The Man with the Poison GunA Cold War Spy Story
by Serhii Plokhy
Published by Basic Books, New York
2016, 367 pages
Synopsis
In the fall of 1961, KGB assassin Bogdan Stashinsky defected to West Germany. After spilling his secrets to the CIA, Stashinsky was put on trial in what would be the most publicized assassination case of the entire Cold War. The publicity stirred up by the Stashinsky case forced the KGB to change its modus operandi abroad and helped end the career of Aleksandr Shelepin, one of the most ambitious and dangerous Soviet leaders. Stashinsky's testimony, implicating the Kremlin rulers in political assassinations carried out abroad, shook the world of international politics. Stashinsky's story would inspire films, plays, and books-including Ian Fleming's last James Bond novel, The Man with the Golden Gun.
A thrilling tale of Soviet spy craft, complete with exploding parcels, elaborately staged coverups, double agents, and double crosses, The Man with the Poison Gun offers unparalleled insight into the shadowy world of Cold War espionage.
Source: https://www.amazon.ca/Man-Poison-Gun-Cold-Story/dp/0465035906
Reflections by Karen Yarmol-Franko
Historian and Director of the Ukrainian Research Institute at Harvard University, Professor Serhii Plokhii, has masterfully woven the facts of history into a compelling account that reads like a fictional spy novel -- except that it's all true. The depth of research, the approachable style, and the high readability, make it hard to put down. The events and outcomes in this book led to major changes in European trials of World War II war criminals, and opened the West's eyes to the menacing practices of the Soviet regime. What's most alarming, however, are the parallels to Russia's recent actions: the poisoning of journalist Aleksandr Litvinenko; the poisoning of Russian opposition politician, Vladimir Kara-Murza; the torture and murder of attorney Sergei Magnitsky; the assassination of opposition politician Boris Nemtsov; the murder of journalist Anastasia Baburova -- and the list continues. An enthusiastic recommendation for all to read this historical account that makes us aware of a world we don't want to experience, yet sadly need to be informed about in order to understand our current political environment.
