A Spy Among Friends

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Master storyteller Ben Macintyre’s most ambitious work brings to life the twentieth century’s greatest spy story. Kim Philby, a brilliant and charming man, rose to head Britain’s counterintelligence against the Soviet Union during the Cold War while secretly working for the enemy. His best friend, Nicholas Elliott, also an MI6 officer, believed he knew Philby well. They shared schools, clubs, and wartime experiences, making it unthinkable for Elliott to suspect Philby of being a communist spy bent on subverting Western values. Yet, Philby was betraying his friend, relaying every word Elliott spoke back to Moscow. In America, Philby also befriended James Jesus Angleton, the head of CIA counterintelligence, whose unwitting disclosures helped Philby undermine Anglo-American spy operations for twenty years, leading to the downfall of countless operatives. As suspicion mounted, Philby resorted to greater lies to maintain his cover, with Elliott and Angleton remaining loyal until it was too late. The devastating truth of his betrayal had profound consequences for both men and the intelligence services left crippled by his actions. Told with heart-pounding suspense and psychological insight, this work is based on personal papers and never-before-seen British intelligence files, marking a high-water mark in Cold War history.