What do you think?
Rate this book
The Fourth Man: The Hunt for a KGB Spy at the Top of the CIA and the Rise of Putin's Russia
The never-before-told story of the thrilling hunt for a KGB spy in the top ranks of the CIA and the fight to bring him down, from New York Times bestselling author and former CIA officer Robert Baer
In the aftermath of the Cold War, American intelligence caught three high-profiles Russian spies: Aldrich Ames, Edward Lee Howard, and Robert Hanssen. However, rumors have long swirled of another mole, one perhaps more damaging than all the others combined. Perhaps the greatest traitor in American history, perhaps a Russian ruse to tear the CIA apart, or perhaps nothing more than a bogeyman, he is often referred to as the Fourth Man.
For the first time ever, New York Times bestselling author and former CIA operative Robert Baer tells the full story. After the Ames arrest, the CIA launched another investigation to make sure there wasn't another mole in their ranks. Led by three women, pioneering counterintelligence veterans, its existence was known only to a few. As they hunted through their own, turning up loose threads, smoking guns, and a mercurial KGB source, they came to a startling conclusion that would shake American intelligence to its core. In a cat-and-mouse game worthy of a le Carré novel, the mole hunters squared off against a man who could have been the most damaging spy in US history, a thrilling chase with the profound implications for the future of America, Russia, and the rise of Vladimir Putin.
In the aftermath of the Cold War, American intelligence caught three high-profiles Russian spies: Aldrich Ames, Edward Lee Howard, and Robert Hanssen. However, rumors have long swirled of another mole, one perhaps more damaging than all the others combined. Perhaps the greatest traitor in American history, perhaps a Russian ruse to tear the CIA apart, or perhaps nothing more than a bogeyman, he is often referred to as the Fourth Man.
For the first time ever, New York Times bestselling author and former CIA operative Robert Baer tells the full story. After the Ames arrest, the CIA launched another investigation to make sure there wasn't another mole in their ranks. Led by three women, pioneering counterintelligence veterans, its existence was known only to a few. As they hunted through their own, turning up loose threads, smoking guns, and a mercurial KGB source, they came to a startling conclusion that would shake American intelligence to its core. In a cat-and-mouse game worthy of a le Carré novel, the mole hunters squared off against a man who could have been the most damaging spy in US history, a thrilling chase with the profound implications for the future of America, Russia, and the rise of Vladimir Putin.
295 pages, Hardcover
First published May 17, 2022
191 people are currently reading
806 people want to read
About the author
Robert B. Baer
13 books234 followersRobert B. Baer is a former Middle East intelligence specialist for the CIA, and a winner of the Career Intelligence Medal. He is the author of four New York Times bestsellers, including See No Evil—the basis for the acclaimed film Syriana, which earned George Clooney an Oscar for his portrayal of Baer. He is considered one of the world’s foremost authorities on the Middle East and frequently appears on all major news outlets. Baer writes regularly for Time.com and has contributed to Vanity Fair, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post. He is the current national security affairs analyst for CNN.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 72 reviews
May 18, 2023
The Fourth Man describes the counterintelligence investigation that took place after the capture of Aldrich Ames in 1994 in an effort to determine whether there was a "fourth man" (nice Greene reference) who was also handing over the identities of CIA double agents to the Soviets in 1985-1986. Having noticed that Ames claimed not to hand over the names of double agents until his June 1985 meeting with the KGB, CIA counterintel investigators suspected that multiple of their spies were apprehended too early to be attributable to either his or Edward Lee Howard's reports to the KGB. In basically stereotypical CIA fashion, they came to suspect the then-head of CIA counterintel himself, Paul Redmond. Their investigation was iced by an outraged Redmond and the FBI before, in 2006, the FBI began traveling around asking former colleagues of Redmond's why he would have been taken an unannounced flight to a central European city to meet with a KGB agent.
Overall, I wasn't too impressed with this book despite its interesting premise. The investigation was quite unsatisfying, since it never went anywhere. A major qualm I had was that the counterintel investigators assumed Ames, a notorious dissolute with such a bad alcohol problem his KGB handlers worried about him, remembered the date he gave away names accurately because they all felt he had a strong memory for dates. Witness testimony is unreliable, even for someone who is sober; not to mention, Ames may not have wanted the deaths of CIA moles within the Soviet intel apparatus arrested before his June 1985 meeting attributed to him. Another major qualm is that there is no smoking gun pointing to another CIA mole until more than a decade after Ames was caught; it's true the US had limited access to Russia, but if Redmond was the spy, why didn't more double agents get captured and operations against Russia fail? He had access to that info. A third qualm was various people taking issue with his outraged reaction at being accused in a meeting with half a dozen colleagues. Plenty of people would be outraged in that situation, even if innocent. I would be too if someone accused me of something potentially career-ruining! The idea that only Redmond could have had access to all the leaked intel also likely overestimates the tightness of the CIA's classification system; Hanssen proved that certain people had access to massive troves of intelligence in the late Cold War/early post-Soviet era, despite much of it not being things they really needed access to.
Maybe there'll be an indictment tomorrow with more evidence. Barring that, it seems very Angletonian--looking for a traitor in every shadow, maybe to a self-injurious extent. Unsurprisingly, the CIA is not free from a lot of banal office politics and sour grapes, as is exposed here. Hardly a real-life Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.
