The Lenin Plot

"Carr's revealing book upends notions of the Cold War, showing that it began earlier than assumed — as soon as the Bolsheviks took over — and that it wasn’t always cold: In 1918, America led a failed military intervention to oust the Communists. 'One would be hard pressed to find anything about this conflict in official United States documents, or even American military history books, which makes Barnes Carr’s entertaining new study, The Lenin Plot, a welcome corrective,' Victor Sebestyen writes in his review. 'The story is vividly told by Carr, who has unearthed some fascinating new archival sources to add to a sparkling narrative.'”

"Fluidly written and impressively researched, this espionage tale delights."

"Some reads like history, some like a spy novel, and it’s always eye-opening. A well-crafted exposé that suggests that the Cold War began half a century earlier than we’ve been told."

"This is a worthwhile read about little-known history."

“[A] forensically researched and at times gripping new contribution to the annals of twentieth century espionage.”

“The author’s key thesis is that the Cold War started with the Bolshevik Revolution rather than after World War II. Today, there are quite a few historians and political scientists who agree with this thesis, also citing hostile statements, from that time, about the Bolshevik Revolution, coming from Winston Churchill.”

"Takes us back to the golden age of Soviet spies in America, when the ideology was stark, the tradecraft basic, and the stakes were as high as they come: the Atomic bomb."

"A swift narrative that transports the reader through wars, revolutions, and major espionage operations of the twentieth century. An outstanding achievement."

“This book fills in a gap in the annals of Soviet espionage. Goes to show you that the old saying ‘Don't judge a book by its cover’ is very true. Those (honestly) nice people served an evil cause. As much as it might pain one to say that, consequently, they were evil themselves, it is the hard truth.”

“Barnes Carr’s Operation Whisper reads like a thriller but is also a fact-filled, illuminating, and sometimes surprising study of real-life atomic spies Morris and Lona Cohen. A must for anyone interested in the history of Cold War espionage.”

“Illuminating and utterly enthralling. This is the first full biography of Morris and Lona Cohen, the New York couple who became the Soviet Union’s most devastating illegal spies.”