A Failed Empire cover art

A Failed Empire

The Soviet Union in the Cold War from Stalin to Gorbachev

 Preview
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free
Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.
1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.
Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

A Failed Empire

By: Vladimir Zubok
Narrated by: Nick Sullivan
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £29.99

Buy Now for £29.99

LIMITED TIME OFFER | £0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Premium Plus auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Terms apply.

About this listen

Western interpretations of the Cold War - both realist and neoconservative - have erred by exaggerating either the Kremlin's pragmatism or its aggressiveness, argues Vladislav Zubok. Explaining the interests, aspirations, illusions, fears, and misperceptions of the Kremlin leaders and Soviet elites, Zubok offers a Soviet perspective on the greatest standoff of the 20th century.

©2007 Vladislav M. Zubok (P)2010 Audible, Inc. Americas Politics & Government Russia United States World War Socialism Imperialism Self-Determination Military Cold War Soviet Union American Foreign Policy Imperial Japan Thought-Provoking Stalin Vietnam War China Capitalism Iran Middle East Interwar Period

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Collapse cover art
Children of the Night cover art
The Soviet Century cover art
Putin's Wars cover art
How Wars End cover art
A People’s Tragedy cover art
Patrick Hamilton: Rope, Gaslight, Hangover Square and More cover art
A Certain Idea of France cover art
The Wages of Destruction cover art
North Korea and the World cover art
The Glorious Cause: The American Revolution: 1763-1789 cover art
Understanding Power cover art
America's Secret War cover art
Why Nations Fail cover art
The Origins of Political Order: From Prehuman Times to the French Revolution cover art
Magnificent Delusions cover art

Critic reviews

"Ranks as the new standard work on the Soviet Union's Cold War - for scholars and students alike.... An excellent combination of old and new, offering both a synthetic interpretation of Soviet foreign policy in the latter half of the twentieth century and fresh new material to reconceptualize the factors behind that policy.... An important book [and] a standout." ( Journal of American History)
All stars
Most relevant
This is a fascinating book, on an exciting topic, but I struggled to keep listening because of the flat, robotic and seemingly bored voice of the reader.

Good book let down by robot reader.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A very insightful book that gives a very nuanced look at the Soviet side of the Cold War.
Usually you mainly hear the American side of the story.
Highly recommended.

The Cold War in a new light

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Being somewhat interested in the Cold War and soviet history I thought that I would "chance my arm" and see what this book would bring. I was not disappointed. A very well researched book which provides a behind the iron curtain insight into the era of brinkmanship behind the public face of both US and Soviet politics during the period described in the title.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and its narrator, who does the writing justice, listening for hours on end it made me switch the tv off over Christmas.

A well written and compelling history of a period which to most European people of my age (42) will provide insight into the tension that led us all to live in fear of nuclear attack. It also provides a realisation of how financial pressure and political reform ended the Soviet Unions pretence to empire and ultimately the end of Soviet Communism.

Listened to twice and now on my third listen, this is simply because I enjoy it and there is a vast amount of information contained within, I will definitely be back to listen maybe three or four times a year.

Armchair history buffs this book is for you!

Soviet Cold War History in an understandable form.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A very informative account of Cold War soviet affairs I enjoyed it more then I thought I would

Enjoyed it!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
this is a period of time that interests me greatly and though I have read many books about individual characters and events, as well as overviews of the subject, this book has been by far the best yet. very good research and in depth detailed information on the leadership and policy decisions of all the Soviet governments from Stalin to Gorbachev and beyond. no problem at all with the narrator, he seemed to cope with Russian names okay.

excellent detailed account

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews