I worked in this field for 32 years. This is a good overview of the technical developments and the sometime overriding leadership issues.I went on a submarine once and it was one of the coolest things until I went further in and realized there’s not much space. I’m a history nerd and more importantly, one who loves military history. My son recommended this book and I had to read it. Most people are unaware of the secrets that go on with keeping Americans safe from evil people. So many men have died to protect us and learning about the trial and errors they had to go through, just makes their sacrifice all the more honorable.Better late than never since this Tom Clancy (novel) possible clone was published in the nineties. Anyhow it appears a few insiders (submariners) ) has reviewed and described this book in a most succulent manner but omitted out some important aspects of this deadly game of blind mans bluff in undersea warfare as investigated by these courageous authors. I use the word “courageous” because to go up against the Powers That Be like the NSA as well as other security agencies takes courage, despite the fact I may not agree with their political basis. In this book, they have uncovered and brought to the surface those highly restricted (need to know) operations of some of our sub fleet tactics in regards to spying and perhaps a few “dirty tricks” for future enemy encounters. Lots of documentation as can bee seen by the Appendixes “A” (Submarine Collision) “B” (From the Soviet Side) and “C” (Submarine Awards) that was very through researched—typical academic standards from "professionals". Their chronological sequence of events was dramatic described In Tom Clancy style prose in My opinion while describing the developments of sub technology from the ending of WW11 up until this book went to print was very elucidating and educational. Their descriptive characterizations of the men by who manned these undersea spy subs gives reader a greater depth and understanding---in other words it put a FACE on these men----their fears and ambitions! The astute observations and opinions by these authors enhanced the entertainment and enjoyment of this book. I especially liked the manner they told the story of one of the first spy subs (USS Cochino) and the men who manned it. Its disastrous patrol and the tragedy that be-fail it when a fire broke in the aft battery compartment and the gear (OBA—Oxygen Breathing Apparatus, needed to fight it malfunctioned. This fire destroyed the sub and six crew members and one civilian specialist lives. The Captain had to get all the men out of the noxious fumes all except the XO who was badly burned fighting the fire in the aft battery comportment was left below. Lives were lost but there was heroism and drama when a Chief Morgan jumped into the icy frigid waters to save a man sweep overboard in very turbulent and heavy seas---with sixteen foot waves that make a sub bobble like a cork in rushing water Now imagine a swimmer trying to rescue someone in those conditions---that heroism in the finest traditions of Naval service.. Also, The navy Corpsman who traversed the slippery sub deck and stayed with the XO to render aid was very courageous as well considering he could have been sweep overboard by the slippery sub deck as well as blown up from the HIGHLY explosive hydrogen gases escaping within the sub. There are a vast multitude of sea stories based on the events within the Silent Service over the last three decades these authors that could be told but they (authors0 have only sought to expose but a few. These stories as well as others contained within this book may be based on half-truths and conjecture by the authors but they do portray the men who man our subs as a special breed apart—a courageous lot indeed! I especially like the dedication they made---”To the men who lived these tales and especially to those who shared them with us”, The military clearances/ratings have always operated on a “NEED TO KNOW”---basis in what ever operation one may be involved in and it was a masterpiece of journalism for them to get theses men to talk about such events and operations knowing the potential for violations of the oaths military men take when engaged in such covert operations as described herein. The stories related in this book showed the trials and tribulations the men had to undergo as well as their loved ones who where left in the dark when these men were deployed and not knowing when or IF ever their love ones will return form their deployment. I liked the research and documentation they presented through out this book ---- it was varied and resourceful enough for a skeptic to accept as factual------ like Naval History, Navy War College to name a few they utilized to add substance to this book and to insure these stories were as unbiased as possible—although one can not write and be unbiased in my opinion!I would recommend reading of this book to others who enjoy covert sea stories or ex Navy veterans with the exception--”DON'T BELIEVE EVERYTHING YOU READ” until verified many times over by reliable sources.Men who plow the sea know only too well that the sea can be the greatess FOE besides the enemy that they may encounter while out on patrol as well as accidents like fires or undersea collisions with other subs or undersea obstacles like mountains they were not charted, etc.More than anything this book portrayed the spirit and soul of submarine sailors in my opinion and a little bit about espionage from the sub mariner viewpoint but as one ex sub-mariner expressed in his review titled ---”ONLY THE TIP OF THE ICEBERG" is a vast understatement!!!Because the information in the book came mostly from numerous extensive interviews with former members of the U.S. Navy's submarine espionage service, the reader might expect the book to be full of unabashed praise for said service. On the contrary, the book is quite objective: it reveals both the good side and dark side of the service; the major successes in intelligence gathering