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Spy Wars: Moles, Mysteries, and Deadly Games Hardcover – April 24, 2007

by Tennent H. Bagley (Author)
4.1 4.1 out of 5 stars 82 ratings
Editors' pick Best History
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Chosen by William Safire in the New York Times to be the publishing sleeper-seller of the year for 2007.
In this rapid-paced book, a former CIA chief of Soviet bloc counterintelligence breaks open the mysterious case of KGB officer Yuri Nosenko’s 1964 defection to the United States. Still a highly controversial chapter in the history of Cold War espionage, the Nosenko affair has inspired debate for more than forty years: was Nosenko a bona fide defector with the real information about Lee Harvey Oswald’s stay in Soviet Russia, or was he a KGB loyalist, engaged in a complex game of deception?
As supervisor of CIA operations against the KGB at the time, Tennent H. Bagley directly handled Nosenko’s case. This insider knowledge, combined with information gleaned from dozens of interviews with former KGB adversaries, places Bagley in a uniquely authoritative position. He guides the reader step by step through the complicated operations surrounding the Nosenko affair and shatters the comfortable version of events the CIA has presented to the public. Bagley unveils not only the KGB’s history of merciless and bloody betrayals but also the existence of undiscovered traitors in the American camp. Shining new light on the CIA-KGB spy wars, he invites deeper thinking about the history of espionage and its implications for the intelligence community today.
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  1. Print length
    336 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Yale University Press
  4. Publication date
    April 24, 2007
  5. Dimensions
    6.5 x 1 x 9.5 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0300121989
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0300121988
  8. See all details
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4.1 out of 5 stars
82 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book informative and riveting. They describe it as a good read for intelligence enthusiasts. The writing quality is described as exceptional, well-organized, and persuasive. Readers appreciate the great recap of Cold War history and the glimpse into spying and the politics of the CIA.

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12 customers mention "Information quality"12 positive0 negative

Customers find the book informative and riveting. They recommend it for history buffs and armchair intelligence enthusiasts. The subject matter raises more questions than it answers, making it a must-read for fans of this genre.

"Great reading, scary that it is so easy for spies to attain restricted data." Read more

"...However, the writing in this book is quite good, and the subject matter is rivetting...." Read more

"Bagley’s meticulously detailed contemporaneous notes of the Cold War era serve as a national archive for the CIA’s history that has been suppressed..." Read more

"...for motives behind an action or event made him the perfect counter-intelligence agent...." Read more

9 customers mention "Readability"9 positive0 negative

Customers find the book engaging and suitable for general readers. They describe it as fascinating and a must-read for Cold War students.

"Great reading, scary that it is so easy for spies to attain restricted data." Read more

"...BAGLEY WILL KEEP YOU BREATHLESS DURING THE WHOLE READING OF HIS FASCINATING BOOK AND IT IS UP TO YOU TO DECIDE WHO WAS RIGHT AND WHO WAS WRONG ,WHO..." Read more

"...This exploration of the Nosenko puzzle is a terrific read for espionage buffs, and those who have tried to unravel the great CI puzzle of the Cold..." Read more

"...Spy Wars is a very good read (although slightly too repetitious) that has important lessons for all policy makers today...." Read more

4 customers mention "Writing quality"4 positive0 negative

Customers find the book well-written and organized. They appreciate the author's authority and conviction. The writing is also praised for having few spelling errors.

"...However, the writing in this book is quite good, and the subject matter is rivetting...." Read more

"We need more books by Mr. Bagley. Spy Wars is a well-written, intelligent look at the case of a Soviet defector in the mid-60s...." Read more

"...It also appears to have very few spelling errors...." Read more

"This book is exceptionally well-written, and well-organized. Bagley's argument is very persuasive...." Read more

3 customers mention "History"3 positive0 negative

Customers find the book provides a good overview of Cold War history and one of the great mysteries of the war. It offers a glimpse into Cold War spying and the politics of the CIA.

"...HAS WRITTEN A SUPERB A-LA- CARRE BOOK ON ONE OF THE GREATEST MYSTERIES OF THE COLD WAR:WAS NOSENKO A REAL DEFECTOR OR JUST A KGB PROVOCATION?..." Read more

"...Still it's such a great glimpse into cold war spying, and the politics of the CIA, that it's worth a read...." Read more

"Great recap of Cold War history...." Read more

Top reviews from the United States

  • Rachel Cacek
    5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing and also frightening
    Reviewed in the United States on July 13, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Great reading, scary that it is so easy for spies to attain restricted data.
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  • Roger J. Buffington
    4.0 out of 5 stars The definitative work on CIA moles and counterintelligence
    Reviewed in the United States on February 14, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    The main thrust of this book is to analyze the bona fides of Yuri Nosenko, possibly the most famous Soviet KGB defector in the long history of the CIA-KGB conflict. Nosenko first appeared as a "walk in" who just wanted to give information to the CIA in exchange for modest amounts of money. After the Kennedy assassination, Nosenko defected permanently, and claimed that he had first-hand information concerning Oswald, and that Oswald was not, in any way, shape or form, a Soviet agent. Given the fact that Lee Harvey Oswald, JFK's assassin, had the unusual distinction of being an American citizen who had defected to the USSR and then returned, there were suspicions in that direction.

