Sam V. Novnik
@samvnovnik.bsky.social
Author of Cold War spy novel 'Dead Spies Tell No Lies'. Occasional poet & translator (English, French, Italian, Russian) http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C4MRW4Z8
Aldrich Ames, CIA agent who sold secrets to the Soviets, dies aged 84 - BBC News
Only dead spies tell no lies...
share.google/ANqJQ5nXOV5r...
Only dead spies tell no lies...
share.google/ANqJQ5nXOV5r...
Aldrich Ames, CIA agent who sold secrets to the Soviets, dies aged 84 - BBC News
The double agent compromised more than 100 operations and betrayed more than 30 agents spying for the West.
share.google
January 7, 2026 at 10:37 AM
Aldrich Ames, CIA agent who sold secrets to the Soviets, dies aged 84 - BBC News
Only dead spies tell no lies...
share.google/ANqJQ5nXOV5r...
Only dead spies tell no lies...
share.google/ANqJQ5nXOV5r...
Spread the word about this. Many men still don't get checked. This lady says "listening to a podcast made my husband find out he had prostate cancer". Better to know or to be ignorant?
share.google/BiZGB8oWcqYa...
share.google/BiZGB8oWcqYa...
My husband only got his prostate checked after I made him listen to a podcast. It saved his life
I played Gabby Logan’s show in the car and Paul finally went to the GP. He was diagnosed with cancer
share.google
January 5, 2026 at 6:37 PM
Spread the word about this. Many men still don't get checked. This lady says "listening to a podcast made my husband find out he had prostate cancer". Better to know or to be ignorant?
share.google/BiZGB8oWcqYa...
share.google/BiZGB8oWcqYa...
Alexei Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) released a new exposé of another grandiose Putin residence in Crimea. The original building was confiscated from Yanukovych, the corrupt former President of Ukraine after he fled to Moscow.
Watch the FBK video for more!
youtu.be/hq6Orw4nbjw?...
Watch the FBK video for more!
youtu.be/hq6Orw4nbjw?...
НОВЫЙ ДВОРЕЦ ПУТИНА. Показываем, что там внутри
YouTube video by Алексей Навальный
youtu.be
January 4, 2026 at 5:49 PM
Alexei Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) released a new exposé of another grandiose Putin residence in Crimea. The original building was confiscated from Yanukovych, the corrupt former President of Ukraine after he fled to Moscow.
Watch the FBK video for more!
youtu.be/hq6Orw4nbjw?...
Watch the FBK video for more!
youtu.be/hq6Orw4nbjw?...
Iranians have woken up. When will Russians? Only when anger & discontent exceed fear of the regime's brutality, when it's seen that dutiful sacrifices to serve Russia only serve to protect & enrich Putin & cronies stealing the nation's $billions of wealth to build palaces & yachts for fun.
January 4, 2026 at 5:46 PM
Iranians have woken up. When will Russians? Only when anger & discontent exceed fear of the regime's brutality, when it's seen that dutiful sacrifices to serve Russia only serve to protect & enrich Putin & cronies stealing the nation's $billions of wealth to build palaces & yachts for fun.
ICYMI here's @robhastings.bsky.social @theipaper.com on ex-CIA Rob Dannenberg's excellent Putin : Trump analysis. RD did 2 Moscow tours, in mid 1990s & as @CIA station chief in early 2000s. He neatly summarises Putin's mindset & manipulation of @POTUS. Via trib.al/SwCdKWE
Or read it all below 👇
Or read it all below 👇
January 2, 2026 at 4:29 PM
ICYMI here's @robhastings.bsky.social @theipaper.com on ex-CIA Rob Dannenberg's excellent Putin : Trump analysis. RD did 2 Moscow tours, in mid 1990s & as @CIA station chief in early 2000s. He neatly summarises Putin's mindset & manipulation of @POTUS. Via trib.al/SwCdKWE
Or read it all below 👇
Or read it all below 👇
ICYMI.
There are no risk-free get-rich-quick offers in the Russian army.
Russia's losses in Ukraine rise faster than ever as US pushes for peace deal - BBC News share.google/8aQrJYIh9rmj...
