Near and Distant Neighbors: A New History of Soviet Intelligence

While most books and films regarding the Soviet spy game tend to focus on the KGB, Haslam (history, Cambridge Univ.; Russia's Cold War) turns his attention to lesser-known but perhaps equally important intelligence organizations of Military Intelligence (GRU) and the Special Service (SPEKO), the latter focusing on creating and breaking codes and ciphers. This is a history of Soviet Intelligence from its roots in 1917 (when the Cheka sprung from the Bolshevik revolution) through 2013, with particular attention paid to Russia's dealings with German and British intelligence agencies during wartime. The book has an ambitious scope for its size; as a result the treatment is somewhat buckshot, with highly detailed accounts of specific events spread over a large number of years. The great strength, however, is that the organizations Haslam focuses on have been largely neglected throughout history. This makes the majority of the book fascinating, as it provides a much fuller picture of how events transpired. The author fills in many of the blanks and adds numerous dimensions to the general subject of Soviet intelligence, although a glossary would assist in keeping track of the dozens of acronyms peppered throughout the book.