The Illegals - by Shaun Walker (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

The definitive history of Russia's most secret spy program, from the earliest days of the Soviet Union to Putin's invasion of Ukraine, and a revelatory examination of how that hidden history shaped both Russia and the West.

"Shaun Walker relates these real-life spy stories with breathtaking aplomb." --Wall Street Journal

More than a century ago, the new Bolshevik government began sending Soviet citizens abroad as deep-cover spies, training them to pose as foreign aristocrats, merchants, and students. Over time, this grew into the most ambitious espionage program in history. Many intelligence agencies use undercover operatives, but the KGB was the only one to go to such lengths, spending years training its spies in language and etiquette, and sending them abroad on missions that could last for decades. These spies were known as "illegals." During the Second World War, illegals were dispatched behind enemy lines to assassinate high-ranking Nazis. Later, in the Cold War, they were sent to assimilate and lie low as sleepers in the West. The greatest among them performed remarkable feats, while many others failed in their missions or cracked under the strain of living a double life.

Drawing on hundreds of hours of interviews, as well as archival research in more than a dozen countries, Shaun Walker brings this history to life in a page-turning tour de force that takes us into the heart of the KGB's most secretive program. A riveting spy drama peopled with richly drawn characters, The Illegals also uncovers a hidden thread in the story of Russia itself. As Putin extols Soviet achievements and the KGB's espionage prowess, and Moscow continues to infiltrate illegals across the globe, this timely narrative shines new light on the long arc of the Soviet experiment, its messy aftermath, and its influence on our world at large.

Review Quotes

"Fascinating and meticulously researched. . . . Walker's illegals aren't just background characters in history, either. They helped eliminate Trotsky with an ice ax. They warned Stalin about Hitler's impending attack. They handed Stalin intelligence about the H-bomb before Truman knew the details. . . . Walker's book serves as a reminder that somewhere in Russia right now, ordinary citizens are being molded into simulacrum Americans, learning to enjoy Starbucks and complain about property taxes, prepared to live among us regardless of who occupies the White House or how many summit handshakes take place."
--Joseph Finder, The New York Times Book Review

"One of the best books on intelligence to be published in the last several years. An excellent and sweeping history of the Russian Illegals program, based on a great deal of original reporting and interviews with former Illegals & their families."
--Shashank Joshi, editor for The Economist

"Drawing on archival materials and hundreds of interviews, including with former spies, Walker crafts a fascinating account of Soviet and Russian agents planted in various countries under false names and identities."
--Maria Lipman, Foreign Affairs

"Shaun Walker relates these real-life spy stories with breathtaking aplomb."
--Alex Beam, Wall Street Journal

"No matter how many true espionage tales you have read, you will be captivated by Shaun Walker's crackerjack The Illegals, which focuses on how Russia for decades has dispatched its citizens abroad as deep-cover spies, posing as others while doing Moscow's bidding. The book opens in 2010, with the notorious roundup of 10 "illegals" in the United States that made a star of the real-estate broker/spy Anna Chapman, and Walker's job as a Moscow correspondent gives him both a fresh angle on the scandal and sets the stage for much of the book being told from Russian sources. The best-known "illegals" may be the fictional ones played by Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys in The Americans, but Walker proves that truth can not only be stranger than fiction but far more compelling."
--Jim Kelly, Air Mail

"An incredibly moving history of the Soviet Union's boldest and most secretive spy program. Walker shows how a nation torn between survival and nostalgia invented a form of espionage that was both inspired and fanatical, delving into the deepest levels of espionage where even spies fear to tread."
--Joe Weisberg and Joel Fields, Executive Producers of The Americans

"Sinister, clandestine, and deadly--this is essential history, and it is happening now. A fascinating study of the Russian use of illegal deep undercover agents against the West."
--Simon Sebag Montefiore, author of Stalin

"This gripping account takes you into a world of shadows and mystery, the long and checkered history of the Kremlin sleeper agents. In the annals of espionage, they were Russia's great gamble. Shaun Walker has written a spying classic."
--David E. Hoffman, author of The Billion Dollar Spy

"A riveting spy thriller, that doubles up as a secret history of Russia that is all too current for comfort."
--Peter Pomerantsev, author of How to Win an Information War

"Groundbreaking, authoritative and exhilarating--this book is essential reading for anyone wanting to understand Russia's clandestine malign activities. Built on true life stories as good as any spy novel, it blows open the secrets of Russia's deep cover Illegals spy program, beloved as much by Putin today as previous dictators in the Kremlin like Stalin."
--Calder Walton, intelligence scholar at Harvard's Kennedy School, author of Spies: The Epic Intelligence War between East and West

"Filled with astonishing personal details, The Illegals reveals the paranoia and drama of the secret lives devoted to undermining the west. A gripping history critical to understanding many of Russia's influence operations today."
--Catherine Belton, author of Putin's People

"Shaun Walker skillfully shows how Russia's modern-day election meddling is rooted in the subterfuge and trickery of the bad old days. A fascinating read."
--Oliver Bullough, author of Moneyland and The Last Man in Russia

"Walker's chronicle has all the elements of a great spy novel--assassinations, invisible ink, radio encryption, sabotage, misdirection, and treachery. . . . Walker puts a human face on the illegals, especially agents in arranged marriages who had to live complicated lies, forbidden to speak Russian even in private and forced to conceal the truth from their children. Many illegals cracked under the strain and had to be withdrawn from service. The Illegals is outstanding in its engaging details and harrowing disclosures."
--Booklist (starred review)

"The stuff of TV drama brought to real life. . . . A fast-paced tale of real-world spycraft that will have you wondering whether your neighbors are who they say they are."
--Kirkus

About the Author

SHAUN WALKER is an international correspondent for The Guardian. He reported from Moscow for more than a decade and is the author of The Long Hangover: Putin's New Russia and the Ghosts of the Past. He currently divides his time between Warsaw, Kyiv, and London.