    Controversy raged in the CIA for decades as to whether Nosenko was an authentic defector or a CIA disinformation agent. Well-documented books on both sides of this subject abound. James Jesus Angleton, the CIA's long serving Director of Counter-Intelligence, together with this book's author "Pete" Bagley, was always convinced that Nosenko was under KGB orders and control. Others chose to believe that Nosenko was a genuine defector.

    The thesis of this piece is that Nosenko was a disinformation agent, hastily prepared by Moscow in order to deflect suspicion from the Soviet Union concerning Oswald's motives in the Kennedy assassination. The author is extremely persuasive, and writes with authority and conviction. I have read widely on this subject, and in my opinion this piece is the definitive work on the subject of Nosenko. There is so much detail here that the casual reader, myself included, has trouble following all the threads of the author's thought. In fact, this piece is really aimed more at CIA insiders than the general public. I came away completely convinced that Bagley was correct and that Nosenko was a disinformation agent. (To be fair I had already reached that conclusion which I derived from other readings.)

    Author Bagley goes into considerable detail to describe the KGB's main approach to espionage, which it terms frankly to be "aggressive" tradecraft. Put simply, the KGB is not content to infiltrate a target country and steal its secrets. It seeks to insert agents within the target country's own intelligence service in order to control the foreign agency as well as to protect the KGB by destroying the target agency's counterespionage apparatus. Further, the Soviets (now the Russian SVR) will produce false defectors to provide carefully tailored disinformation to divert attention away from authentic KGB/SVR moles. This is, in fact, how Aldrich Aimes and Robert Hanssen, two arch-traitors within the CIA and FBI respectively, were able to operate for decades, doing incalculable damage to American security.

    I deprived this one of five stars due to its chaotic and confusing organization. However, the writing in this book is quite good, and the subject matter is rivetting. If you are interested in the CIA-KGB cold war, this one is for you. Recommended. RJB.
    11 people found this helpful
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  • Thaddeus W. Taylor
    5.0 out of 5 stars Maximum Counterintelligence
    Reviewed in the United States on August 19, 2007
    Verified Purchase
    I am a former counterintelligence officer and subject to the vestiges of the professional parinoia that is one of the occupational hazards of the field. That said, the Nosenko case, so well discribed by Mr. Bagley, still stinks. The CIA is a government bureaucracy that is even more inclined to labor under the burden of "group-think" than the Department of Motor Vehicles or some other large governmental or corporate organization. That is why the managment of the CIA wants everybody on board with the party line: Nosenko is the McCoy, the real deal.
    Nosenko was a plant. The incriminating information that he revealed came before he was sequestered in Virginia. Mr. Bagley claims that the CIA Soviet Bloc (SB) branch had a legal go-ahead from high officials in the administration, the Atty. Gen. for example,to keep Nosenko under wraps. The rehabilitation of Nosenko had more to do with covering up ineptitude than any evidence that would clear up questions about Nosenko's validity. In Legacy of Ashes the author points out that many spies, traitors and moles were revealed by Nosenko. Mr. Bagely refutes this. Who were they, the exposed? Surely now someone can come forward with these names. Nosenko is an adventurer who got to play on the big stage. His efforts to convice the CIA that the communist (Oswald) that shot JFK was not working for, with or had any connection with the chief organ of the Soviet communist party whatsoever.
    The House Committee on Assasinations was convinced that Nosenko was lying. This is not to say that there was any connection to the murder but it is safe to say that the Soviets truly wanted the US to believe that there was none.
    During his extensive interviews, Nosenko was asked simple questions: what elevator did you take to your floor, how were secretaries assigned,what is your KGB rank, what did they serve in the lunch room and other seemingly mundane quesions? He could not provide answers. I can still remember the layout of each office that I occupied and that was over 30 years ago. Nosenko was poorly briefed. The KGB hoped that we would focus on the things that they wanted us to know not the trivia that would make or break Nosenko's bona fides. Nobody is perfect.
    It is the simple things that trip you up when you lie.
    One thing that Mr. Bagely missed when he talked about other, non-Soviet, operations was that during the deception operation being run against the Germans in WW 2 leading up to the Normandy landings, the Brits dropped agents into occupied France that they knew would be captured and tortured. They had been given scraps of information that conformed to what the German high command wanted to believe: the invasion would be north of the Seine near Calais. That, gentle reader, is cold. So, it is no great reach to suspect the Soviets from doing the same kind of thing.
    One way to deal with this would be to have aspiring CIA officers listen to a debate on the Nosenko issue, having both sides make presentations and then let the little darlings think for themselves. That is what we pay them to do, after all: THINK.
    Superspy
    30 people found this helpful
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  • William P Search On
    3.0 out of 5 stars Proof reader Required
    Reviewed in the United States on December 19, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    I am new to the world of Kindle and I love the devise! I sincerely hope however that I chose one of just a few books that the publisher decided did not require proof reading before "e-publishing". What should be pleasurable reading time turns into a chore when one has to reread sentences or guess at the author's meaning. Lines of type consisting of only two words separated by an inch of blank space along with words that are hyphenated for no particular reason are visually disruptive and down right annoying. As far as the editorial content of the book itself, I think it's just OK; but then again, I might have thought better of it if just reading it had not been so difficult.
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  • John J
    5.0 out of 5 stars Great recap of Cold War history.
    Reviewed in the United States on May 1, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    Bagley’s meticulously detailed contemporaneous notes of the Cold War era serve as a national archive for the CIA’s history that has been suppressed and ignored.
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Mark Pack
    5.0 out of 5 stars The book that reopened the Nosenko case
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 14, 2010
    Verified Purchase
    When it first came out in hardback in 2007 Tennent H Bagley's book immediately caused a storm in intelligence circles for its detailed dissection of the Yuri Nosenko defection case.