There are no risk-free get-rich-quick offers in the Russian army.
Russia's losses in Ukraine rise faster than ever as US pushes for peace deal - BBC News share.google/8aQrJYIh9rmj...
Russia's losses in Ukraine rise faster than ever as US pushes for peace deal
A steep rise in soldiers' obituaries is documented by the BBC as part of its work in counting Russian war losses.
share.google
January 1, 2026 at 3:44 PM
ICYMI.
There are no risk-free get-rich-quick offers in the Russian army.
Russia's losses in Ukraine rise faster than ever as US pushes for peace deal - BBC News share.google/8aQrJYIh9rmj...
There are no risk-free get-rich-quick offers in the Russian army.
Russia's losses in Ukraine rise faster than ever as US pushes for peace deal - BBC News share.google/8aQrJYIh9rmj...
Shameless people (🇷🇺 & others) drained of hope forlornly want peace, but know they're powerless to stop the war. Meanwhile bullies, dictators & warmongers threaten & continue attacks against any failing to kneel, surrender or love & respect them. Who will stop it? Not the bully.
January 1, 2026 at 3:33 PM
Shameless people (🇷🇺 & others) drained of hope forlornly want peace, but know they're powerless to stop the war. Meanwhile bullies, dictators & warmongers threaten & continue attacks against any failing to kneel, surrender or love & respect them. Who will stop it? Not the bully.
If life is getting hard for Muscovites, imagine those living in rural poverty, seeing ads offering recruits $66k for a year's work. Many don't know they'll be cannon fodder or shot for disobeying orders. Bodies or pay may not even get home, with pay 'allegedly' embezzled by officers or recruiters.
January 1, 2026 at 3:18 PM
If life is getting hard for Muscovites, imagine those living in rural poverty, seeing ads offering recruits $66k for a year's work. Many don't know they'll be cannon fodder or shot for disobeying orders. Bodies or pay may not even get home, with pay 'allegedly' embezzled by officers or recruiters.
Reposted by Sam V. Novnik
I ask Russians: how do you see your lives five years from now? Among the responses: “That depends on Vladimir Putin. On what mood he’ll be in.” Another reply: “Five years? If I look ahead 10 days, it’s good.” #2026
I ask Russians: how do you see your lives five years from now?
YouTube video by Steve Rosenberg
youtu.be
January 1, 2026 at 7:09 AM
I ask Russians: how do you see your lives five years from now? Among the responses: “That depends on Vladimir Putin. On what mood he’ll be in.” Another reply: “Five years? If I look ahead 10 days, it’s good.” #2026
It's "highly unlikely" that Ukraine would try to hit Putin's residences. They're among the best protected sites in Russia - better than many military sites & include underground bunkers. Here's a few:
$1 bn Black Sea Palace & modest dachas $??? m on Lake Valdai & also Lake Ladoga in Karelia.
$1 bn Black Sea Palace & modest dachas $??? m on Lake Valdai & also Lake Ladoga in Karelia.
December 31, 2025 at 6:38 PM
It's "highly unlikely" that Ukraine would try to hit Putin's residences. They're among the best protected sites in Russia - better than many military sites & include underground bunkers. Here's a few:
$1 bn Black Sea Palace & modest dachas $??? m on Lake Valdai & also Lake Ladoga in Karelia.
$1 bn Black Sea Palace & modest dachas $??? m on Lake Valdai & also Lake Ladoga in Karelia.
#ReadingRussia @bbcstever.bsky.social Moscow newspapers report on Putin, Trump, War & Peace, price/tax hikes, deficits & shortages. But the big story for Brits - the Weather - is missing. There's an ongoing snow shortage in Moscow this year. Climate Change has already hit & there's no going back!
December 31, 2025 at 3:59 PM
#ReadingRussia @bbcstever.bsky.social Moscow newspapers report on Putin, Trump, War & Peace, price/tax hikes, deficits & shortages. But the big story for Brits - the Weather - is missing. There's an ongoing snow shortage in Moscow this year. Climate Change has already hit & there's no going back!
