is every bit as exciting as my favorite spy novels. ![]() Macintyre’s dramatic retelling of their stories comes not only from Western sources (including Gordievsky himself, who is now 82 and living under witness protection in the UK) but also from the Russian perspective. ![]() The book focuses on Oleg Gordievsky, the double agent who helped prevent nuclear war, and Aldrich Ames, the American turncoat who likely betrayed him. I learned about this episode from British journalist Ben Macintyre’s newest book, The Spy and the Traitor. Without disclosing the source of the intelligence, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher was able to convince Reagan to soften his tone and halt further escalation. And now we know why: A double agent embedded high in the KGB’s outpost in London got word to his British handlers that the Soviets had mistaken NATO’s war games as war preparation. The Soviets, convinced that NATO was getting ready for a surprise nuclear attack, prepared for nuclear war.īut then, without explanation, the West pulled back from the brink. And then in November, NATO conducted a massive military simulation involving 40,000 troops. In the first half of that year, President Ronald Reagan dramatically ratcheted up rhetoric, military spending, and psychological operations against the Soviets. This year has been brutal on so many levels. ![]()
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5/31/2023 0 Comments Corduroy by Don Freeman![]() It won’t be the first time I’ve shown up where I wasn’t wanted. So why, of all the games played at these tables, would my old acquaintance neglect to invite me to this particular one? He never misses an opportunity to bring more money into the casino’s bank. Regardless of whether I’m in residence on my island, less than a mile away from Ibiza, Jean Phillippe sends me an invite to the private games. All I know is that I don’t like it when someone tries to hide something from me. They don’t know I’d rather be on the deck of one of my ships, at the mercy of the open ocean, instead of surrounded by flashing lights and grating chimes indicating someone just won or lost a fortune. They think they know everything about me, but they don’t. I didn’t intend to be here tonight, but heads turn as I stride across the casino floor and try to block out the scent of tropical-perfumed air Jean Phillippe pumps into his jewel, La Reina de Ibiza. When a billionaire walks into a room, you feel it. ![]() 5/31/2023 0 Comments Missing presumed book![]() ![]() one of the most ambitious police procedurals of the year. ![]() "An extraordinarily assured police procedural in the tradition of Ruth Rendell and Elizabeth George." -Joseph Finder, author of The Fixer "Surprise-filled. A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice - A page-turning mystery that brings to life a complex and strong-willed detective assigned to a high-risk missing persons case NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY NPR - NAMED ONE OF THE 10 BEST MYSTERIES OF THE YEAR BY THE WALL STREET JOURNAL ![]() |