I travel.
A lot.
Which means lots of plane trips, and usually the sort of planes too small (or too cheap) for WiFi.
While I pack light, one of my non-negotiable travel items is a fully-charged Kindle Paperwhite. It’s enabled me to learn about the military-industrial complex that I now work in.
Here are the top 6 books covering espionage, cyber warfare, and corporate skullduggery.
Rise and Kill First: The Inside Story and Secret Operations of Israel’s Assassination Program
Goodreads | by @ronenbergman
An insane account of Israel’s history of assassinations, targeted killings, direct action, and rendition programs from before Israel was a State leading to the present day.
The book kept reminding me of news headlines I remembered reading, only to see the full account was even more shocking.
Dark Territory: The Secret History of Cyber War by Fred Kaplan
This book charts the history of cyber warfare and explains how we arrived at the current cyber industry.
An excellent background for any cybersecurity professional. It’s particularly interesting for me as I’ve personally gotten to know some of the characters that appear in the book.
American Kingpin: The Epic Hunt for the Criminal Mastermind Behind the Silk Road
Goodreads | By @nickbilton
One writer’s perspective on the dark web origin story of the SilkRoad marketplace.
It paints a picture of Ross Ulbricht as the Dread Pirate Roberts, the rise of dark web marketplaces, and the impact of fentanyl use in the US as a result.
As of 2019, the courts are still working through the appeals process. The question at hand is whether Ulbricht was a criminal mastermind or an unwitting dupe.
Depending on the outcome of the trial, it may set this story up for a sequel.
The King of Oil: The Secret Lives of Marc Rich
Goodreads | By Daniel Ammann
Very interesting read, this book charts the life story of the man who “made the market” for crude oil.
It includes corporate espionage, nation-state deals, and the impact on family.
Blind Man’s Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage
Goodreads | By @sherrycobysam
Gripping, thrilling and intense, it uncovers some of the stories of warfare from the deep ocean.
The Taking of K-129: How the CIA Used Howard Hughes to Steal a Russian Sub in the Most Daring Covert Operation in History
Goodreads | By @joshdean66
A fast-paced read of the herculean engineering effort to conceive, build and execute a massive (and covert) operation.
They ultimately recovered an enemy submarine while the whole world watched.