Overall, I wasn't too impressed with this book despite its interesting premise. The investigation was quite unsatisfying, since it never went anywhere. A major qualm I had was that the counterintel investigators assumed Ames, a notorious dissolute with such a bad alcohol problem his KGB handlers worried about him, remembered the date he gave away names accurately because they all felt he had a strong memory for dates. Witness testimony is unreliable, even for someone who is sober; not to mention, Ames may not have wanted the deaths of CIA moles within the Soviet intel apparatus arrested before his June 1985 meeting attributed to him. Another major qualm is that there is no smoking gun pointing to another CIA mole until more than a decade after Ames was caught; it's true the US had limited access to Russia, but if Redmond was the spy, why didn't more double agents get captured and operations against Russia fail? He had access to that info. A third qualm was various people taking issue with his outraged reaction at being accused in a meeting with half a dozen colleagues. Plenty of people would be outraged in that situation, even if innocent. I would be too if someone accused me of something potentially career-ruining! The idea that only Redmond could have had access to all the leaked intel also likely overestimates the tightness of the CIA's classification system; Hanssen proved that certain people had access to massive troves of intelligence in the late Cold War/early post-Soviet era, despite much of it not being things they really needed access to.
Maybe there'll be an indictment tomorrow with more evidence. Barring that, it seems very Angletonian--looking for a traitor in every shadow, maybe to a self-injurious extent. Unsurprisingly, the CIA is not free from a lot of banal office politics and sour grapes, as is exposed here. Hardly a real-life Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy.
October 19, 2023
If you have always suspected that the KGB runs rings around its American counterparts, this book will confirm you in that opinion.
The first, second and third men were respectively Aldrich Ames, Edward Lee Howard, and Robert Hanssen who collectively betrayed, as far as we know, virtually every Russian spy we had working for us. Some of the losses could not be explained by these three and it was therefore conjectured that there had to be a Fourth Man as there had proven to be with the Cambridge Spy Ring, namely Anthony Blunt. In the present case, however, after an investigation in 1994 (the meat of this book) senior CIA leadership did nothing and by now the Fourth Man, if he ever existed, has retired or even died. The investigation’s primary suspect is enjoying a comfortable retirement and has or had a consultancy contract with the Russian government.
The chief consequence of all this is that, other than no Russian being crazy enough to risk spying for us, we missed the rise of Vladimir Putin and don’t know the causes or forces behind his rise. The author quotes a former U.S. ambassador to Russia as saying, “Moscow cab drivers know more about the KGB than the CIA does.”
The first, second and third men were respectively Aldrich Ames, Edward Lee Howard, and Robert Hanssen who collectively betrayed, as far as we know, virtually every Russian spy we had working for us. Some of the losses could not be explained by these three and it was therefore conjectured that there had to be a Fourth Man as there had proven to be with the Cambridge Spy Ring, namely Anthony Blunt. In the present case, however, after an investigation in 1994 (the meat of this book) senior CIA leadership did nothing and by now the Fourth Man, if he ever existed, has retired or even died. The investigation’s primary suspect is enjoying a comfortable retirement and has or had a consultancy contract with the Russian government.
The chief consequence of all this is that, other than no Russian being crazy enough to risk spying for us, we missed the rise of Vladimir Putin and don’t know the causes or forces behind his rise. The author quotes a former U.S. ambassador to Russia as saying, “Moscow cab drivers know more about the KGB than the CIA does.”
May 27, 2022
The first few chapters retread the stories of Ames, Howard, and Hanson. At times I thought, why is the author telling me this? Then chapter 9 "the matrix" starts tying it all together and the story really takes off. The context of the other cases is necessary to make the argument that there was a 4th mole in the IC. The epilogue backs away (probably for legal reasons) from the case the author makes. Nonetheless, whether this is entirely or just partially true, it's a good story that ties together other public counter espionage cases.
August 27, 2024
I found this most difficult to follow. The CIA terminology and explanations of departments within the organisation had me blindsided for a good deal of the book. A deal of organograms would have helped.
The work put in by the team of women to get to the root of the concern and how they were later sidelined is worth the read.
I shan't go further and will leave the analysis of the available evidence to the reader.
The work put in by the team of women to get to the root of the concern and how they were later sidelined is worth the read.
I shan't go further and will leave the analysis of the available evidence to the reader.
May 21, 2022
“The Fourth Man hunt is a spy story for the ages, perhaps one of the best the Cold War has to offer. But when we stand back, it’s so much more. It’s a story of how the CIA failed its principal mission, how self-serving bureaucrats chose survival over the truth, and how the United States forfeited any hope of understanding Russia…”
September 4, 2022
Spy stories appeal to me in so many ways: the sense of danger and intrigue, the global political implications, the double agent possibilities, even the details of the spy craft involved. This book has most of that, but it lacks closure, so you’re almost inevitably left a bit deflated. I recognize that the complete story likely will never be publicly known, so the author could only take it as far as he did, but it’s a disappointment nonetheless. The other challenging aspect of this book is the number of characters and agencies involved, which makes it difficult to follow the story arc at some points.
September 27, 2023
Robert Baer was a dedicated case officer in the CIA. Since retiring, he's written some great books. The movie Syriana was based off of his memoir, he was played by George Clooney. Baer is an outspoken critic on the shortcomings of American intelligence and the casualties that result from those shortcomings. Being critical isn't the same as being against though and this book is ultimately a testament to the value and necessity of spies.
Baer begins by introducing the main characters to us. Some we will get to know well over the next 245 pages, others are like ghosts. High ranking moles had been discovered but rumour has it one was missed. He is known as the Fourth Man. He is a much more valuable asset to Russia than anyone else, so valuable, they say, that our most well known mole-hunts may have been to throw us off the track of the Fourth Man. We were so busy celebrating we didn't realize the need to clean our own houses.
The real heroes in this book are the three women who were tasked with hunting the Fourth Man. Through relentless efforts, dedication, and a refusal to be silenced in the face of crushing pressure from those who wanted the investigation killed, these three master spy hunters began to untangle the web of interconnected secrets.
In the end, the evidence leads to just one man. And he wasn't happy to hear about it.
Baer rebuilds the matrix used by the three spy hunters. Step by step we get an idea for how complex this is, how easy it is to be led the wrong way. There's never a clear path in the wilderness of mirrors, and sometimes you're up against someone who is in it for the game, if that's the motivation then you've got your work cut out for you.
