Nigel West: 24 books

The Cold War, with its air of mutual fear and distrust and the shadowy world of spies and secret agents, gave publishers the chance to produce countless stories of espionage, treachery and deception. What Nigel West has discovered is that the most egregious deceptions were in fact the stories themselves....

The postwar era as seen by a master of counterespionage—with an insight into his professional downfall.   Guy Liddell was the director of MI5’s counterespionage B Division throughout the Second World War, during which he wrote a confidential personal diary, detailing virtually every important...

THE SECOND WORLD WAR saw the role of espionage, secret agents and spy services increase exponentially as the world was thrown into a truly global conflict on an unprecedented scale. At this time, very few people in government were fully aware of what MI5 and its brethren really did. But with Churchill...

He was GARBO to the Allies and ALARIC to the Germans – the most successful double agent of the Second World War. Indeed, his spy network across Britain was so highly regarded that he was decorated for his achievements … by both sides. Throughout the war, GARBO kept the Germans supplied with reports...

In a surprising number of espionage cases sex has played a significant role_often only in the background_possibly as a reason why a particular individual has lived beyond his means and is in desperate need of cash. FBI agent Earl Pitts sold secrets to the Soviets to ease his financial burdens, which...

Once dubbed espionage, the practice of intelligence has never been more important nor more sophisticated than it is today. Its coming-of-age began during World War II, which saw the birth of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS) in the United States and the XX Committee to supervise the activities...

MI5’s dramatic interception of secret signals to Moscow from a hidden base in Wimbledon uncovered the true extent of Soviet espionage in Britain. Intelligence expert Nigel West reveals how MASK, the codename for one of the most secretive sources ever run by British intelligence, enabled Stanley...

The Allied invasion of Europe during summer 1944 was widely expected and it fell to the Axis intelligence services to provide High Command with advance warning of the precise date and place of the landings. Using cryptanalysis of Allied signals, undercover agents and ships, and photographic evidence,...

In a surprising number of espionage cases sex has played a significant role_often only in the background_possibly as a reason why a particular individual has lived beyond his means and is in desperate need of cash. FBI agent Earl Pitts sold secrets to the Soviets to ease his financial burdens, which...

The defection of Igor Gouzenko in September 1945, more so than any other single event, alerted the West to the nature and scale of the Soviet espionage offensive being waged by the Kremlin. Apart from the dozen or so defendants convicted of spying, Gouzenko wrecked an organization that had taken years...

Although China’s intelligence activities may not have been well documented, they can be traced back to the ancient writings of Sun Tzu, and espionage has been a characteristic of Chinese domestic politics and international relations ever since. The People’s Republic of China has long engaged in...

Signals Intelligence (SIGINT) encompasses the various disciplines of wireless interception, cryptanalysis, communications intelligence, electronic intelligence, direction-finding, and traffic analysis. It has become the basis upon which all combat operations are undertaken. It is now widely recognized...

Tradecraft is the term applied to techniques used by intelligence personnel to assist them in conducting their operations and, like many other professions, the espionage business has developed its own rich lexicon. In the real, sub rosa world of intelligence-gathering, each bit of jargon acts as a...

Twelve novels and nine short stories define one of the most extraordinary fictional characters of all time, creating the basis for the most successful movie series in cinematographic history, watched by more than half the world's population. The single person probably more responsible than any other...