LATEST Book Review COLUMNS

Congress is Overwhelmed. Now What?

by Congress Overwhelmed

BOOK REVIEW: Congress Overwhelmed – The Decline in Congressional Capacity and Prospects for Reform By Editors Timothy M. LaPira, Lee Drutman and Kevin Kosar / University of Chicago...

Clarity in Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the CIA

by Clarity in Crisis

BOOK REVIEW: Clarity in Crisis: Leadership Lessons from the CIA By Marc Polymeropoulos / HarperCollins Reviewed by Ken Dilanian The Reviewer:  Ken Dilanian is the intelligence and national security...

Book Review: Japanese Foreign Intelligence and Grand Strategy

by Japanese Foreign Intelligence and Grand Strategy

BOOK REVIEW: Japanese Foreign Intelligence and Grand Strategy: From the Cold War to the Abe Era  By Brad Williams / Georgetown University Press  Reviewed by Stephen C. Mercado The Reviewer –...

A Female Spy Thriller that gets it Right

by Red Widow

BOOK REVIEW: Red Widow: A Novel / Putnam  By: Alma Katsu Reviewed by Alison Bouwmeester THE REVIEWER —Alison P. Bouwmeester served for 28 years as a senior leader in the Central Intelligence...

Three Wise Men and Their Duty to Serve

by Three Wise Men

BOOK REVIEW: Three Wise Men: A Navy SEAL, a Green Beret and How their Marine Brother Became a War’s Sole Survivor  By Beau Wise and Tom Sileo / St. Martin’s Press Reviewed by Brad Christian THE...

Reviewing 2034: The Next World War

by 2034 A Novel of the Next World War

BOOK REVIEW: 2034: A Novel of the Next World War By Elliot Ackerman and Admiral James Stavridis Reviewed by Martin Petersen THE REVIEWER — Cipher Brief Expert Martin Petersen is the former...

Eagle Down's Gains and Losses

by Eagle Down

BOOK REVIEW: Eagle Down: The Last Special Forces Fighting the Forever War by Jessica Donati / PublicAffairs Reviewed by Damon Walsh, Chairman, Mission Solutions Group THE REVIEWER — Damon Walsh...

The Spymaster of Baghdad

by The Spymaster of Baghdad

BOOK REVIEW: The Spymaster of Baghdad: A True Story of Bravery, Family, and Patriotism in the Battle Against ISIS by Margaret Coker / Dey Street Books Reviewed by Sonya Lim, former CIA Chief of...

Why a DIY Drone Program was a Bad Idea

by Never Mind We'll Do It Ourselves

The Cipher Brief is committed to a free exchange of ideas. Our book reviewers are drawn from the ranks of our readers — and they are encouraged to “call ’em as they see...

Reading the Roots of Russia's Political Warfare

by The Folly and the Glory

BOOK REVIEW: The Folly and the Glory: America, Russia and the Political Warfare 1945-2020  by Tim Weiner / Henry Holt & Co. Reviewed by Lt. Gen. Robert P. Ashley (Ret.) Cipher Brief Expert...