NATIONAL BESTSELLER • A Washington Post Notable Book of the Year • Drawing on previously classified CIA documents and on interviews with firsthand participants, The Billion Dollar Spy is a brilliant feat of reporting and a riveting true story of intrigue in the final years of the Cold War. It was the height of the Cold War, and a dangerous time to be stationed in the Soviet Union. One evening, while the chief of the CIA’s Moscow station was filling his gas tank, a stranger approached and dropped a note into the car. The chief, suspicious of a KGB trap, ignored the overture. But the man had made up his mind. His attempts to establish contact with the CIA would be rebuffed four times before he thrust upon them an envelope whose contents would stun U.S. intelligence. In the years that followed, that man, Adolf Tolkachev, became one of the most valuable spies ever for the U.S. But these activities posed an enormous personal threat to Tolkachev and his American handlers. They had clandestine meetings in parks and on street corners, and used spy cameras, props, and private codes, eluding the ever-present KGB in its own backyard—until a shocking betrayal put them all at risk.

Warning: This is an independent addition to The Billion Dollar Spy, meant to enhance your experience of the original book. If you have not yet bought the original copy, make sure to purchase it before buying this unofficial summary from aBookaDay. In The Billion Dollar Spy, David E. Hoffman details the account of a spy in the Cold War so valuable, the United States would risk everything to keep him. It's a true story, but it reads like a screenplay written for Leonardo DiCaprio. The story undulates as tensions rise and fall and Hoffman gives his readers the one-two punch just as the details start coming into focus. This story takes place in Moscow over the course of eight years. It begins with the CIA's difficulty gaining traction against the Soviet Union in the Cold War. Soon enough, however, they find what they were looking for in a seemingly ordinary Soviet engineer. This man didn't open doors for the United States, he blew holes in the foundation. It was his Intel that cost the Soviet Union years of research and saved the United States an almost immeasurable amount of money. This summary can be consumed alongside Hoffman's novel, or it can be read on its own. It is intended to tell the story, but mainly to be a sidecar to Hoffman's hard work. This summary will provide clear and detailed character summary as well as a breakdown of literary elements and themes in the novel. Available on PC, Mac, smart phone, tablet or Kindle device. (c) 2015 All Rights Reserved

The Billion Dollar Spy: by David E. Hoffman | Summary & Analysis Preview: The Billion Dollar Spy: A True Story of Cold War Espionage and Betrayal by David E. Hoffman chronicles the six year relationship between the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and engineer, Adolf Tolkachev, who spied on the Soviet Union for the United States. Tolkachev was the most productive CIA spies during the Cold War, persistent in his undertakings to ensure the undoing of the Soviet Union’s aviation developments, which he personally had a hand in. He was allegedly betrayed by a disgruntled former CIA agent who gave his identity to the Soviet secret police, the Komitet Gosudarstvennoi Bezopasnosti (KGB). While the CIA was largely meant for intelligence analysis at its outset, troubles with the Soviet Union caused the CIA to expand into espionage and covert operations. However, it was difficult to run spy operations within the Soviet Union itself because of heightened national security and suspicion. For these reasons, the CIA had trouble… PLEASE NOTE: This is a summary and analysis of the book and NOT the original book. Inside this Instaread Summary & Analysis of The Billion Dollar Spy • Summary of book • Introduction to the Important People in the book • Analysis of the Themes and Author’s Style

'An astonishingly detailed picture of espionage in the 1980s, written with pacey journalistic verve and an eerily contemporary feel.' Ben Macintyre, The Times 'A gripping story of courage, professionalism, and betrayal in the secret world.' Rodric Braithwaite, British Ambassador in Moscow, 1988-1992 'One of the best spy stories to come out of the Cold War and all the more riveting for being true.' Washington Post January, 1977. While the chief of the CIA's Moscow station fills his gas tank, a stranger drops a note into the car. In the years that followed, that stranger, Adolf Tolkachev, became one of the West's most valuable spies. At enormous risk Tolkachev and his handlers conducted clandestine meetings across Moscow, using spy cameras, props, and private codes to elude the KGB in its own backyard - until a shocking betrayal put them all at risk. Drawing on previously classified CIA documents and interviews with first-hand participants, The Billion Dollar Spyis a brilliant feat of reporting and a riveting true story from the final years of the Cold War.

From the spymaster and inspiration for the movie Argo, discover the "real-life spy thriller" of the brilliant but under-supported CIA operatives who developed breakthrough spy tactics that helped turn the tide of the Cold War (Malcolm Nance). Antonio Mendez and his future wife Jonna were CIA operatives working to spy on Moscow in the late 1970s, at one of the most dangerous moments in the Cold War. Soviets kept files on all foreigners, studied their patterns, and tapped their phones. Intelligence work was effectively impossible. The Soviet threat loomed larger than ever. The Moscow Rules tells the story of the intelligence breakthroughs that turned the odds in America's favor. As experts in disguise, Antonio and Jonna were instrumental in developing a series of tactics -- Hollywood-inspired identity swaps, ingenious evasion techniques, and an armory of James Bond-style gadgets -- that allowed CIA officers to outmaneuver the KGB. As Russia again rises in opposition to America, this remarkable story is a tribute to those who risked everything for their country, and to the ingenuity that allowed them to succeed.

THE DRAMATIC EVENTS BEHIND THE FILM BRIDGE OF SPIES. 'Riveting, meticulously researched and beautifully written, Bridge of Spies unlocks one of the most fascinating espionage mysteries of the Cold War' - Ben Macintyre, author of Agent Zigzag and SAS Rogue Heroes Bridge of Spies is a gripping, entertaining, hair-raising and comical story, which moves effortlessly from the hardware of high-flying planes and new missiles to the geopolitics of the nuclear stand-off and through the poignant personal stories of its central protagonists: Powers, the all-American hero, blacklisted for not having killed himself on his descent to earth; a KGB spy who has spent aimless and lonely years achieving nothing in the US; and the opposing leaders Khrushchev and Eisenhower, both trapped in a spiral of confrontation neither wants. Telling the true story that inspired Le Carré's famous scene, Bridge of Spies is a brilliant take on the absurdity and heroism of the Cold War days that will appeal to a new generation of readers unfamiliar with the history but drawn in by the compelling and vividly recreated narrative.

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