For Korean readers & invaders or those who like puzzles, a snippet from 'The Korean'
멀리 북한에서 온 젊은이여!
우크라이나에 무엇을 가져왔습니까?
고향에서 행복하지 않았습니까?
평양이나 남포에서 안전하게 살 수는 없었습니까?
For more in English & Russian search #DeadSpiesTellNoLies or amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C4MRW4Z8. Cold War KGB spies, intrigue, mysterious deaths
멀리 북한에서 온 젊은이여!
우크라이나에 무엇을 가져왔습니까?
고향에서 행복하지 않았습니까?
평양이나 남포에서 안전하게 살 수는 없었습니까?
For more in English & Russian search #DeadSpiesTellNoLies or amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C4MRW4Z8. Cold War KGB spies, intrigue, mysterious deaths
December 31, 2025 at 3:13 PM
For Korean readers & invaders or those who like puzzles, a snippet from 'The Korean'
멀리 북한에서 온 젊은이여!
우크라이나에 무엇을 가져왔습니까?
고향에서 행복하지 않았습니까?
평양이나 남포에서 안전하게 살 수는 없었습니까?
For more in English & Russian search #DeadSpiesTellNoLies or amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C4MRW4Z8. Cold War KGB spies, intrigue, mysterious deaths
멀리 북한에서 온 젊은이여!
우크라이나에 무엇을 가져왔습니까?
고향에서 행복하지 않았습니까?
평양이나 남포에서 안전하게 살 수는 없었습니까?
For more in English & Russian search #DeadSpiesTellNoLies or amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C4MRW4Z8. Cold War KGB spies, intrigue, mysterious deaths
Wow! Mikhail Svetlov's 1943 poem (in Russian) warning Italians of their fate has been updated for North Korean readers & invaders:
당신은 이곳에 살았던 적도 없고, 평화롭게 온 것도 아니었습니다! 그러나 검게 그을리고 눈 덮인 들판에 흩어져 있는 죽은 눈들의 얼어붙은 시선은 여전히 한국의 산과 하늘을 비추고 있습니다...
Apologies for E&O & lack of rhymes
amazon.com/dp/B0C4MRW4Z8
당신은 이곳에 살았던 적도 없고, 평화롭게 온 것도 아니었습니다! 그러나 검게 그을리고 눈 덮인 들판에 흩어져 있는 죽은 눈들의 얼어붙은 시선은 여전히 한국의 산과 하늘을 비추고 있습니다...
Apologies for E&O & lack of rhymes
amazon.com/dp/B0C4MRW4Z8
DEAD SPIES TELL NO LIES: Let Sleeping Spies Lie
In 1983, at the height of the Cold War, Sam, a journalist in Moscow, is drawn into espionage and the underbelly of the Soviet State. The mysterious death of a British banker only encourages Sam to dig...
amazon.com
December 28, 2025 at 3:16 PM
Wow! Mikhail Svetlov's 1943 poem (in Russian) warning Italians of their fate has been updated for North Korean readers & invaders:
당신은 이곳에 살았던 적도 없고, 평화롭게 온 것도 아니었습니다! 그러나 검게 그을리고 눈 덮인 들판에 흩어져 있는 죽은 눈들의 얼어붙은 시선은 여전히 한국의 산과 하늘을 비추고 있습니다...
Apologies for E&O & lack of rhymes
amazon.com/dp/B0C4MRW4Z8
당신은 이곳에 살았던 적도 없고, 평화롭게 온 것도 아니었습니다! 그러나 검게 그을리고 눈 덮인 들판에 흩어져 있는 죽은 눈들의 얼어붙은 시선은 여전히 한국의 산과 하늘을 비추고 있습니다...
Apologies for E&O & lack of rhymes
amazon.com/dp/B0C4MRW4Z8
Laurent Vinatier in prison as a non-reg'd foreign agent faces spy charges. Jérôme Garro @TF1info.bsky.social asked Putin about him. Peskov: "An offer has been made & his fate is now in Macron's hands". Will such actions intensify in 2026 as the BBC asked?