Some details from this decades old story are painfully relevant today. The rise of Putin is a mystery in the west. The KGB never really went away, aside from changing names the biggest difference between pre- and post- collapse is that now they're backed by Oligarch money so they seem to have gotten stronger while we treated them, foolishly, like friends.
Baer is a master of the craft, if you haven't read him then you're missing out.
Baer begins by introducing the main characters to us. Some we will get to know well over the next 245 pages, others are like ghosts. High ranking moles had been discovered but rumour has it one was missed. He is known as the Fourth Man. He is a much more valuable asset to Russia than anyone else, so valuable, they say, that our most well known mole-hunts may have been to throw us off the track of the Fourth Man. We were so busy celebrating we didn't realize the need to clean our own houses.
The real heroes in this book are the three women who were tasked with hunting the Fourth Man. Through relentless efforts, dedication, and a refusal to be silenced in the face of crushing pressure from those who wanted the investigation killed, these three master spy hunters began to untangle the web of interconnected secrets.
In the end, the evidence leads to just one man. And he wasn't happy to hear about it.
Baer rebuilds the matrix used by the three spy hunters. Step by step we get an idea for how complex this is, how easy it is to be led the wrong way. There's never a clear path in the wilderness of mirrors, and sometimes you're up against someone who is in it for the game, if that's the motivation then you've got your work cut out for you.
Some details from this decades old story are painfully relevant today. The rise of Putin is a mystery in the west. The KGB never really went away, aside from changing names the biggest difference between pre- and post- collapse is that now they're backed by Oligarch money so they seem to have gotten stronger while we treated them, foolishly, like friends.
Baer is a master of the craft, if you haven't read him then you're missing out.
June 30, 2022
Cryptic secretive informational book on a possible spy the CIA hasn’t caught yet. No information here!
July 12, 2022
Insightful chronicle of the last four decades in the US intelligence services detailing how it happened that the agencies were blind to the rise to power of the current regime in Russia, and the impact on unfolding conflicts in the last decade or two - told from what looks to be an "inside" perspective. Like any good spy story, the punch comes at the end tying the myriad of facts together
August 22, 2022
"The Fourth Man" by Robert Baer details a mole hunt for a potential spy within the highest echelons of the CIA. It seems like it could be the basis for powerful fiction, but it is all too real. Baer writes a riveting story of an unresolved investigation within the CIA. He is an insider, but did not have any direct participation in the mole hunt itself. He uses public sources, and conversations with former employees, and gives us the closest look to the inside workings of a mole hunt than I have ever seen. The investigation is inconclusive, but Baer leads us down the path toward one particular possible suspect. Baer clearly admits this and is forthcoming about the possibilities and the weaknesses of his story.
I have to admit some disappointment about the book's inconclusiveness, but I am left with an admiration for the investigative skills of the author, who had to walk a tightrope and not disturb the CIA's censors as well as satisfy his own ethical standards. He took an honest look at a very difficult and complex issue.
If you are looking for a story with guns and car chases, this is not it. What Baer does very well is that he gives us the real feeling of a CIA mole hunt, and lets us in on the complexity, paranoia and the human toll that such an investigation causes. Lives of the investigators and the investigated are upended, regardless of actual guilt or innocence. In this business, false defectors (or dangles) are salted between among real defectors, and the possibility of Russian "dirty tricks" like framing an innocent CIA employee are ever present. Sacrificing a lower level spy (a pawn sacrifice) to protect someone with better positioning is always possible as well. This is a very complex world, and Baer does a great job of presenting it to outsiders.
My difficulty with this book involves the inherent nature of the subject matter. Baer did a good job of explaining the process to outsiders, but it was complex, and a little difficult for an outsider to follow. The inconclusiveness of the book was also disappointing, but I do have to admire Baer's honesty. To enjoy this book, the reader needs to want to understand and appreciate the process of the investigation, and not its conclusion.
I have to admit some disappointment about the book's inconclusiveness, but I am left with an admiration for the investigative skills of the author, who had to walk a tightrope and not disturb the CIA's censors as well as satisfy his own ethical standards. He took an honest look at a very difficult and complex issue.
If you are looking for a story with guns and car chases, this is not it. What Baer does very well is that he gives us the real feeling of a CIA mole hunt, and lets us in on the complexity, paranoia and the human toll that such an investigation causes. Lives of the investigators and the investigated are upended, regardless of actual guilt or innocence. In this business, false defectors (or dangles) are salted between among real defectors, and the possibility of Russian "dirty tricks" like framing an innocent CIA employee are ever present. Sacrificing a lower level spy (a pawn sacrifice) to protect someone with better positioning is always possible as well. This is a very complex world, and Baer does a great job of presenting it to outsiders.
My difficulty with this book involves the inherent nature of the subject matter. Baer did a good job of explaining the process to outsiders, but it was complex, and a little difficult for an outsider to follow. The inconclusiveness of the book was also disappointing, but I do have to admire Baer's honesty. To enjoy this book, the reader needs to want to understand and appreciate the process of the investigation, and not its conclusion.
November 11, 2022
One of the basic rules of intelligence work is to validate your source. In this case it would be the author. All of Baer's books contain the blurb that he was one of the best CIA case officers ever. He wasn't. If he were he would have medals and commendations to cite in his claim. He does not. The "Career Intelligence Medal" his publishers claim is evidence of his exaltation among case officers, is a medal presented to anyone with over twenty years service when they leave the Agency. It connotes nothing more than you had a career in intelligence. Had he received the Distinguished Career Intelligence Medal it would be worthy of mention. He did not.
