...an extraordinary story ... It is unprecedented that any such individual publishes a detailed memoir of more than a decade of his activity at very nearly the highest possible levels of Islamist militancy ... Aimen Dean – not, inevitably, his real name – tells the story well. He has been ably assisted by Paul Cruickshank, a US-based researcher and journalist who has both a deep knowledge of the subject and the ability to transform the raw material of an agent’s memories into something digestible to the general public ... Nine Lives works on many levels: as a human story of faith, violence, trauma and eventually a form of redemption, a deep dive into the inner workings of one of the most infamous terrorist organisations of all time and as a short history of the threat that we still face ... a fascinating glimpse into the reality of spying.
Nine Lives should dispel doubts about the essential truth of his tale. Detailed and weird, it contains enough verifiable fact, and enough idiosyncrasy, to establish as his co-authors Tim Lister and Paul Cruickshank write, that 'there simply wasn’t another informant inside al-Qaeda like him' ... a major contribution to the literature of espionage, and a rare book to say something original about contemporary jihadism ... On this last point Mr. Dean is frustratingly opaque. Even as a reader grateful for his service against al Qaeda, I find the nonchalance of his perfidy alarming, even chilling ... from a writer one wants a few more moments of reflection.
Nine Lives is an endlessly fascinating portrayal of al-Qaeda and the jihadist movement before and after 9/11 ... Dean’s book is not afraid to point out the flaws of the West’s response to terrorism ... Nine Lives is a thrill ride of an autobiography ... Nine Lives is also an exquisite portrait of what it is like to be a secret agent caught in limbo between the West and the Middle East. Dean’s tale is a harrowing one and should be an eye-opener to any armchair pundit who thinks that the War on Terrorism is an easy fix ... a must read for anyone who seriously wants to end the scourge of jihadi terrorism in the West and the East.
This book is not only a fascinating memoir by a former al Qaeda operative, but an account of how individuals become radicalized into violent extremism in their youth ... Mr. Dean’s story benefited from his collaboration with his co-authors, Paul Cruickshank and Tim Lister, who are top investigative journalists and experts on al Qaeda, who corroborated his account and further fleshed out his narrative with a wider context to explain the nature of global jihadism ... a compelling account that sheds light on the inner workings of al Qaeda.
Of considerable interest to students of international terrorism is the author’s view of the politics within al-Qaida ... As sinuous and engrossing as a John le Carré story but all true—a welcome addition to the literature surrounding the war on terror.
Ably assisted by Lister and Cruickshank, Dean exposes fascinating details of life on the front lines ... Fast-paced and sometimes stretching the bounds of credulity, Dean’s tale will be a welcome diversion for those missing the recently ended espionage television show The Americans.
