When Michael Ross decided to go backpacking across Europe, he had no inkling that his vacation would lead to a life tracking down the world’s most dangerous terrorists. In Israel, out of money and alone, Ross began working on a Kibbutz–and fell in love with both the country and an Israeli woman. After converting to Judaism, Ross was recruited by the country’s secret service–the Mossad–as an … undercover agent. In the years that followed, he played a significant role in capturing al-Qaeda members responsible for the embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania, and worked jointly with the FBI and CIA to uncover a senior Hezbollah terrorist living in the United States. His never before revealed story makes an action-packed biography.
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Provided interesting insights in to the Mossad, including its interactions with the CIA, to the extent that can be done at all. Certainly a tough world to navigate.
Loved it for all the insights into the intelligence community, especially the US organizations-FBI and CIA. Spying is not as glamorous as I thought before this read. Would like to have learned a bit more about his family and the reason for the breakup but that wasn’t the reason for the book. Israel intel is a small community that gets a lot done.
Autobiographical works by authors unfolding history are engaging generally. This book went “behind the scenes” of world events in the Middle East and broadened and deepened my understanding of what is at stake in the world of terrorism and how threats are either carried out or thwarted. I was also reminded of the personal cost in terms of family relationships that often attends those who are seeking to preserve one’s country and, on a limited level, civilized boundaries in behavior.
Loved it.
This is about real-life spies, in real-life situations. Forget 007. Ian Fleming wasn’t a spy, he was an RAF pilot who got lost on his way to join his squadron in North Africa. He crashed, then was invalided out and spent the rest of the war eavesdropping on Washington socialites with loose tongues, and looser morals.
The book revealed how widespread Muslim terrorist cells are & why the Israeli intelligence community has to be diligent worldwide for its own survival.
I thought the book gave an excellent insider’s view of life in Israel and how Israeli’s think. The author has a unique perspective as he is not Jewish and served in his own country’s military before moving and converting to Judaism to become an Israeli and serve not only in her military, but her intelligence service as well.
This was really a good book about an individual’s career with Israel’s Mossad (kinda like the US CIA). A very good unclassified description of Mossad operations, from an operative’s perspective, the author describes how he went from Canada to Israel, for a visit, then back to Israel, becoming an Orthodox Jew in the IDF (Israel Defense Force) special operations unit. The book also informs as to the ineptitude of our own FBI and CIA, how they refuse to believe that external intelligence agencies can be as smart, or smarter, then they, and how 911 may have been prevented if US intelligence would have accepted what Israeli intelligence was offering. Very good book, quick read.
After reading all of Daniel Silva’s Gabriel Allon series, this intrigued me. There actually is an Office! Enjoyed the real life adventures. Less exciting than the novels, but more realistic. Showing there really are Mossad agents scattered around the globe.
From the very beginning of this book I was hooked. Ross was a Canadian, who grew up in Victoria, British Columbia where I live. He traveled around Europe with a backpack and ends up volunteering on a kibbutz in Israel. He falls in love with the country, eventually converts to Judaism and becomes a citizen. After serving in the Israeli Defense Forces, he is recruited by the Mossad.
Ross lived an exceptional, purpose driven life. A natural writer, he tells his story with humor, honesty and modesty. In relating experiences, conversations and anecdotes, he makes it all so real. You get a sense of the people, the place, the geopolitics, the inner workings of the Mossad and the life of a “combatant”. Compelling and fascinating!
I’m a bit bogged down in the middle, but have enjoyed learning about the real world of counterintelligence, and Mossad specifically. I also like knowing the toll it takes on the agent. I imagine that type of work is especially stressful, psychologically and spiritually. Yet in Israel, a necessity.
Most of the descriptors above do not fit because this is a memoir, not a novel. This is an honest and insightful look into events many readers will remember, as seen through the eyes of a former Israeli Mossad agent. It is a fast-moving and well-written book. I only wish the author could have written in more detail about some of these incidents, and shared more about his work with American intelligence agencies.
This book not only is well written but takes the reader into the world of espionage in the defense of Israel. Her enemies are multiple and dangerous and people like this volunteer shield and prevent attacks on Israel’s population, thus ensuring her survival. I highly recommend reading this book.