The Mission: The CIA in the 21st Century
by Tim Weiner
View on GoodreadsThe CIA of 2001 was an agency in crisis, with overseas stations closed and technology too outdated to collect what it needed. Weiner picks up where Legacy of Ashes ended and runs to early 2025, and you watch the agency remake itself into a paramilitary force, pay heavily for it, and then rebuild its spying.
Core ideas
- Espionage pushed aside: After the intelligence failures before 9/11, covert prisons, interrogations and drone campaigns took priority over traditional spying.
- The bill came due: Foreign agents were compromised, Chinese intelligence stole CIA personnel files, and Russian operatives penetrated agency networks.
- A new generation: Newer officers rebuilt espionage until it reached Russian leadership circles, and six former directors and thirteen station chiefs speak on the record.
Published2025
Pages464
ISBN9780063270183
ReadDec 2025