and the clever and daring methods by which it was gathered, as well as the carelessness and neglect that resulted in the loss of SSN Scorpion, and the hubris and bad judgement that led to the construction of the Glomar Explorer. It also includes an appendix giving some details of the disasters Soviet submariners endured, such as the reactor accident on one submarine which would have killed everyone on board if 8 crew members had not volunteered to go into the reactor compartment to jury-rig a coolant pump. All 8 died a week later of severe radiation exposure.All in all a very worthwhile read.Informative, well written about a subject that was kept as a government secret for decades.Fascinating.I believe a little background is necessary before I begin the review. I approached this book knowing virtually nothing about the function of submarines in American espionage activities. I vaguely knew that American subs patrolled the Russian coast. I also knew that the one person who had served on a sub with whom I had a friendship answered all my submarine questions with "I can't talk about that." So, I was hoping that the book would provide me with a greater understanding of the spying role of submarines.The book succeeded beyond my expectations. The authors did an excellent job describing the missions and their importance to the American intelligence efforts. But, the technical descriptions were not the features of the book that impressed me the most. Instead, I was greatly impressed by the dedication, ingenuity, and bravery of the men who were depicted in the book. Whether named or not, these men are all depicted as showing an incredibly strong sense of duty. The authors do a great job of showing that this sense was necessary in order to cope with the various emotional and physical strains that submarine service inflicted. Readers of the book will come away with the same feeling of admiration for these men that the authors clearly feel.Blind Man's Bluff isn't perfect. Several of the incidents are told in a "breathless" style that is more suited for a work of fiction than a piece of non-fiction. And the book does suffer from a slight lack of details, which is undoubtedly a result of the still classified nature of these missions. But these are minor quibbles. The book is a must read for anyone who is interested in American military efforts, and a should-be-read by anyone who wants to know just how some of their defense dollars were spent.It is quite mind blowing what goes on under the oceans in the name of National Security of nations. It is very much written from a US perspective and I would like to have seen some space written from the viewpoint of our (the west's) potential enemies point of view. It also has several key characters in, (and rightly so) and the backgrounds run to too much detail that strays from the relevant path that this book is about. Too much about (and I am paraphrasing here) what sort of dog he had, when he left school and did his dad have a grocers store.) This is why four stars not five.Nonetheless, it is a good, well researched book with a lot of info about this important period in recent history and relevant today of course, it very much sets the scene under the waves with real tension.Full marks to the seller, (it was secondhand) it arrived swiftly and in excellent condition.This is a fascinating tale of of extraordinary feats of espionage carried out in a hostile (in every sense) environment, of enormous risks taken, which occasionally paid off and which occasionally ended in tragedy for young men on both sides of the divide who were only doing what they saw as their duty. The largely unsaid part, with one exception, is the staggering cost of it all, of these sophisticated war machines, the cost of one of which would provide for tens of thousands. The one exception? Project Azorian (here called by the old mistaken code name "Jennifer"), the attempted raising of the Russian submarine K-129 from its resting place 3 miles down on the Pacific floor. The Navy was very much against the vast (CIA) expenditure, but I wonder whether it would have spent the money any more wisely.The fact that the code "Jennifer" is used is an indication that this book is (a) somewhat out of date, and (b) probably doesn't tell the whole story. But then many of the details of Azorian are still top-secret, so we probably never will. However, what we get here is sufficient. We can only hope that, as US/Russian relations get cold again, the same errors aren't repeated, leading to more young men dying needlessly.A very well written & fascinating book. I had no idea any of this took place. More detail re the Royal Navy would have made it even better. One of those books you cannot put down!This book held out the promise of telling the story of Cold War Submarine Espionage but, in my opinion, it failed to deliver.The book has lots of stories put together from interviews with participants but, judging from some of the other reviews, these have many errors.The book has a very US centric view, no doubt because of the easier access to US personnel compared to participants from other nations. Unfortunately this US centric view reduces the objectivity of the authors.While this book does add to the general knowledge about what went on in the Cold War and is therefore worth reading, it fails to give the objective, comprehensive view of Cold War Submarine Espionage that it promises.This book reads like a novel, but tells the story of some very brave men who obtained valuable intelligence on Soviet military capability. It could have been very dull indeed; submarine spotting by numbers, but by highlighting the characters of the individuals involved it conveys complex military operations in a very engaging way. And, as a bit of a geek myself, I also enjoyed the scientific sleuthing in the book, particularly the idea of deciding on the most likely spots where a submarine went down by getting submariners to bet on its speed, direction and inclination. Overall this is an excellent read.