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The Stalin Affair

The Impossible Alliance that Won the War

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The Stalin Affair

By: Giles Milton
Narrated by: Giles Milton
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About this listen

 A BBC RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK

A SPECTATOR BOOK OF THE YEAR

'Hugely enjoyable' The Spectator

'Delivered with flamboyance, it features a sparkling cast of chancers' KATJA HOYER, Daily Telegraph 5* review

'Page-turning . . . a sizzling high-stakes tale' JAMES HOLLAND

'This book might read like the screenplay of a gripping movie, yet every word is accurate and verified' ANDREW ROBERTS

'Giles Milton is a phenomenon' DAN SNOW

'Another rollercoaster ride from Giles Milton. Endlessly surprising' ANTHONY HOROWITZ

From internationally bestselling historian Giles Milton comes the remarkable true story of the Allies' secret mission to wartime Moscow.

In the summer of 1941, as Hitler invaded the Soviet Union, Stalin's forces faced a catastrophic defeat which would make the Allies' liberation of Europe virtually impossible. To avert this disaster, Britain and America mobilized an elite team of remarkable diplomats with the mission of keeping the Red Army in the war.

Into the heart of Stalin's Moscow Roosevelt sent Averell Harriman, the fourth richest man in America and his brilliant young daughter Kathy. Churchill dispatched the reckless but inventive bon vivant Archie Clark Kerr - and occasionally himself - to negotiate with the Kremlin's wiliest operators. Together, this improbable group grappled with the ingenious, mercurial Stalin to make victory possible. But they also discovered that the Soviet dictator had a terrifying masterplan for the post-war world.

Based on astonishing unpublished diaries, letters and secret reports, The Stalin Affair reveals troves of new material about the most unlikely coalition in history.©2024 Giles Milton Eastern Europe Military Soviet Union Stalin War Russia Imperialism Winston Churchill Roosevelt Family Red Army

Critic Reviews

Giles Milton has mined new information to portray a convincing account of the relationship between the Second World War's "Big Three". This book might read like the screenplay of a gripping movie, yet every word is accurate and verified (Andrew Roberts)
Giles Milton is a phenomenon. He is masterful as he weaves grand strategy together with individual stories, in all their colour and eccentricity. The result is a rich narrative that leaps from the microscopic to the universal and back again (Dan Snow)
Giles Milton has done it again - a wartime tale of intrigue, risk and cunning involving not only three giants of twentieth century history, but a maverick British diplomat, a dashing American millionaire and his irrepressible daughter. It's a gripping tale that sheds light on one of the second world war's enduring riddles: how did Roosevelt, Churchill and Stalin bury their differences and remain allies long enough to defeat Hitler? (Jonathan Freedland)
Another rollercoaster ride from Giles Milton. Endlessly surprising. (Anthony Horowitz)
Giles Milton is a fine historian but also a born story-teller. This is a superb recreation of an astonishing and unlikely wartime alliance, vividly brought to life in this page-turning book. Political machinations, clashes of culture, deception and deviousness, as well as friendships forged, and a fabulous cast of extraordinary characters combine in a sizzling high-stakes tale of wartime diplomacy that takes the reader from London to Moscow and beyond. Fabulous. (James Holland)
Delivered with flamboyance, it features a sparkling cast of chancers, charmers, egotists and eccentrics with a ringside seat to world events . . . Milton effortlessly moves between high politics and the private world of those who shaped them (Katja Hoyer, Daily Telegraph 5* review)
A scintillating study of international diplomacy amid the horrors of war, enlivened by human detail . . . There is a good reason why Milton's books get dramatized for TV and radio: they are page turners (Iain MacGregor, The Spectator)
A thoroughly enjoyable, well researched and delightfully gossipy narrative of one of the most extraordinary diplomatic stories of the Second World War (Conor O'Clery, Irish Times)
Based on a genuinely new archival source . . . The world [of Stalin, Churchill and Roosevelt] has been vividly and memorably brought to life in Giles Milton's compellingly readable account. It is a worthy addition to any history enthusiast's bookshelf (Roger Moorhouse, BBC History Magazine)
Compelling narrative history
Grippingly entertaining. Unlike most books about war, it is serious history, yet light as a feather (Times Literary Supplement)
How did I know nothing about this massively important part of our recent history? Giles Milton's lucid and magnetic account is utterly absorbing, revealing a chapter of WWII which is often completely invisible. Compulsory reading (Dame Joanna Lumley)
Hugely enjoyable (The Spectator, Books of the Year)
All stars
Most relevant
Great insight behind one of history’s amazing periods, well worth a read or listen five stars from this great history writer.

Up to Giles usual standard

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I have mixed feelings about this fascinating account of key protagonists in the conduct of the Second World War. I guess we all knew (except those in denial) just how duplicitous Stalin was and how duped the allied leaders were but Milton spells it out in graphic detail. I had no idea how influential Avril Harriman and Archy Clerk Kerr were during those unstable and critical times. I was very impressed by the narration of the author who presumably is not a noted actor. My only reservation is the amount of detail provided by Avril's daughter, Kathy. Do we really want to know what she thinks of the allied leaders and Stalin or what she thought of the meals they had? I guess her letters home have the benefit of being recently discovered and therefore providing a fresh insight. Others may find the reflections of this apparently naive rich kid charming, but I could have done with much less of her bubbly enthusiasm.

How the War was Won and the Peace was lost

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What a page turner! Like his protagonists, Milton understands and defly explains the big picture of WW2, and describes how the actions and calculations of extraordinary human beings led to the end of WW2 and shaping of the post war order (and disorder) still with us today. Major events are vividly described in context from the letters and diaries. Astonishing to to think of Churchill's and Harrimann's daughters present at so many events and popping upstairs to record and report them before bed. Very well read by the author.

Highly recommended

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