Book excerpt: A decade after the Cold War and just a few months after Vladimir Putin came to power, a violent explosion sent the Russian submarine Kursk to the bottom of the Barents Sea. The Russians claimed an outdated torpedo caused the incident and refused help from the West while twenty-three survivors died before they could be rescued. When Russian naval officers revealed evidence of a collision with a U.S. spy sub, Putin squelched the allegations and fired the officers. In Spies of the Deep, the New York Times bestselling author of Red November shatters the lies told by both Russian and U.S. officials and exposes several shocking truths. Included are never-before-revealed facts and firsthand accounts from deep sea rescue divers, U.S. submariners, government officials, Russian naval officers, and expert witnesses. Not to mention unveiled evidence of a secret deal between Putin and U.S. President Bill Clinton to avert a nuclear war. Discover how the Kursk propelled Putin to power and how he used its demise to muzzle oligarchs, wrest control of energy firms, rebuild Russia’s military, and dominate Arctic resources and sea routes. Spies of the Deep explores how the Kursk incident will be remembered as a pivotal historical event that propelled the world’s superpowers into another, far more dangerous Cold War, sparked conflicts in the Arctic, and fueled a resource war that could create an economic nightmare not seen since the Great Depression. Are U.S. and NATO navies already too far behind to deal with new threats from Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran, and if so, how might that impact each of us?