The Man with the Poison Gun cover art

The Man with the Poison Gun

A Cold War Spy Story

 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.

The Man with the Poison Gun

By: Serhii Plokhy
Narrated by: Clive Chafer
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 £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

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

In the fall of 1961, KGB assassin Bogdan Stashinsky defected to West Germany. After spilling his secrets to the CIA, Stashinsky was put on trial in what would be the most publicized assassination case of the entire Cold War. The publicity stirred up by the Stashinsky case forced the KGB to change its modus operandi abroad and helped end the career of Aleksandr Shelepin, one of the most ambitious and dangerous Soviet leaders. Stashinsky's testimony, implicating the Kremlin rulers in political assassinations carried out abroad, shook the world of international politics. Stashinsky's story would inspire films, plays, and books - including Ian Fleming's last James Bond novel, The Man with the Golden Gun.

A thrilling tale of Soviet spy craft, complete with exploding parcels, elaborately staged cover-ups, double agents, and double crosses, The Man with the Poison Gun offers unparalleled insight into the shadowy world of Cold War espionage.

©2016 Serhii Plokhy (P)2016 Tantor 20th Century Espionage Europe Germany Modern Russia True Crime Soviet Union Cold War Assassin Imperialism Exciting

Listeners also enjoyed...

 British Traitors cover art
Blue Murder cover art
The Gates of Europe cover art
Lost Kingdom cover art
Assassination on Embassy Row cover art
Russia: Myths and Realities cover art
The Terminal Spy cover art
Scorpions' Dance cover art
My Russia cover art
The Economic Weapon cover art
The Liar cover art
Intrepid’s Last Case cover art
The Less You Know, the Better You Sleep cover art
Capturing Eichmann cover art
Spymaster cover art
All the Kremlin's Men cover art

Critic reviews

"A thrilling, well-researched tale of espionage that has all the spycraft hallmarks of a blockbuster movie." (Kirkus)
All stars
Most relevant
It’s quite hard to concentrate on the story as the narrator is really bad. It’s as if they fed the book to a sat nav.
Tried to listen to it a few times but it’s just excruciating listening to that man.

Good story but horrible narrator

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.