Baer is a good storyteller and when he writes fiction it is a passable read. Not so much when he attempts his hand at investigative journalism. This book is full of errors and he did not corroborate the information he received from people who, like himself, are disgruntled with their experiences in the Agency. For example, the individual who claims Redman fired her from the position on the investigation team: Redman didn't make the decision, someone else did, and it was predicated on the individual's failure to work nice with the FBI. Baer also doesn't mention that more than 300 people were investigated and his claim that the FBI has a lot of derogatory information on Redman is belied by Redman's subsequent selection to be an Assistant Secretary at Homeland Defense. That position required an FBI clearance. Do you really think they would allow a person with such derogatory information as claimed move into one of the top positions defending the Homeland.. Not hardly.
There are other mistakes, assumptions and hearsay reported as fact throughout the book. Having written this attack polemic I wonder if Baer has ever considered karma. His target has many friends and a word here and there, well you know intelligence can be a dirty business.
Baer is a good storyteller and when he writes fiction it is a passable read. Not so much when he attempts his hand at investigative journalism. This book is full of errors and he did not corroborate the information he received from people who, like himself, are disgruntled with their experiences in the Agency. For example, the individual who claims Redman fired her from the position on the investigation team: Redman didn't make the decision, someone else did, and it was predicated on the individual's failure to work nice with the FBI. Baer also doesn't mention that more than 300 people were investigated and his claim that the FBI has a lot of derogatory information on Redman is belied by Redman's subsequent selection to be an Assistant Secretary at Homeland Defense. That position required an FBI clearance. Do you really think they would allow a person with such derogatory information as claimed move into one of the top positions defending the Homeland.. Not hardly.
There are other mistakes, assumptions and hearsay reported as fact throughout the book. Having written this attack polemic I wonder if Baer has ever considered karma. His target has many friends and a word here and there, well you know intelligence can be a dirty business.
June 15, 2022
There are no end of internal CIA politics at play in this book. Baer tells the story at the behest of one of his CIA Rabbis who was a contemporary of the person named as the suspect spy. The rabbi and the suspect did not get on and when Baer's rabbi was caught out late in his career for approaching the National Security Counsel on behalf of a questionable individual trying to gain access to the White House, the person who would be the suspect was the senior Counterintelligence Official who would oversee the investigation that would result in the "Suggested" retirement of the rabbi, who then went to work for the questionable individual. Most of this, without some of the names, is available in open source material if you know where to look. Thus, there are many officers of this generation who believe this book is a "Hit Piece" on the suspect Baer names in the book. Most of these officers are former senior counterintelligence personnel who would know the backstory. Also, in the public domain is the information that a CIA officer, "Bob" NLU (as in no last name) made several telephone calls to the NSC on behalf of the questionable individual. The reader may draw their own conclusions.
As for the author, he is a talented story teller. His CIA career proved that. As for the sources remember the eventual suspect transferred them. What is not mentioned in the book is that they had administrative recourse at the time of the transfers, if they had chosen to take it. Did they? That they may still carry a grudge would only be human nature, as a good case officer would know and exploit.
The title of the book, while trying to make a tie to the Cambridge Five is inaccurate. If, indeed there was another spy then he or she would have been the "first" man not the "fourth" since the entire premise of the book is there was another spy who predated, Ames, Howard, Hanssen and Nicholson. Remember Hanssen was FBI and you also had Earl Pitts another FBI special agent who spied for the Russians from 1987 to 1992. So, they really should have picked another title. So, using Baer's premise there would have been not four but six Russian spies who could have named agents and officers. By the way there are number of CI professionals who believe Ames actually started spying much earlier than he admits to so, if there was, information divulged it may well have been Ames.
I won't address the SVR agent mentioned in the book because that information should not have been released, but I will say that even the best of agents lie to you when they don't want to do something or they will tell you things that aren't so when they've run out of things that are. It is all part of the great game and good case officers know, expect and will respond accordingly when this starts to happen.
The CIA investigation was started on the premise of "if there was another spy" who might it be. It was not started on the premise of "there is another spy." Rumor, innuendo, unexplained happenings do not a conspiracy make. In an investigation of this nature you're always going to arrive at a suspect because the premise is, if there is, who is it most likely to be. Without fail it's going to be a very active, accomplished officer who is in on most of the operations the organization is undertaking. Thus, arriving with a name of the most likely is no big deal. If there had been any actual evidence the Agency would have taken action. It did not, promoting this individual into more senior slots and if, as Baer claims, the FBI has an incredible amount of derogatory information on this individual why would he have been, upon leaving the CIA, appointed to one of the most important security oversight positions in the USG? While Baer makes sure he does not openly accuse the individual, he has the reader leaning towards conviction without due process.
Other reviewers have noted this, but no self-respecting intelligence officer calls a recruited intelligence official a "double agent" simply because they are spies. In the case of Ames, Howard, Hanssen, Nicholson, and Pitts, and all other intelligence turncoats, they are simply agents. Baer should have known that.
As for the timing of this book the ill heath of Baer's former rabbi may have something to do with it.
Baer has written some interesting books and made some interesting claims in those books. That he is well-traveled is not in dispute, but other claims like being one of the best ever case officers in the CIA causes some mirth among his contemporaries, some of whom will tell you that, like his rabbi it was "Suggested" he retire. The medal his publicists claim he "won," the CIA Career Intelligence Award, is given to most officers upon retirement. He has no other awards of which to speak like a Donovan Award or a Commendation Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Intelligence Star, Distinguished Intelligence Medal, the Intelligence Cross or the Intelligence Collector of the Year Award. These are awards presented to the top performing case officers in the CIA.
All in all, the book makes for a fascinating read for conspiracy theorists and those who either fear or have a strong aversion to the CIA, but it does not prove or disprove anything other than an investigation was carried out on the premise of "IF there was another spy, who would be the chief suspect."
As for the author, he is a talented story teller. His CIA career proved that. As for the sources remember the eventual suspect transferred them. What is not mentioned in the book is that they had administrative recourse at the time of the transfers, if they had chosen to take it. Did they? That they may still carry a grudge would only be human nature, as a good case officer would know and exploit.
