This is a true story that reads like a thrilling spy novel. Warrick (Washington Post), a Pulitzer Prize winner whose specialty is covering intelligence, presents a riveting account of Humam Khalil al-Balawi, the presumptive Jordanian double agent recruited by the CIA in Washington's war against al-Qaeda. For some time, al-Balawi had been sending invaluable, firsthand information to the CIA about the inner workings of al-Qaeda and its top leadership. Al-Balawi had purportedly become a confidant of al-Qaeda's elusive No. 2 leader, Egyptian physician Ayman al-Zawahiri. The "double agent" had promised to provide the CIA with its biggest victory in its war on terrorism by delivering al-Zawahiri. After a waiting period, a special CIA team was to meet with the mysterious double agent in a secret spot in Khost, Afghanistan, to receive the much anticipated information about al-Zawahiri. On December 30, 2009, al-Balawi entered the location, but instead of delivering the anticipated intelligence, he detonated a 30-pound bomb strapped to his chest, killing himself and seven CIA agents. -VERDICT Warrick's straight journalistic report, without editorializing, is highly recommended both to those who follow the U.S. war on terror and to all readers of spy and espionage thrillers, whether fictional or not. [See Prepub Alert, 1/10/11.]-Nader Entessar, Univ. of South Alabama, Mobile (c) Copyright 2011. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

On December 30, 2009, CIA agents at the secret American base at Khost, Afghanistan, awaited the arrival of a top-level member of al-Qaeda, who was in fact a double agent funneling information about the terrorist group to the Americans. But the man's arrival didn't go as the American agents expected. Instead of turning over information on how to locate one of Osama bin Laden's key people, the man detonated a bomb strapped to his body, killing himself and several CIA agents. Warrick, winner of a 1996 Pulitzer for newspaper journalism, covers the year leading up to the triple agent's suicide bombing and its political aftermath. It's a frightening book the man was chillingly adept at working himself into a trusted position with the unsuspecting Americans and it's sure to attract considerable attention among followers of America's antiterrorist efforts, especially because it appears just as the death of bin Laden has heightened interest in al-Qaeda operations.--Pitt, Davi. Copyright 2010 Booklist

The story of how the Central Intelligence Agency continued its record of failure in the so-called war on terrorism, with fatal consequences.In his debut, Pulitzer Prizewinning Washington Post intelligence reporter Warrick focuses on Dec. 30, 2009, when CIA officials, U.S. military personnel and Pakistani and Afghani operatives gathered at a well-protected base in Khost, Afghanistan, to meet a Jordanian pediatrician who had seemingly become a valued spy for the Americans inside Muslim terrorist networks. But as the book's title suggests, Humam Khalil al-Balawi, despite supposedly careful vetting by CIA and Pakistani experts, was actually on the side of the anti-American warriors willing to sacrifice their lives in order to kill Westerners. Once inside the base, Balawi ignited a bomb strapped to his chest, killing seven CIA personnel. Although the classified-information obstacles and polished lies of master spies make accurate reporting on such embarrassing fatalities extremely difficult, Warrick demonstrates the initiative that has marked his newspaper career to share details that are mostly attributed and seem credible. An able storyteller, Warrick provides enough background on each key character to make them come alive. With so much focus on Osama bin Laden since 9/11especially the failures ofpresidents Bush and Obama to fulfill their vows that he will be capturedit is easy for readers to forget that many other faith-based operativesfrom al-Qaeda and related organizations know how tolure American personnel into deathtraps. Warrick demonstrates the skills of those operatives while quietly exposing the lack of wisdom continually demonstrated by American government and military officials.An alarming narrative, especially so because of its understated, never-shrill tone.]] Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

In December 2009, members of al-Qaeda infiltrated the CIA's Forward Operating Base Chapman in Afghanistan and succeeded in killing seven agency operatives. Warrick explores the events surrounding this infamous suicide bombing and analyzes American intelligence failures leading up to the attack. With clear, smooth narration that is never histrionic, Sunil Malhotra complements both the author's approach and his style. Malhotra's pronunciation of Middle Eastern names-as well as his transition between English and regional languages-is consistently flawless. He creates an impressive range of distinct voices and regional accents for the book's characters. And his energetic narration not only captures the tension of suspenseful scenes but maintains listener attention during moments of exposition and analysis. A Doubleday hardcover. (July) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.