    Controversies over Nosenko's defection in 1963 - was he a genuine defector or was he a KGB plant? - have always had a wider significance, for two primary reasons. Nosenko presented evidence about what JFK assassin Lee Harvey Oswald got up to in Russia. In addition, the Nosenko case was central to the beliefs of a group of CIA officers, led by James Jesus Angleton, the long-serving head of the CIA's counter-intelligence department, that the CIA and other Western intelligence services were riddled with KGB infiltration and frequently misled by false information planted by the KGB. Subsequent senior CIA staff, along with most of the published accounts of the time, have been highly critical of Angleton and his supporters, painting them as people who became paralysed by paranoia as they saw treachery everywhere.

    By focusing in so heavily on the Nosenko case, Bagley's book avoids these wider questions. A reader unacquainted with the wider contest would not realise from the book that, for example, one of the molehunters Angleton set to work ended up concluding (possibly tongue-in-cheek) in a written report that Angleton himself must be a KGB mole because of the disruption that all his suspicions had caused. Nor would such a reader be aware of just how paranoid and inaccurate another KGB defector, Anatoli Golitsyn, became. Golitsyn's credibility is important because Golitsyn did not believe Nosenko was genuine, whilst Nosenko's evidence often contradicted that of Golitsyn.

    However, the strength of Bagley's book is that by concentrating in on a narrow argument - that Nosenko was a fake because of the errors and contradictions in his evidence - he makes a persuasive case. He also, to his credit, makes some effort to explain why so many people took a contrary view, though these arguments are not always convincing thanks to the silence about the wider context. The one piece of context Bagley does provide - and convincingly - is the record of the KGB and its predecessors at running large scale disinformation campaigns, particularly during the Second World War. Added to what we know about the successful disinformation campaigns around D-Day, Bagley rightly makes the point that apparently complex and paranoid concerns about being the victim of a sophisticated disinformation campaign are sometimes well-founded.

    The heart of the book is a long and detailed examination of many claims that Nosenko made which Bagley, the CIA case officer who initially handled him, was intimately involved in checking. Bagley does this in a well-written and fast-paced account that, though detailed, reads more like a spy novel for long periods rather than a detailed academic examination.

    The difficulty for the reader is in evaluating the claims he makes without knowing in full the reasons others had for dismissing them. It is notable, for example, that Christopher Andrews - a regular historian of intelligence matters and who has had extensive access to official British records and to prominent defectors - was not convinced by this book, even if his review for the Sunday Times was light on detail.

    For those interested in the assassination of Oswald, the book implies that the truth over Nosenko does not really matter - either he was genuinely telling the truth about the lack of KGB contact with Oswald when he was in the USSR, or he was sent with a false story - but a false story to reassure the Americans of the truth that the KGB had indeed not been involved with Oswald.

    A note if you get the audio version of this book: it is read by the author who has a voice well suited to tales of mysterious intrigue. He also has a habit of pausing at odd places in sentences, so you need to quickly adjust to his way of speaking if you are not to find that style irritating.
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  • Nomad in Caledonia
    2.0 out of 5 stars Nosenko was a KGB plant...
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 21, 2012
    Verified Purchase
    This pretty much sums up the book, although the title might leads you to believe that there is more to it than one case of a duboius defection. The case by the author is made well ( assuming it provides a balanced amount of evidence), but I expect more from the book in terms of historical overview of the cold war espionage... Unless you really want to know about the author's quest to bring the matters to justice, you will not find the book to be overly exciting...
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