The Best Espionage True Crime Books 2025

1. Triple Cross: How Bin Laden's Master Spy Penetrated the Cia, the Green Berets, and the FBI, (Paperback)

Triple Cross: How Bin Laden's Master Spy Penetrated the Cia, the Green Berets, and the FBI

Triple Cross: How Bin Laden's Master Spy Penetrated the Cia, the Green Berets, and the FBI, (Paperback) Author: William Morrow & Company ISBN: 9780061189418 Format: Paperback Publication Date: 2009-06-01 Page Count: 688

2. The Terminal Spy : After sipping tea in a London hotel, Alexander Litvinenko, a former KGB officer and vocal foe of the Kremlin, fell ill and was rushed to the hospital, fatally (Paperback)

"A story that is at once a real-life thriller and an immensely sinister cautionary tale about the new Russia."--Star Tribune In this breathtaking true crime narrative, an award-winning journalist exposes the troubling truth behind the world's first act of nuclear terrorism. On November 1, 2006, Alexander Litvinenko sipped tea in London's Millennium Hotel. Hours later, the Russian émigré and former intelligence officer, who was sharply critical of Russian president Vladimir Putin, fell ill and within days was rushed to the hospital. Fatally poisoned by a rare radioactive isotope slipped into his drink, Litvinenko issued a dramatic deathbed statement accusing Putin himself of engineering his murder. Who was Alexander Litvinenko? What had happened in Russia since the end of the Cold War to make his life there untenable? And how did he really die? The life of Alexander Litvinenko culminated in an event that rang alarm bells among Western governments at the ease with which radioactive materials were deployed in a major Western capital to commit a unique crime. It also evoked a wide range of other issues: Russia's lurch to authoritarianism, the return of the KGB to the Kremlin, the perils of a new Cold War driven by the oil riches of Russia and Vladimir Putin's thirst for power. Alan S. Cowell, former London Bureau Chief of the New York Times, has written the definitive story of this assassination and the profound international implications of this first act of nuclear terrorism. A masterful work of investigative reporting, The Terminal Spy offers unprecedented insight into one of the most chilling true stories of our time.

“A story that is at once a real-life thriller and an immensely sinister cautionary tale about the new Russia.”—Star Tribune In this breathtaking true crime narrative, an award-winning journalist exposes the troubling truth behind the world’s first act of nuclear terrorism. On November 1, 2006, Alexander Litvinenko sipped tea in London’s Millennium Hotel. Hours later, the Russian émigré and former intelligence officer, who was sharply critical of Russian president Vladimir Putin, fell ill and within days was rushed to the hospital. Fatally poisoned by a rare radioactive isotope slipped into his drink, Litvinenko issued a dramatic deathbed statement accusing Putin himself of engineering his murder. Who was Alexander Litvinenko? What had happened in Russia since the end of the Cold War to make his life there untenable? And how did he really die? The life of Alexander Litvinenko culminated in an event that rang alarm bells among Western governments at the ease with which radioactive materials were deployed in a major Western capital to commit a unique crime. It also evoked a wide range of other issues: Russia’s lurch to authoritarianism, the return of the KGB to the Kremlin, the perils of a new Cold War driven by the oil riches of Russia and Vladimir Putin’s thirst for power. Alan S. Cowell, former London Bureau Chief of the New York Times, has written the definitive story of this assassination and the profound international implications of this first act of nuclear terrorism. A masterful work of investigative reporting, The Terminal Spy offers unprecedented insight into one of the most chilling true stories of our time.

3. The Lost Spy: An American in Stalin's Secret Service

For half a century, the case of Isaiah Oggins, a 1920s New York intellectual brutally murdered in 1947 on Stalin s orders, remained hidden in the secret files of the Soviet and American intelligence services a footnote buried in the rubble of the Cold War. It surfaced briefly in 1992, when Boris Yeltsin handed over a dossier to the White House, but the full story of what happened remained a mystery. After eight years of international sleuthing, Andrew Meier at last reveals the truth in The Lost Spy Oggins was one of the first Americans to spy for the Soviets."

