The Secret Agent's Bedside Reader: A Compendium of Spy Writing

by Michael Smith (Editor)

Interest in spies and spying has rarely been higher than it is today. This collection of classic fiction and nonfiction from spies and spy-writers provides a unique insight into the imaginary and the real worlds of espionage and its practitioners. Editor Michael Smith is a former intelligence officer and one of the leading authorities on the history of spies. He has collected a series of thrilling and absorbing stories told by some of the greatest spies and spy writers in this one collection. Daring wartime plans devised by Ian Fleming to steal an Enigma machine for the Bletchley Park code breakers sit side by side with reports from MI6 traitor Kim Philby to Moscow Centre, operations in Bolshevik Russia by Sidney Reilly, the original Ace of Spies, and the literary spy stories of Joseph Conrad and Erskine Childers. Each article or extract is accompanied by an expert introduction from Smith. Stories of espionage never cease to engage and enthral. Smith deftly uses his own experience and that of the many contributors to lead the reader through the fascinations of the secret world.

Michael Smith is an award-winning journalist and the number one best-selling author of Killer Elite: The inside story of America's most secret special operations team. Smith served in the British Army's Intelligence Corps before joining the BBC.

Genres: History, Espionage, Short Stories

406 pages, Hardcover

First published September 30, 2014

About the author

There is more than one Michael Smith in the database.

Michael Smith is a British author and screenwriter who specializes in spies and espionage.

Source: Wikipedia.

Reviews

[Rrlgrrl · Rating 4 out of 5]

A decent bedside reader. Each of the "chapters" were really excerpts of other works, and they were short enough to be a read a few at a time. Some of the archival excerpts were dry to read, but those agents who went on to be literary figures had some very good vignettes. I liked the addition of fiction in the excerpts, so now I have more authors to look for in the thriller-spy fiction genre.

[Brian Harris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting selection but would have preferred longer stories/accounts to understand more.

[Anna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Moderately interesting, but by its nature a fairly superficial read.

[Susanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and worth the time. Usefully informative.