Life is often more fascinating than fiction. An excellent example is to compare any spy movie set in Moscow with The Moscow Rules by Antonio J. Mendez and Jonna Mendez. The complexity of living and working in a constant state of danger was incredible. Although the Mendezes were not assigned to Moscow, they were directly involved in designing the tools that allowed Americans to work without the KBG observing them.
Each chapter begins with one of the rules, although there are many that are not used in the book. The Introduction starts with this rule, "Don't harass the opposition." An American was attacked by an FSB (KBG's newest form) member who tried to stop him by physically assaulting him. The author ties the aggression of the Russians in 2016 to the Soviets in 1986. There were two aspects of this book that stayed with me. One was the way the authors show how it is really a team and not one person interacting with the opposition. Everyone is essential to have success. The other aspect was that the Russian FSB is using the Soviet playbook updated with today's technology. I highly recommend The Moscow Rules to anyone who is interested in international relations, the US/Russian relationship, and/or the cold war. I received a copy of the book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
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