Into the Lion's Mouth by Larry Loftis

Into the Lion's Mouth

The True Story of Dusko Popov: World War II Spy, Patriot, and the Real-life Inspiration for James Bond

Larry Loftis, Eric G. Dove, Audible Studios

Penguin Publishing Group · Print & ebook · June 14, 2016

International bestseller!

Buy on Amazon

We earn from qualifying purchases.

Who it’s for
A brisk espionage biography with the glamour stripped just enough to let the danger in.
Genres
Lives in History, Intelligence & Espionage, Military Lives
Published
Penguin Publishing Group, June 14, 2016

Nearest books

Matched by what the books are about, then ordered by what their readers also loved.

  1. The Spy and the TraitorBen Macintyre63% match
  2. A Spy Among FriendsBen Macintyre60% matchShares Intelligence & Espionage
  3. Code Name: LiseLarry Loftis61% matchShares Intelligence & Espionage
  4. The CobraFrederick Forsyth46% match
  5. The AfghanFrederick Forsyth52% match
  6. FalloutSteve Sheinkin51% matchShares Intelligence & Espionage
  7. The MissionTim Weiner46% match
  8. Shadow DiversRobert Kurson47% match

For younger readers: Max in the Land of Lies, Velvet Undercover, Tamar

Start with three books, and this one can be the first.

Members get a new edition every morning: a route out from their books to essays, research and talks, with the reason for each.

Start with this book

About this book

International bestseller! James Bond has nothing on Dusko Popov. a double agent for the Abwehr, MI5 and MI6, and the FBI during World War II, Popov seduced numerous women, spoke five languages, and was a crack shot, all while maintaining his cover as a Yugoslavian diplomat… On a cool August evening in 1941, a Serbian playboy created a stir at Casino Estoril in Portugal by throwing down an outrageously large baccarat bet to humiliate his opponent.

Continue reading

The Serbian was a British double agent, and the money?which he had just stolen from the Germans?belonged to the British. From the sideline, watching with intent interest was none other than Ian Fleming… The Serbian was Dusko Popov. As a youngster, he was expelled from his London prep school. Years later he would be arrested and banished from Germany for making derogatory statements about the Third Reich. When World War II ensued, the playboy became a spy, eventually serving three dangerous masters: the Abwehr, MI5 and MI6, and the FBI. On August 10, 1941, the Germans sent Popov to the United States to construct a spy network and gather information on Pearl Harbor. The FBI ignored his German questionnaire, but J. Edgar Hoover succeeded in blowing his cover. While MI5 desperately needed Popov to deceive the Abwehr about the D-Day invasion, they assured him that a return to the German Secret Service Headquarters in Lisbon would result in torture and execution. He went anyway... Into the Lion’s Mouth is a globe-trotting account of a man’s entanglement with espionage, murder, assassins, and lovers?including enemy spies and a Hollywood starlet. It is a story of subterfuge and seduction, patriotism, and cold-blooded courage. It is the story of Dusko Popov?the inspiration for James Bond. INCLUDES PHOTOGRAPHS

Spycraft Roots

A brisk espionage biography with the glamour stripped just enough to let the danger in.

Come here for

  • James Bond’s real-life shadow
  • Spycraft with wartime gravity

Expect

  • World War II intelligence stakes
  • A giftable, display-friendly read

Where it sits

Intelligence & Espionage53%
Lives in History38%
Military Lives36%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Lives in History
  • World War II History
  • Espionage
Authors
Larry Loftis, Eric G. Dove, Audible Studios
Publisher
Penguin Publishing Group
Published
June 14, 2016
Format
Print & ebook
Reading lane
Lives in History