Lost Spy: An American in Stalin's Secret Service, (Paperback) Author: W. W. Norton & Company ISBN: 9780393335354 Format: Paperback Publication Date: 2009-08-01 Page Count: 416

4. Pre-Owned Facing down Evil : Life on the Edge as an FBI Hostage Negotiator 9780425211632

Paperback, Berkley Pub Group, 2007, ISBN# 0425211630

The inside story of FBI negotiations by the only agent with the courage to tell it. The assault on Waco. The Oklahoma City bombing. The Covenant siege. The Unabomber case. They all have Clint Van Zandt in common-a seminal figure in the formation of the FBI's Hostage Negotiation Program who was immortalized with a fictional counterpart in Silence of the Lambs. In this revealing book, he draws readers deep into the private world of those negotiations, as well as the workings of the criminal mind, as he recounts his career on the frontlines of the FBI's most famous cases.

5. The Litvinenko File : The Life and Death of a Russian Spy 9780312376680 Used / Pre-owned

The first book-length account of the radiation poisoning murder of Alexander Litvinenko, ex-KGB officer who turned against the Kremlin and fled Moscow. Includes 8-page photo insert. CONDITION – USED: Books sold are in GOOD or better condition. Good Condition: Minimal damage to the cover, dust jacket may not be included, minimal wear to binding, most of the pages undamaged(e.g., minimal creases or tears), highlighting / underlining acceptable on books as long as the text is readable and markings are not excessive, no missing pages. May be a former library book, with usual treatments(e.g., mylar covers, call stickers, stamps, card pockets, barcodes, or remainder marks). Extra components, such as CDs, DVDs, figurines, or access codes are not included. ISBN: 9780312376680 ISBN10: 0312376685 Contributors: Sixsmith, Martin,

Hardcover, St Martins Pr, 2007, ISBN# 0312376685

6. A Spy's Guide to Santa Fe and Albuquerque, (Paperback)

In this fascinating guide, former CIA agent E. B. Held uses declassified documents from both the CIA and KGB, as well as secondary sources, to trace some of the most notorious spying events in United States history.

A Spy's Guide to Santa Fe and Albuquerque, (Paperback) Author: Unm Press ISBN: 9780826349354 Format: Paperback Publication Date: 2011-01-15 Page Count: 124

7. The CIA Lockpicking Manual (Hardcover)

Yes, this is the absolutely official guide to lockpicking from the US government and the Central Intelligence Agency. This is the same information that active agents in the field use to get what they need--even when it's locked away. With this clever pocket- sized guide, you'll quickly learn how to get yourself into--and out of--tight spaces. With clear explanations and detailed illustrations, The CIA Lockpicking Manual will quickly teach you what you need to know. Soon you'll be able to get yourself into your house, office desk, or car . . . without your key. The table of contents include: Basic Lock Picking The Concepts Behind Lock Picking Picking Procedure Tool Design Most Common Picking Techniques Lockpicking Process Conclusions Do you have the locksmith's phone number on speed dial? Find yourself spending a fortune on new locks after someone lost their keys again? Forgot your keys in the car one too many times? Free yourself once and for all from ever having a keyless crisis again with The CIA Lockpicking Manual. "In this volume we will discuss not only the fundamental theories of lock picking but proper terminology, the importance of tool design (using the right tool for the right job), the effects of tolerances, and finally the techniques most commonly used by locksmiths to successfully pick the cast majority of standard pin and wafer tumbler locks."

Yes, this is the absolutely official guide to lockpicking from the US government and the Central Intelligence Agency. This is the same information that active agents in the field use to get what they need—even when it’s locked away. With this clever pocket- sized guide, you’ll quickly learn how to get yourself into—and out of—tight spaces. With clear explanations and detailed illustrations, The CIA Lockpicking Manual will quickly teach you what you need to know. Soon you’ll be able to get yourself into your house, office desk, or car . . . without your key. The table of contents include: Basic Lock Picking The Concepts Behind Lock Picking Picking Procedure Tool Design Most Common Picking Techniques Lockpicking Process Conclusions Do you have the locksmith’s phone number on speed dial? Find yourself spending a fortune on new locks after someone lost their keys again? Forgot your keys in the car one too many times? Free yourself once and for all from ever having a keyless crisis again with The CIA Lockpicking Manual. “In this volume we will discuss not only the fundamental theories of lock picking but proper terminology, the importance of tool design (using the right tool for the right job), the effects of tolerances, and finally the techniques most commonly used by locksmiths to successfully pick the cast majority of standard pin and wafer tumbler locks.”