Macintyre, Ben - A Spy Among Friends: Kim Philby and the Great Betrayal

Master storyteller Ben Macintyre’s most ambitious work to date brings to life the twentieth century’s greatest spy story.

Kim Philby was the greatest spy in history, a brilliant and charming man who rose to head Britain’s counterintelligence against the Soviet Union during the height of the Cold War—while he was secretly working for the enemy. And nobody thought he knew Philby like Nicholas Elliott, Philby’s best friend and fellow officer in MI6. The two men had gone to the same schools, belonged to the same exclusive clubs, grown close through the crucible of wartime intelligence work and long nights of drink and revelry. It was madness for one to think the other might be a communist spy, bent on subverting Western values and the power of the free world.

But Philby was secretly betraying his friend. Every word Elliott breathed to Philby was transmitted back to Moscow—and not just Elliott’s words, for in America, Philby had made another powerful friend: James Jesus Angleton, the crafty, paranoid head of CIA counterintelligence. Angleton's and Elliott’s unwitting disclosures helped Philby sink almost every important Anglo-American spy operation for twenty years, leading countless operatives to their doom. Even as the web of suspicion closed around him, and Philby was driven to greater lies to protect his cover, his two friends never abandoned him—until it was too late. The stunning truth of his betrayal would have devastating consequences on the two men who thought they knew him best, and on the intelligence services he left crippled in his wake.

Told with heart-pounding suspense and keen psychological insight, and based on personal papers and never-before-seen British intelligence files, A Spy Among Friends is Ben Macintyre’s best book yet, a high-water mark in Cold War history telling.

Edible and perishable items:

For health and safety reasons, food and perishable products are not returnable or exchangeable except in cases in which The Hamlet has shipped the incorrect item.

Non-perishable items:

Returns are allowed within 30 days on non-edible/non-perishable items that are in new and unused condition with all of the original packaging. There will be no refund of shipping charges except in cases in which The Hamlet shipped the incorrect product. If a product is found to be defective or damaged during shipping you will have the option to receive a replacement or a refund of the purchase price and shipping charges. If you receive damaged goods, please notify us within 5 days of receiving your order. Please save your shipping box and packaging because it will need to be inspected by the carrier. If the box is discarded, claims cannot be filed for damaged goods or items.

To return merchandise for a credit or a refund, pre-approval is required. Please contact us at info@thehamletny.com for a Return Authorization Form. Once we receive the completed form, you will be notified with an RMA number if your return request has been approved. Once we receive the returned items, a full refund will be issued in the form of payment that was used to make the original purchase.

When ordering chocolate, candles or other perishable items during hot weather months, you must do so at your own risk. We will do everything possible to prevent damage but we cannot be responsible for products that melt or are damaged during shipping.