Do You like book Spycatcher: The Candid Autobiography Of A Senior Intelligence Officer (1988)?
I've been reading spy fiction for eons, so I am surprised it took me so long to read Spycatcher. I was fascinated with the inside story of MI5 during the WWII and post-War periods. And I was simply amazed at the perseverance and focus that it took to do the kind of research-based work that Wright specialized in. And sometimes it was mind-boggling, as when he explained the VENONA codebreak. For me, the best part was about his many interviews with Anthony Blunt. While he doesn't help us understand completely Blunt's motivation, we clearly see Britain's hidebound approach to protecting its institutions. Burgess, Maclean, and Philby escape; Blunt gets immunity. A must read for spy aficionados.
—Betty
I devoured this one in two days. I thought espionage movies are interesting, but was blown away by how much more intrigue, deceit, and flashy gadgets there are in the true stories! Peter Wright was recruited into MI5 following World War II as their first staff scientist. He began in signals technology, designing new methods for detecting and decrypting soviet signals. A rising star, he quickly moved on to counterintelligence, where he spends the remainder of his career trying to ferret out moles in the system. Despite the ultimate futility of his work--every time he finds a mole, evidence of more arises--and what it means for the effectiveness of his organization, Wright passionately pursues his work, though near the end he admits to feeling like he is surrounded by enemies. The characters in Wright's memoir are larger than life, as spies in the movies never are. There's Pete Harvey, a volatile, alcoholic CIA agent who wears cowboy boots and calls Wright a limey bastard. Anthony Blunt, cultured intellectual with a history for passionate love affairs with fellow spies (mostly men) who lives in quiet luxury after confessing to large scale espionage (Britian has a habit of granting moles immunity if they confess). And Jim Angleton, whose passion for his work and belief that the great game can be won leaves him looking more emaciated each time Wright sees him. The sheer volume and stature of the moles Wright finds, some of whom are department directors, left me with the initial impression that the entire business of espionage, especially counterespionage, is futile and self defeating. Not only is it impossible to have a large number of people keep a secret, but the work itself damages the people who do it. Few can be in the business of deception and distrust without eventually becoming paranoid, deceitful, or misanthropic.On the other hand, wiretaps and double agents were the weapons of the Cold War. Though it was, as Wright put it, just a great game, it's a far less destructive way to fight a war than with bombs and guns.
—Meri
An interesting topic and insights to the history of the UK intelligence a few decades ago. While overall it felt a bit too long, it had interesting descriptions on spying equipment and practices, and ... the whole world seems so different back then. Spying with microphones and watcher cars, wiretapping phones, using encoded radio connections. The spying world before the Echelon (but with GCHQ already there, among with MI5 and MI6) and the modern threats. A big part of the book (and the career or Wright) focuses on trying to nail the suspect spy of Russians - after all the small details point slowly out that there is an insider working for them. Oh, and KGB, GRU, Polish and Chinese intelligence... so much has changed in a few decades.I'd recommend to anyone interested in the intelligence or counter intelligence services or spying or history of the any above.
—Anna
