Operation Whisper: The Capture of Soviet Spies Morris and Lona Cohen

Written by Barnes Carr

Narrated by John Pruden

Born and raised in the Bronx and recruited to play football at Mississippi State, Morris Cohen fought for the Loyalists in the Spanish Civil War and with the U.S. Army in World War II. He and his wife, Lona, were as American as football and fried chicken, but for one detail: they'd spent their entire adult lives stealing American military secrets for the Soviet Union. And not just any military secrets, but a complete working plan of the first atomic bomb, smuggled direct from Los Alamos to their Soviet handler in New York. Their associates Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, who accomplished far less, had just been arrested, and the prosecutor wanted the death penalty. Did the Cohens wish to face the same fate? Federal agents were in the neighborhood, knocking on doors, getting close. So get out. Take nothing. Tell no one.

In Operation Whisper, Barnes Carr tells the true story of the most effective Soviet spy couple in America, a pair who vanished under the FBI's nose only to turn up posing as rare book dealers in London, where they continued their atomic spying. The Cohens were talented, dedicated, worldly spies-an urbane, jet-set couple loyal to their service and their friends. Most people they met seemed to think they represented the best of America. The Soviets certainly thought so.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
• Release date: Aug 8, 2017
• ISBN: 9781541481244

Reviews for Operation Whisper

[ralphz-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

You've heard of the Rosenbergs, but you've probably never heard of the Cohens, Morris and Lona, who pulled off a spectacular bit of Cold War espionage ... then disappeared.

The story starts out with young, idealistic communists in the 1930s and comes to its first climax with the theft of blueprints for the atomic bomb.

As the Rosenbergs were rounded up for their spying (for a much smaller secret), the Cohens ran.

Soon, in England, Peter and Helen Kroger mysteriously showed up and start dealing books. And stealing secrets.

Eventually they are caught, and thus ends the first great round of East vs. West.

This is a Cold War tale that's riveting in it's scope and detail. Carr weaves his tale with the everyday ins and outs of being a spy.

I received this book for review.

Read more of my reviews at Ralphsbooks.

[brookeott · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

It's taken me a long time to write this review. Every time I've picked the book up I've found myself less and less interested in the story of the Cohens. While well written, it just didn't seem worth the time and effort required to finish it.

[hedgepeth_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

For the Cold War/True Spy enthusiast this is a must. Parts 1 and 2 focus on the biography/recruitment and early work of the Cohens -- a couple that most have never heard of. Part 3 shifts the focus to the search for and apprehension of the Cohen's English spy ring. The book is very well researched and largely well written. The only drawback is the author's occasional asides. An enjoyable read over the weekend.

[charlessvec · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed reading this book, and learning more about this era. At times it was difficult to follow who was who, and I found myself going back pages to remind myself of the different parts that everyone played. Lots of information! Definitely recommend this book!

[fizzypops-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

An excellent exploration of a lesser well known, but potentially far more serious threat to US nuclear secrets stolen by Soviet agents who lay under deep cover for years. An excellent introduction sets the tone: scene, context, cast of characters and the stakes in play. His easy, evocative style keeps you engaged from start to finish and puts you front and center of the events themselves. It’s exhaustively researched and logically organized and presented, as Carr keeps the pages turning briskly throughout a gripping story. A brief account of the senseless slaughter of leftist ideologues in the Spanish Civil War is one of the most attention-commanding I’ve ever read. Overall, I highly recommend this book for whichever of its constituent parts is of interest.

[rhbouchard_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

A very readable and well organized narrative. It is often a difficult story because of all the interconnections and multiple identities, but Carr does a good job of keeping things straight. He adds enough personal elements to bring the players to life, especially the police and counter-intelligence agents involved. The strongest parts of the book is the interlude in the Spanish Civil War and when it switches to England for the end game - not sure why as Carr is not a Brit or Spaniard.While Carr makes the case the Cohens played a more important role in the Soviets gaining the atomic bomb secrets than the Rosenbergs, I was left with the impression that was about it. I could have used more examples and more details on their American operation, if they were such wheeler and dealers.Very good, informative, quick read.

