Book and Film Recommendations

Creators: Josh Appelbaum, Bryan Oh, David Weil | 2023, 2026 (TV Series, 2 seasons, 6 episodes in 2023, 7 episodes in 2026)

The global spy agency known as Citadel has fallen, and its agents' memories were wiped clean. Now the powerful syndicate, Manticore, is rising in the void. Can the Citadel agents recollect their past and summon the strength to fight back?

Heather Salter | Cambridge University Press |20 August 2026

Heather Salter uncovers a remarkable secret history of espionage and counterespionage, repression and resistance, corruption and courage, heartbreak and betrayal in Shanghai between the world wars. At the heart of this story lies the fate of Tatyana Moiseenko and Yakob Rudnik – known then only as Paul and Gertrud Ruegg – a couple arrested, tried, and imprisoned for running a clandestine communist spy ring. Against the backdrop of the battle between communism and anti-communism that would shape much of the twentieth century, this dramatic history provides a uniquely human perspective on the global volatility of the 1930s. Through Tatyana and Yakobs' eyes, Salter traces global police networks, MI6 in China, and the worldwide reach of the Comintern to shed light on the deep historical roots of antagonism between Russia, China, and the West.

Kate Vigurs | Yale University Press | 13 May 2025

The remarkable history of the women who worked for Special Operations Executive across occupied Europe

In the wake of the Nazi invasion of Europe, the tentative sparks of resistance in occupied countries were fanned by Britain’s Special Operations Executive. Across the continent, SOE recruited women to “set Europe ablaze.” Working as secret agents and saboteurs, these individuals bolstered resistance from within and provided much needed support and weapons. F Section’s actions in France are renowned, and today some operatives have become household names. But what happened to the women who worked outside France and those who were locally recruited?

In this gripping account, Kate Vigurs tells the stories of the lesser-known women who worked across Europe, from the Netherlands to Belgium and Poland to Denmark. She explores too the lives of Jewish agents recruited in Mandate Palestine for missions in Eastern Europe. These are stories of trial and error, escape and even execution. Mission Europe examines why women were recruited, analysing their successes and contributions—and celebrates the ordinary women who did extraordinary things.

Stuart Herrington | Presidio Press | 4 May 1999

America's chief spy catcher between 1983 and 1994 reveals his own Cold War memoir of a career spend chasing down spooks, moles, and traitors in the U.S., most notably Clyde Conrad, the most damaging spy in American history.