The title of the book, while trying to make a tie to the Cambridge Five is inaccurate. If, indeed there was another spy then he or she would have been the "first" man not the "fourth" since the entire premise of the book is there was another spy who predated, Ames, Howard, Hanssen and Nicholson. Remember Hanssen was FBI and you also had Earl Pitts another FBI special agent who spied for the Russians from 1987 to 1992. So, they really should have picked another title. So, using Baer's premise there would have been not four but six Russian spies who could have named agents and officers. By the way there are number of CI professionals who believe Ames actually started spying much earlier than he admits to so, if there was, information divulged it may well have been Ames.
I won't address the SVR agent mentioned in the book because that information should not have been released, but I will say that even the best of agents lie to you when they don't want to do something or they will tell you things that aren't so when they've run out of things that are. It is all part of the great game and good case officers know, expect and will respond accordingly when this starts to happen.
The CIA investigation was started on the premise of "if there was another spy" who might it be. It was not started on the premise of "there is another spy." Rumor, innuendo, unexplained happenings do not a conspiracy make. In an investigation of this nature you're always going to arrive at a suspect because the premise is, if there is, who is it most likely to be. Without fail it's going to be a very active, accomplished officer who is in on most of the operations the organization is undertaking. Thus, arriving with a name of the most likely is no big deal. If there had been any actual evidence the Agency would have taken action. It did not, promoting this individual into more senior slots and if, as Baer claims, the FBI has an incredible amount of derogatory information on this individual why would he have been, upon leaving the CIA, appointed to one of the most important security oversight positions in the USG? While Baer makes sure he does not openly accuse the individual, he has the reader leaning towards conviction without due process.
Other reviewers have noted this, but no self-respecting intelligence officer calls a recruited intelligence official a "double agent" simply because they are spies. In the case of Ames, Howard, Hanssen, Nicholson, and Pitts, and all other intelligence turncoats, they are simply agents. Baer should have known that.
As for the timing of this book the ill heath of Baer's former rabbi may have something to do with it.
Baer has written some interesting books and made some interesting claims in those books. That he is well-traveled is not in dispute, but other claims like being one of the best ever case officers in the CIA causes some mirth among his contemporaries, some of whom will tell you that, like his rabbi it was "Suggested" he retire. The medal his publicists claim he "won," the CIA Career Intelligence Award, is given to most officers upon retirement. He has no other awards of which to speak like a Donovan Award or a Commendation Medal, Meritorious Service Medal, Intelligence Star, Distinguished Intelligence Medal, the Intelligence Cross or the Intelligence Collector of the Year Award. These are awards presented to the top performing case officers in the CIA.
All in all, the book makes for a fascinating read for conspiracy theorists and those who either fear or have a strong aversion to the CIA, but it does not prove or disprove anything other than an investigation was carried out on the premise of "IF there was another spy, who would be the chief suspect."
May 29, 2025
Following successful investigations of Robert Hassan and Aldrich Ames, the CIA was left with enough evidence to initiate an investigation in a "Fourth Man"--unidentified to this day--who had burrowed deeply into the CIA Directorate of Operations. A Special Investigation Unit, or SIU, was formed and populated by 3 experienced, incorruptible, and smart investigators, all of whom happened to be women. The SIU methodically conducted its investigation, creating a "matrix" out of anomalies they discovered through meticulous and persistent work, The investigation as described by Baer, in my view, was unassailable, and yet, evidence remained elusive, although the 3 investigators plus a late addition, a career CIA operations personnel, thought they nailed the mole. The problem was that the person all the unexplained anomalies led to was a senior supervisor, who acted at every turn to scupper their work and discredit them to the FBI and to their faces. Whether or not the investigators accurately identified the mole is still open to vetting and questions. Ultimately, when the Chief of Operations who happened to be a suspect openly acted to scupper their work, their files, including the all important matrix was shredded. (True to their dedication to the agency's integrity and their own determination, the investigators recreated the matrix from memory.)
I was interested in the manner in which the investigation was undertaken and resolved. As Baer correctly states, CIA mole-hunting investigations remain open and never ending even when the target is apprehended simply because identification of damage done and others involved.
Baer has done a terrific job of focusing on the investigatory work of the SIU team and explaining why he thinks their findings are plausible. It did occur to me that perhaps Baer was encouraged to present this topic, even though many of his sources in or retired from the agency would not discuss it, because the agency wants to shake the weeds to see if any mice scamper out.
All that is speculation on my part, but bringing up the topic by publication is a time-honored way to ignite a fire. And, it should be noted that, on May 16, 2025, Politico Magazine published a lengthy description of facts and events raising, once again The Fourth Man problem at the CIA. I guess the cliche' would be, "stay tuned'.
I was interested in the manner in which the investigation was undertaken and resolved. As Baer correctly states, CIA mole-hunting investigations remain open and never ending even when the target is apprehended simply because identification of damage done and others involved.
Baer has done a terrific job of focusing on the investigatory work of the SIU team and explaining why he thinks their findings are plausible. It did occur to me that perhaps Baer was encouraged to present this topic, even though many of his sources in or retired from the agency would not discuss it, because the agency wants to shake the weeds to see if any mice scamper out.
All that is speculation on my part, but bringing up the topic by publication is a time-honored way to ignite a fire. And, it should be noted that, on May 16, 2025, Politico Magazine published a lengthy description of facts and events raising, once again The Fourth Man problem at the CIA. I guess the cliche' would be, "stay tuned'.
March 3, 2023
An interesting examination of the real world of spying, the CIA, the FBI and the KGB to mention only three of the more famous arms of government who’s job is to either keep us safe or spy on us. Or both.
