RaveThe Globe and MailFans of Macintyre’s previous non-fiction accounts...will pounce on this latest offering. It carries all the qualities of what Macintyre has so justly become known for – precise research leading to even-handed assessments, and, where possible, using first-hand accounts to reduce the level of speculation that is otherwise so enticing to those attempting to understand the past. The Spy and The Traitor represents Macintyre’s finest work to date and has the makings of an instant screenplay ... The book provides very important context about Gordievsky’s early professional career in Denmark, and the awakening of his extraordinarily principled and brave decision to abandon a Soviet way of life. Thankfully not sanctioned by or written with the help of the British government, Macintyre makes the authority of his book complete by employing good old-fashioned journalism – tracking down every single MI6 officer involved in the case and talking to them. He also spent time with the Russians to get the other side, as well as with Gordievsky himself ... The story, however, isn’t yet over.
Ben Macintyre
RaveThe GlobeThe Spy and The Traitor represents Macintyre’s finest work to date and has the makings of an instant screenplay. The recent poisoning cases of Sergei and Yulia Skripal remind us of the long tail that continues to wag long after the official end of the Cold War, a time when the world split in two. In the 1960s, a Soviet double agent, Kim Philby, defected to Moscow, leading to the deaths of his colleagues and destroying the British spy network against Moscow’s interests. Britain spent 20 years licking her wounds, determined for revenge. It came in the shape of a keen cross-country runner and increasingly senior KGB officer, Oleg Gordievsky.
