Intrepid's Last Case

by William Stevenson

Originally published in 1983, this is the follow-up to the bestseller A Man Called Intrepid. In this book, the author details the espionage activities of Sir William Stephenson (no relation) against the KGB at the very beginning of the cold war.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Espionage, Biography, War, Thriller, World War II

369 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1983

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

William Stevenson was a British-born Canadian author and journalist. His 1976 book "A Man Called Intrepid" was about William Stephenson (no relation) and was a best-seller. It was made into a 1979 mini-series starring David Niven and Stevenson followed it up with a 1983 book titled "Intrepid's Last Case."

Stevenson set a record with another 1976 book, "90 Minutes at Entebbe." The book was about Operation Entebbe, an operation where Israeli commandos secretly landed at night at Entebbe Airport in Uganda and succeeded in rescuing the passengers of an airliner hi-jacked by Palestinian militants, while incurring very few casualties. The remarkable record in that pre-internet age is that Stevenson's "instant book" was written, edited, printed and available for sale within weeks of the event it described.

Reviews

[Bill · Rating 2 out of 5]

Awkwardly written and hard to follow. Historically interesting.

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

“In the great battle for the maintenance of true peace and freedom, where the aggressor will be opposed by free men and women, the free press must be bound by the noble rules of democratic ethics.” p.305 (Quoting William Stephenson).

The above statement alone will smoke out a shrill howling of opposition to this disturbing revelation of Soviet espionage.

[Frode · Rating 2 out of 5]

Spooks, useful idiots, betrayal, clandestine communications, spies and counterspies and spy catchers, moles, sleepers, murder, defection, disinformation, bureaucratic red tape and rivalries at national expense, favoritism, elitism: this book has it all. Intrepid’s Last Case is by William Stevenson about Sir William Stephenson. If you think that’s confusing, the whole book is that way; it runs the reader in circles. And then there are the acronyms: SIS, BSC, OSS, CIA, FBI, RIS ABC, NKVD, OGPU, KGB and RCMP. It’s a challenge to keep them all straight unless you have some background and interest in these things.

Igor Gouzenko is the defector, an intelligence officer for Russia; his situation is referred to as the Corby Case. This fellow and his wife were in Canada, and he defected with lots of damning information on the Soviets. That was in 1945. Igor was not handled well; much of his information was discounted by the politicians of the day or submerged by the very foreign agents he was attempting to expose. Aaargh!

For me the book wandered about some, but the author was good as showing how the nature of secrecy in the various organizations made it difficult to get good information. Written communications were weeded, twisted, or just destroyed. Only what appeared in the newspapers could be traced with surety since those articles were in the public eye and domain. Entire sections in some libraries have disappeared. The opposition and some of our own just don’t want people to know. Face it, your government tells you only what they want you to know; much is left out, and some is even falsified. Think of the official government reports on the Kenney assassination for a more modern example.

Stephenson tried to help Gouzenko and was somewhat successful, but the political personalities and attitudes of the time were not favorable to Gouzenko. His case was reopened in 1980, but he died soon thereafter, so not much came of it. Had America, Britain, and Canada listened to Igor initially, we would not have lost so much information to the Soviets. True, the atomic bomb secrets were already out of the bag, but later military and political maneuvers were also handed over. In Korea, for instance, such inside knowledge leaked to the communists cost us thousands of lives.

In sum, the book was informative but a bit of a tough read to follow all the threads and keep things straight. I read this book on my Kindle. Some years back I read A Man Called Intrepid, again written by William Stevenson about Sir William Stephenson, which detailed some of Stephenson’s actions regarding WWII.

[Odhran · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very weak attempt to clear the name of the subject's friend. Offers no alternative possibilities and little in the way of an argument. If I was someone who had heard of the guy accused of spying here, I would probably have walked away convinced of his guilt.

[Dewey Norton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good follow on to A Man Called Intrepid but only if you are really into WWII and the cold war.

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice sequel to A Man Called Intrepid. It is still amazing how well the KGB had penetrated the British spy establishment in the 1930's and 1940's.

[Sharon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I learned a lot from this non-fiction book about international relations after WW II. Although I found the book to be slow reading, it was well worth the time spent. The book contains many things that were surprising to me. For example, prior to Germany’s invasion of the USSR(Russia), the Russians provided Germany with weapons of war and considered Germany to be an ally. I was also shocked to learn that many of the scientists who worked on developing the atomic bomb advocated sharing the process with the Russians seeing them as allies. This mind set of seeing the Russians as allies blinded the U.S. and other allies to the fact of Russian spying and disinformation campaigns. Even when a Russian defector, at great risk to himself and his family, advised Canadian, British and American governments of the fact that there were Russian moles in positions of high authority in their governments, the response was tepid. So, although not an easy read, this book is well worth reading and finding out about other historical surprises.

[Renee · Rating 4 out of 5]

This non fiction of a WWII and cold war British 'spy catcher' is shocking and scary. It clearly shows the depth of Soviet influence from before WWI and the incredible gullibility and ineptness of the US, UK and Canada in allowing and even nurturing it. The Soviets were and continue to be eerily focused and manipulating on their desire for world dominance. And I'm not a conspiracy person, but facts are facts and the facts lead down a dangerous path. This was not an easy read - lots of characters in many locations and situations. It's worth the confusion though for the pearls that are there for collection such as my paraphrased take away - the free world's only tool and only chance to counter the evils of the world is the free press. We need to remember this and support the free press with funding and faith.

[Roberta Westwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible detail

This was great. I read A Man Called Intrepid many years ago, and think I’ll read it again. That said, this book stands alone. What is great about this book is how things end up is revealed, and all the records that have not disappeared are revealed. I knew Canada would play a role, but I was surprised how much. Canadian history buffs will enjoy this.

If you are new to the topic, the author William Stevenson is NOT the spy he is writing about, William Stephenson.

[Richard Croner · Rating 3 out of 5]

A book about shades of grey and black that have existed in the world society since before WWII. The book is awkwardly written and hard to follow but the content is eye opening. Making decisions about truth, perceptions and motivations is a tough if not impossible task and this book exemplify's that fact. I had no idea that the book was not written by Intrepid himself until the last page.

[Terry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Required Reading.

Democrats howling about Russian interference in the last election. They have been interfering since 1920. Obama let the Russian problem persist. Where’s the outrage!

[Jan Funnell · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thoroughly enjoyable and thought-provoking book. Well written and highly readable. This book is a must for anyone interested in the history of the allied intelligence services and the spies that they have knowingly and unknowingly sheltered and then covered up for.

[Lew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read. Extends what I gleaned from A Man Called Intrepid. Definitely gives you a better understanding of our covert agencies, and the many flaws that exist. Supports the notion we have now have about hacked internet accounts and the disinformation that spreads as fact.

[Edward D. Bowling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great history!

This is the only book I've ever read that covers the history of Intelligence from the end of Truman's presidency, and beyond. It ties together all the major themes. Super read!

[Gordon H. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good read, always interesting to read about “intrepid “

[Margo Sinks · Rating 2 out of 5]

NLS BARD audiobook. Not at all well written, confusing, and doesn't prove the innocence of Intrepid's friend.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written in 1983, this history of the defection of Igor Gouzenko gives a disturbing inside look at “intelligence” in Canada, the US, the Uk, USSR and Nazi Germany.

[john linder · Rating 3 out of 5]

it

I chose the rating because it is very disjointed. I liked his book 'a man called intrepid' . It was more tight and tells a story. This just wanders around.

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Historically interested.

[Brett]

Suspense