William J Adams

Review of the Spy and the Traitor William J Adams

Ben Macintyre takes us back to the 1980's and the Cold War, with his usual brand of enthusiasm and ability to give the most important, political events, the human angle necessary to make you care about those involved. "The Spy and the Traitor" is an exceptionally rich book, elegantly composed and first rate, loads of photos a great deal of history, governmental issues, Cold War and furthermore current undertakings. Ben Macintyre's record of the life of Oleg Gordievsky uncovers the genuine everyday exercises of a counterintelligence specialist. It is brimming with doubt, dread of disclosure or double-crossing, and tremendous pressure. It's an interesting perspective into the lives of counterintelligence specialists. Gordievsky, the son of a KGB officer, grew up all too aware of how those around him often lived a double life and whose fascination with foreign countries, led him to do his best to take up a posting abroad. When dissatisfaction and disillusionment, with the Soviet Union, led to him being flagged as a 'person of interest, ' it was not long before the British made a move to recruit him. Gordievsky was betrayed by someone in the intelligence community, his almost miraculous escape from Russia will keep you on the edge of your seat! It took years to discover his betrayer. Oleg Gordievsky was sentenced in absentia to death by the Russian courts. He remains on the "hit list" to this day.