[qstewart_5 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I received an ARC of this book for an honest review.In the annals of the Cold War only a few are familiar with the Cohens. In the United States if you have lived through or studied the beginning of the arms race and the Cold War the name Rosenberg is well known as the American spies who gave the nuclear secrets to the Soviets. But Mr. Carr's book informs us of another couple who should be given the real credit for stealing the secrets and getting them into Soviet hands. Morris and Lona Cohen are children of immigrants who in their early lives latch onto the liberal philosophies of socialism and communism. Morris even joins up and fights in Spain's Civil War on the Soviet side, where he is wounded and is brought into the circle of spies for the Soviet Union. Both Morris and Lona accept the propaganda that comes out of the Soviet Union and are determined to help this less fortunate ally.It is during World War II that the Cohens, working as a team begin to turn over weapon information to the Soviets. Morris is serving in the army, first in Alaska and then in Europe, and Lona is traveling the east coast getting information that might be helpful to the Soviets in the development of new weapons. They see no problem in this because the Soviets are fighting the same enemy as the United States and should have the same weapons to use in the war. But then the first atomic explosion occurs and the Soviets want to get all of the information that they can get on this new weapon. It is Lona who finds a way to get the information,As the Rosenberg ring is being rolled up the the FBI the Cohen's handler tells them to walk away and in a round a bout way they end up in England again spying for the Soviets against the British bases of NATO. The British MI5 and MI6 get wind of them and with dogged determination they move in and arrest them and their handler. They were tried and convicted and eventually exchanged for some British citizens who had been arrested in the Soviet Union. The Cohens lived a life as Soviet heroes in their adopted country and would die peacefully there and be buried with honors.Why are they not that well known in America? The American anti spy network missed them and allowed them to slip through their fingers to continuing their spying for the Soviets. They were never put on trial in the United States thus that embarrassing fact was never exposed except in the inner circles of the FBI. Were they traitors? That is a question that is left up to the reader to decide for themselves.

[eliz12_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

A couple who chose to become spies. A story that is relatively unknown. A cast of curious characters from around the world. It sounds like a brilliant idea for a book.In the end, though, "Operation Whisper" is a so-so story that left me feeling as though I'd indulged in a large meal but was still very hungry.There are many problems here. There are problems of facts. Lenin, for example, is described as having "German and Jewish ancestry." In fact, only Lenin's maternal great-great grandfather was Jewish.There are problems of storytelling. Often, the writer provides extensive information - about very minor characters, for example - that rarely add to the story. Similarly, there are a ridiculous number of unnecessary details that state the obvious - about the horrors of war or what someone may be thinking, as when Lona believes she may be caught with material she is taking to the Soviets: "Where could she hide it? She couldn't put it in her suitcase, or her purse. Inside her blouse wasn't a good idea either. If she were taken in for questioning, a female agent would search her." There's a problem of insight, because we never really come to know the Cohens as people. There were seemingly unending descriptions about the landscape when Morris was in Spain, but readers will be hard-pressed to tell whether he had a good sense of humor, whether he preferred wine or beer, how he dealt with his parents' unhappiness with Lona. There is even less information about his wife. Who, really, were these two people who chose to divulge secrets about their own country to the Soviets? I never felt I knew them.Ultimately, too, there may have been a problem with the story itself. The Cohens turned over a single, critical piece of evidence to the Soviets, but they were not involved in research, nor were they high-ups in the government. They were essentially couriers. Perhaps there is a reason that this case has received so little publiciity, while the public continues to be fascinated with the Rosenbergs, or the story of Kim Philby. The Rosenberg case includes a brother who turned in his own sister, children who advocate on behalf ot their parents to this day, a horrible (and certainly in the case of Ethel) unwarranted execution, questions of guilt. Kim Philby was a man who brilliantly managed to move into the upper echelons of the British government - all while sending top-secret information to the Soviet Union. Morris and Lona Cohen seem to have been a couple who were dedicated communists and happened to be the ones to pass on vital information about the bomb. They may have had an extraordinary tale to tell, but it certainly isn't evident in this book.