The Dead Hand

A stunning feat of research and narrative. Terrifying."
-John le Carre
"In "The Dead Hand," David Hoffman has uncovered some of the Cold War's most persistent and consequential secrets-plans and systems designed to wage war with weapons of mass destruction, and even to place the prospective end of civilization on a kind of automatic pilot. The book's revelations are shocking; its narrative is intelligent and gripping. This is a tour de force of investigative history."
-Steve Coll, author of "Ghost Wars" and "The Bin Ladens" "An extraordinary and compelling story, beautifully researched, elegantly told, and full of revelations about the superpower arms race in the dying days of the Cold War. "The Dead Hand "is riveting."
-Rick Atkinson, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "An Army At Dawn"
"No one is better qualified than David Hoffman to tell the definitive story of the ruinous Cold War arms race. He has interviewed the principal protagonists, unearthed previously undiscovered archives, and tramped across the military-industrial wasteland of the former Soviet Union. He brings his characters to life in a thrilling narrative that contains many lessons for modern-day policymakers struggling to stop the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. An extraordinary achievement."
-Michael Dobbs, author of "One Minute to Midnight: Kennedy, Khrushchev, and Castro on the Brink of Nuclear War"

"From the Hardcover edition.