The Master of Disguise: My Secret Life in the CIA

Antonio J. Mendez · Malcolm McConnell

Oct 2009 · Harper Collins

About this ebook

The award-winning spy and author of the New York Times bestseller Argo recounts his service with the CIA during the Cold War.

On the fiftieth anniversary of the CIA, Antonio J. Mendez was named one of the fifty all-time stars of the spy trade, and he was granted exclusive permission to tell his fascinating story—all of it.

For the first time, the CIA has authorized a top-level operative to tell all in an unforgettable behind-the-scenes look at espionage in action. An undisputed genius who could create an entirely new identity for anybody, anywhere, anytime, Antonio J. Mendez combined the cunning tricks of a magician with the analytic insight of a psychologist to help hundreds of people escape potentially fatal situations. From “Wild West” adventures in East Asia to Cold War intrigue in Moscow and helping six Americans escape revolutionary Tehran in 1980, Mendez was on the scene. Here he gives us a privileged look at what really happens in the field and behind closed doors at the highest levels of international espionage, some of it shocking, frightening, and wildly inventive—all of it unforgettable.

Ratings and reviews

I really enjoyed this book, it gave me a perspective on what the agents feel and encounter in their missions. Far from what a 007 fictional agent would do, it is a committed, highly adaptive, and exhausting job. I appreciate very much the author had an opportunity to write this book.

By far, the best book I have read and learned to understand the hidden meanings. Greatly articulated. Very entrancing. 10/10

About the author

Tony Mendez is a retired CIA officer who worked undercover for 25 years, participating in some of the most important operations of the Cold War. He earned the CIA's Intelligence Medal of Merit and was chosen as one of 50 officers to be awarded the Trailblazer Medallion.

He is an award-winning painter and the author of The Master of Disguise and Spy Dust, which he co-wrote with his wife Jonna Mendez, also a retired intelligence officer. His most recent book is Argo, which tells the story of the operation he ran to rescue six Americans hiding in the Canadian Embassy in Tehran during the hostage crisis. The operation inspired the Warner Brothers feature film of the same name. Mendez currently lives and works in his studios and gallery on his farm in Maryland with his wife.