Shadow Cell: an explosive insider account of the world's new spy war from ex-CIA operatives

The Bustamantes were a married couple who were assigned to a mission to collect intelligence in a country code-named Falcon, which was compromised by a mole. They were considered safe choices because they had no experience in Falcon and were loyal, forgettable, and disposable. They also brought a granular understanding of how terrorist cells operate and how the agency could exploit those tactics to keep the West safe. They pioneered a new way of spying by building a cell of their own, right at the heart of the CIA.

Format: Hardback
Length: 272 pages
Publication date: 09 September 2025
Publisher: Headline Publishing Group

THE INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER A thrilling first-hand account by husband-and-wife CIA operatives who, against all odds, triumphed in a deadly cat-and-mouse game against a mole within the intelligence agency - an unprecedented insider view of 21st-century spycraft. Andrew and Jihi Bustamante were a tandem couple: married spies who dedicated their lives to the CIA. They met as trainees at Langley and got married while hunting terrorists across the globe. Then, suddenly, they were assigned to a mission so sensitive and explosive that the CIA has still never acknowledged it. The CIA's source network in a country code-named Falcon - one of America's most formidable rivals - had been compromised by a mole, and the agency needed a new way to collect intelligence there. Young newlyweds the Bustamantes were considered safe choices for this daunting task precisely because they had no experience in Falcon. They were also loyal, forgettable, and completely disposable - operatives who could help to strengthen the CIA's position in Falcon while simultaneously serving as bait for the mole. But although their superiors at the CIA didn't realize it, the Bustamantes also brought another advantage to the table: a granular understanding of how terrorist cells operate, and how the agency could exploit those same tactics to keep the West safe. Assembling a rag-tag team of fellow operatives and recruiting new sources from Falcon, the Bustamantes pioneered a new way of spying by building a cell of their own, right at the heart of the CIA. The propulsive, untold tale of one of history's greatest intelligence crises and the unlikely band of agents who were sent in to clean up the mess, Shadow Cell, allows us to peer behind the curtain to see how today's spy wars are being fought.

Weight: 462g
Dimension: 242 x 162 x 26 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781035412402