It’s interesting to find that the murky world of espionage really does exist, and that spies really do move vases in windows to signal when they want to meet. In this real world of shadows, however, as with much crime, it’s the informers, the double agents, the compromised personalities addicted to booze, sex and money who provide the material that the other side needs to thrive. This book concerns itself with the search for a suspected Russian agent who is at the top of the American CIA and possibly still in situ at the time of writing. As three other Moscow agents were caught and tried in the Eighties, the question was asked, could there be a Fourth, especially when many of the betrayals just couldn’t have been made by the other three? The evidence against them on these details just didn’t stack up under examination - there were secrets revealed to the Russians on a timeline or “need to know basis” that the three convicted just couldn’t have been involved with or had access to. The book examines all this in heavy detail and is pretty convincing in its assertions that all leaks weren’t plugged and that the tap was still dripping.
If you’ve ever asked yourself where Putin came from and why are the details so sketchy, it’s because the American spy network in Moscow had been gutted by the betrayal of their spies. They’d none left. The author does much to back up his case, but the book for me began to drag a bit toward the end as the evidence is trawled over again and again. To his credit, he doesn't pull punches and names who he feels is the chief suspect for being the Fourth Man but, as far as I know, nothing has been proved against this character. In this day and age, you're just not surprised that a government leaks and that spies are a fact of life, but I am glad that there are people left in politics who are still interested in uncovering and exposing the guilty parties.
It’s interesting to find that the murky world of espionage really does exist, and that spies really do move vases in windows to signal when they want to meet. In this real world of shadows, however, as with much crime, it’s the informers, the double agents, the compromised personalities addicted to booze, sex and money who provide the material that the other side needs to thrive. This book concerns itself with the search for a suspected Russian agent who is at the top of the American CIA and possibly still in situ at the time of writing. As three other Moscow agents were caught and tried in the Eighties, the question was asked, could there be a Fourth, especially when many of the betrayals just couldn’t have been made by the other three? The evidence against them on these details just didn’t stack up under examination - there were secrets revealed to the Russians on a timeline or “need to know basis” that the three convicted just couldn’t have been involved with or had access to. The book examines all this in heavy detail and is pretty convincing in its assertions that all leaks weren’t plugged and that the tap was still dripping.
If you’ve ever asked yourself where Putin came from and why are the details so sketchy, it’s because the American spy network in Moscow had been gutted by the betrayal of their spies. They’d none left. The author does much to back up his case, but the book for me began to drag a bit toward the end as the evidence is trawled over again and again. To his credit, he doesn't pull punches and names who he feels is the chief suspect for being the Fourth Man but, as far as I know, nothing has been proved against this character. In this day and age, you're just not surprised that a government leaks and that spies are a fact of life, but I am glad that there are people left in politics who are still interested in uncovering and exposing the guilty parties.
June 15, 2022
Loaded with overwhelming conjecture.
But isn't that what spies do, develop hunches and see what they can find out for sure?
The first few chapters give a good overview of the cat and mouse game the CIA and the KGB played during the Cold War. They add depth to what was portrayed with flair in the FX (and Amazon Prime) series, The Americans.
It shouldn't be a spoiler, since it states right on the front cover that this story is about the HUNT for a fourth man. Neither Baer nor the CIA/FBI, in this book anyway, figures out who--beside Aldrich Ames, Robert Hanssen, and Edward Howard were tipping off the KGB about who CIA assets inside the KGB might have been.
Along the way, Baer gets bogged down (IMO) in a plethora of detail that doesn't necessarily add clarity.
There's also plenty of intrigue in the book, but no solid guesses, I guess.
The last chapter ends, " For now, with the Fourth Man still an open case, it remains the most compelling espionage mystery of modern times.
The Epilogue speculates and provides open ended direction for US intelligence community... To both continue the hunt and to hone its skills at rooting out the traitor. Baer exposes internal problems that internal politics and psychological hinderances make the CIA second rate and inferior to the KGB.
Further, Baer provides fodder for endless fictional narratives and stories that might someday spark to the agency so it might become what it aspires to be. Fiction can inspire the imagination at times better than non-fiction.
But isn't that what spies do, develop hunches and see what they can find out for sure?
The first few chapters give a good overview of the cat and mouse game the CIA and the KGB played during the Cold War. They add depth to what was portrayed with flair in the FX (and Amazon Prime) series, The Americans.
It shouldn't be a spoiler, since it states right on the front cover that this story is about the HUNT for a fourth man. Neither Baer nor the CIA/FBI, in this book anyway, figures out who--beside Aldrich Ames, Robert Hanssen, and Edward Howard were tipping off the KGB about who CIA assets inside the KGB might have been.
Along the way, Baer gets bogged down (IMO) in a plethora of detail that doesn't necessarily add clarity.
There's also plenty of intrigue in the book, but no solid guesses, I guess.
The last chapter ends, " For now, with the Fourth Man still an open case, it remains the most compelling espionage mystery of modern times.
The Epilogue speculates and provides open ended direction for US intelligence community... To both continue the hunt and to hone its skills at rooting out the traitor. Baer exposes internal problems that internal politics and psychological hinderances make the CIA second rate and inferior to the KGB.
Further, Baer provides fodder for endless fictional narratives and stories that might someday spark to the agency so it might become what it aspires to be. Fiction can inspire the imagination at times better than non-fiction.
October 2, 2022
I came across this book at the library. It caught my eye as I love to read about real spies, looking at the world from a wholly different point of view. The focus of this book is the search for the fourth man, a mole inside the CIA, one with enormous access to the agency’s deepest secrets. Like knowing there is a Planet 9 out there by inferring how it disturbs other visible bodies, the fourth man’s existence is inferred by those spies executed by the USSR in the 1980’s.
But the individual has never been caught. There are a lot of hints of an ongoing investigation, one that supposedly it making progress. The outcome of that effort for the last 30+ years is one of denile, bureaucracy so thick it stifles action, and mistrust. I found it quite telling the folks on the 7th floor didn’t want to pursue an investigation, for if one of their own leaders was the mole, it would bring Congress down on them further. Oh, they hated having the FBI looking through all of their dirty laundry (the FBI had their own mole to root out, too). In the end a lot of people still do not trust the CIA as there is no telling if the spy’s identify will be handed over by the mole to the Russians.
But the individual has never been caught. There are a lot of hints of an ongoing investigation, one that supposedly it making progress. The outcome of that effort for the last 30+ years is one of denile, bureaucracy so thick it stifles action, and mistrust. I found it quite telling the folks on the 7th floor didn’t want to pursue an investigation, for if one of their own leaders was the mole, it would bring Congress down on them further. Oh, they hated having the FBI looking through all of their dirty laundry (the FBI had their own mole to root out, too). In the end a lot of people still do not trust the CIA as there is no telling if the spy’s identify will be handed over by the mole to the Russians.
October 17, 2022
The Fourth Man by Robert Baer
Although not well written (hackneyed language issues), there are some interesting insights into the issues that exist concerning CIA and FBI rivalries and lack of cooperation for the nation’s good, and general incompetence, especially as it relates to knowledge about Russia in general, Russian secret services more specifically, and Putin in particular.
At least now I have a pretty good idea of what is a mole, as well as a suspicion as to how the Russians may have gone about getting our atomic secrets in the 1940’s. The venality of some of the American spies who betrayed their CIA counterparts puts to shame the double agent Soviet (and Czech) spies I have read about.
The specifics of the damage that Ames did to the CIA in the mid 80’s and Hanssen to the FBI perhaps 10 years later, the ego trips of various CIA bureaucrats (who perhaps were indeed the eponymous 4th spy-mole) boggle the mind.
Perhaps though it is the epilogue that reviews the timing of Putin’s ascent to power, which reviews some of the methodology he may have used to get it, with the CIA oblivious all the while, is the most useful chapter.
Although not well written (hackneyed language issues), there are some interesting insights into the issues that exist concerning CIA and FBI rivalries and lack of cooperation for the nation’s good, and general incompetence, especially as it relates to knowledge about Russia in general, Russian secret services more specifically, and Putin in particular.
At least now I have a pretty good idea of what is a mole, as well as a suspicion as to how the Russians may have gone about getting our atomic secrets in the 1940’s. The venality of some of the American spies who betrayed their CIA counterparts puts to shame the double agent Soviet (and Czech) spies I have read about.
The specifics of the damage that Ames did to the CIA in the mid 80’s and Hanssen to the FBI perhaps 10 years later, the ego trips of various CIA bureaucrats (who perhaps were indeed the eponymous 4th spy-mole) boggle the mind.
Perhaps though it is the epilogue that reviews the timing of Putin’s ascent to power, which reviews some of the methodology he may have used to get it, with the CIA oblivious all the while, is the most useful chapter.
January 17, 2023
Keep with this book. You may not think you understand what is going on with it at first, but keep with it. All you need to know to get you started is that the CIA had moles working for Russia (code named “ASSHOLES” that’s the code name I’ve assigned them for simplicity’s sake) Three were caught, but STRONG evidence suggested there was a fourth. A team of three fabulous women, employed by the CIA, who were just doing their job to try to find the fourth, reviewed evidence and found a probable fourth man, Paul Redmond. Paul Redmond was in the position of authority and acted in ways that more and more solidified his involvement. Lots of tangled webs that leave you wondering what the hell is wrong with ASSHOLES, certain people in our government and Russian authorities including Putin who seriously need to take up a better hobby than screwing with people’s lives. I suggest something therapeutic like knitting, because they spend way too much time being demonic and don’t have anything but disrespect from the populace to show for it. But knit a blanket and you have a blanket - something tangible at the end of the day.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 26, 2022
This book was full of suppositions and theories, with nothing really proven. First, Mr. Baer gives us overwhelming evidence against P. R., as provided to him by others. Then at the end of the book, he says "maybe it's not him". Much of the first part of the book was historical about Ames, Hansen, and Howard. I have read several books covering these traitors, so that portion of the book was redundant. The book became interesting when Mr. Baer began describing the SIU, and especially Ms. Bannerman.
I hope the FBI does come out with some kind of information or arrest soon, otherwise the most prominent suspect is probably in his 80's and could pass away soon. It seems to me that the second part of the title about Putin was tacked on at the last minute, to take advantage of current events: the Russian Invasion of Ukraine, and perhaps attract more readers. Putin is really a minor, even minuscule, player in this book.
I hope the FBI does come out with some kind of information or arrest soon, otherwise the most prominent suspect is probably in his 80's and could pass away soon. It seems to me that the second part of the title about Putin was tacked on at the last minute, to take advantage of current events: the Russian Invasion of Ukraine, and perhaps attract more readers. Putin is really a minor, even minuscule, player in this book.
October 13, 2022
This book's first part is mainly about CIA's 1980ish flubs; three of its agents were unearthed as traitorous doubles. Then, in 1996. one colleague agent says to Baer as they stand in the CIA parking lot and look up to its seventh floor, “The KGB's running an asset … Up there.” So around and around we go, speculation here, circumstantial evidence there, unresolved end. Constant repetition. Baer acknowledges deep editing to the book's original manuscript, “turning a dry counterintelligence investigation into a fast-paced mystery.” I think the effort still falls short even though its narrative mostly flows smoothly. Treacheries of CIA power politics, in-house intrigue and backbiting, my brain spins. Perhaps it's no wonder I'm left with the thought that Russia's equivalent of the old KGB still has our CIA by the yang-yang.
August 6, 2022
Interesting enough, but the biggest take-away message is that the CIA is a bureaucratic nest of scorpions.
Step back a bit and consider that with all our nuttiness, the USA is likely to endure and prosper, while the latest iteration of Russia/USSR will remain a cesspool. Russia's border problem is the reverse of ours. No one's trying to sneak in there. That's pretty good evidence of the nations' relative attractiveness.
So, one wonders: what's the point of all this cloak-and-dagger stuff. Odds are, we're going to win and they're going to lose, largely as a result of ordinary socioeconomic forces. In the meanwhile the rival security services will battle each other, but with scant lasting impact on their nations' long-term viability.
Step back a bit and consider that with all our nuttiness, the USA is likely to endure and prosper, while the latest iteration of Russia/USSR will remain a cesspool. Russia's border problem is the reverse of ours. No one's trying to sneak in there. That's pretty good evidence of the nations' relative attractiveness.
So, one wonders: what's the point of all this cloak-and-dagger stuff. Odds are, we're going to win and they're going to lose, largely as a result of ordinary socioeconomic forces. In the meanwhile the rival security services will battle each other, but with scant lasting impact on their nations' long-term viability.
May 19, 2022
A phenomenal tale of espionage, double agents, and spy hunters. Three high profile KGB spies have been caught in American intelligence agencies. There's rumoured to be a fourth but he hasn't been brought to justice yet. Baer presents the history of the KGB double-agents in the US and the evidence for the existence of the fourth man. He details the dedication of the people investigating and the personal repercussions of undertaking that work. I could not stop turning the pages and read it in one afternoon. It reads like a CIA thriller but it's all real world. It was so good I didn't want it to end.
Thanks to Hachette AU for sending me a review copy.
Thanks to Hachette AU for sending me a review copy.
May 25, 2022
Chaotic Intelligence
A peek into the history, personalities, methods and intra/inter intelligence agency conflicts is interesting to say the least. Given all that the book covers the author did an admirable job at telling the story. Still, it was a little hard to follow. I'm a fan of Robert Baer based on the integrity of his reporting over the years which is why I chose to read the book. I can recommend it to readers of all generations: those who remember the cold war and those who may well have to face future challenges from the coiled autocratic snake that Russia's leader has turned it into.
A peek into the history, personalities, methods and intra/inter intelligence agency conflicts is interesting to say the least. Given all that the book covers the author did an admirable job at telling the story. Still, it was a little hard to follow. I'm a fan of Robert Baer based on the integrity of his reporting over the years which is why I chose to read the book. I can recommend it to readers of all generations: those who remember the cold war and those who may well have to face future challenges from the coiled autocratic snake that Russia's leader has turned it into.
February 17, 2023
To his credit, Baer does a fantastic job in the first half of the book weaving together various counterintelligence stories and setting up the possibility of a fourth man inside the CIA at the height of the Cold War. All of the information he provides is consistent with what I learned from a former graduate school professor, a man Baer mentions as one of the initial fourth man suspects.
However, the second half/last quarter of the book goes off the rails. Baer’s approach seems to be the following: say that the fourth man has been and currently is the subject of an active FBI investigation, then name a suspect and provide circumstantial evidence (some of which seems plausible, yet much has been refuted by a range of former CIA officers), then distance himself from the accusation by saying he’s not sure if (suspect) is the fourth man.
Unfortunately, this book quickly went from an intriguing spy story to an unsound accusation that could muddy a federal investigation.
However, the second half/last quarter of the book goes off the rails. Baer’s approach seems to be the following: say that the fourth man has been and currently is the subject of an active FBI investigation, then name a suspect and provide circumstantial evidence (some of which seems plausible, yet much has been refuted by a range of former CIA officers), then distance himself from the accusation by saying he’s not sure if (suspect) is the fourth man.
Unfortunately, this book quickly went from an intriguing spy story to an unsound accusation that could muddy a federal investigation.
June 22, 2022
Baer possesses the rare talent of spinning a truly gripping narrative despite having to be at times very vague on details to get his work past the CIA review board. A fascinating look at spy catchers at work, laying out the ongoing hunt for a suspected Russian spy in the highest echelons of the CIA who has supposedly been active since Cold War times and who as yet has not been conclusively identified or caught. Makes for gripping reading.
July 5, 2022
I heard Mr. Baer speak on Pat Thurston on KGO's radio show about this book and he was a great interviewee. He told such a good story that I had to get the book.
The first half was pretty boring. I get it that he needed to give some background and I was an adult when much of the events around Ames and Hassen happened, but it was kind of dull reading. The last half where Bannerman began her investigation was pretty interesting.
The first half was pretty boring. I get it that he needed to give some background and I was an adult when much of the events around Ames and Hassen happened, but it was kind of dull reading. The last half where Bannerman began her investigation was pretty interesting.
August 16, 2022
Just not sure what others saw in this book. Nicely 'inside baseball' a lot of the time, but with too much redundancy for a smooth read. I skimmed along to find interesting threads: on US failures, Putin's rise to power, historic intelligence victories and missed opportunities. Perhaps my own failure of patience is why the book came off like an extended Wikipedia entry, and you may have better luck.
September 14, 2022
Not as good as the last book of Mr Baer's that I read!
Interesting, but I got bogged down in the minutiae of CIA operations. It's a think read. He convinced me of the likely existence of a Second-run fourth man, and offers really just one candidate, but it is all circumstantial.
What is most enlightening in how excellent the Russians are at espionage and how utterly pathetic Americans are at the same. Paints events of 2016 with a different palette for me!
Interesting, but I got bogged down in the minutiae of CIA operations. It's a think read. He convinced me of the likely existence of a Second-run fourth man, and offers really just one candidate, but it is all circumstantial.
What is most enlightening in how excellent the Russians are at espionage and how utterly pathetic Americans are at the same. Paints events of 2016 with a different palette for me!
August 13, 2023
I elected to read R. Baer’s documentary as only a month ago I finished N. Dolgopolov’s “Geniuses of Intelligence”. I was happy to find a lot of parallels between these two books. I don’t believe either book will be translated in the corresponding language any time soon. So I consider myself really lucky. I hope that men and women on both sides will find enough courage to stand against the politicians who are taking us relentlessly to WW3.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 72 reviews