Source @washingtonpost.com
search.app/xD7qV
Source @washingtonpost.com
search.app/xD7qV
The Kremlin says Moscow made an offer to France regarding a French citizen imprisoned in Russia
The Kremlin is in talks with French authorities about French scholar Laurent Vinatier, who is serving a three-year sentence in Russia and reportedly faces new espionage charges
search.app
December 26, 2025 at 3:13 PM
Laurent Vinatier in prison as a non-reg'd foreign agent faces spy charges. Jérôme Garro @TF1info.bsky.social asked Putin about him. Peskov: "An offer has been made & his fate is now in Macron's hands". Will such actions intensify in 2026 as the BBC asked?
Source @washingtonpost.com
search.app/xD7qV
Source @washingtonpost.com
search.app/xD7qV
I hoped with festive spirits, 99p price & ALL proceeds to Prostate Cancer UK, more would risk buying 'Dead Spies Tell No Lies'.
"Only" 1 in 8 men get Prostate Cancer. 1 in 4 if it's in the family & for Blacks. 12000 a year die of it.
But Putin still kills more.
share.google/PyOlOYvbayZp...
"Only" 1 in 8 men get Prostate Cancer. 1 in 4 if it's in the family & for Blacks. 12000 a year die of it.
But Putin still kills more.
share.google/PyOlOYvbayZp...
‘I was diagnosed with prostate cancer two days before Christmas’
After a GP dismissed his symptoms, Darren Abramson was fast-tracked to a private hospital where he was given life-changing news
share.google
December 24, 2025 at 7:11 PM
I hoped with festive spirits, 99p price & ALL proceeds to Prostate Cancer UK, more would risk buying 'Dead Spies Tell No Lies'.
"Only" 1 in 8 men get Prostate Cancer. 1 in 4 if it's in the family & for Blacks. 12000 a year die of it.
But Putin still kills more.
share.google/PyOlOYvbayZp...
"Only" 1 in 8 men get Prostate Cancer. 1 in 4 if it's in the family & for Blacks. 12000 a year die of it.
But Putin still kills more.
share.google/PyOlOYvbayZp...
Interesting extra piece by @BBCStever.bsky.social on his question to Putin. Huge thanks & admiration for the excellent #ReadingRussia reviews, news reports & piano playing throughout 2025. Long may it continue!
Was Putin's response an olive branch? - BBC News share.google/fTZlhbwHQYTs...
Was Putin's response an olive branch? - BBC News share.google/fTZlhbwHQYTs...
Steve Rosenberg: Was Putin's response to my question about war in Europe an olive branch? - BBC News
Russia's leader told our Russia editor that claims an attack on Europe was planned were "rubbish".
share.google
December 21, 2025 at 10:16 AM
Interesting extra piece by @BBCStever.bsky.social on his question to Putin. Huge thanks & admiration for the excellent #ReadingRussia reviews, news reports & piano playing throughout 2025. Long may it continue!
Was Putin's response an olive branch? - BBC News share.google/fTZlhbwHQYTs...
Was Putin's response an olive branch? - BBC News share.google/fTZlhbwHQYTs...
Thanks to all those taking a risk on 'Dead Spies Tell No Lies' before the offer expires @ 8am GMT, knowing it will also support Prostate Cancer UK. Enjoy or hate this Cold War spy novel! + its Appendix of poetry & secret docs. I send best wishes for Christmas & 2026! 🎄🙏
www.amazon.com/dp/B0C54D3SY4
www.amazon.com/dp/B0C54D3SY4
DEAD SPIES TELL NO LIES: Let Sleeping Spies Lie
Amazon.com: DEAD SPIES TELL NO LIES: Let Sleeping Spies Lie eBook : Novnik, Sam V.: Kindle Store
www.amazon.com
December 20, 2025 at 8:32 PM
Thanks to all those taking a risk on 'Dead Spies Tell No Lies' before the offer expires @ 8am GMT, knowing it will also support Prostate Cancer UK. Enjoy or hate this Cold War spy novel! + its Appendix of poetry & secret docs. I send best wishes for Christmas & 2026! 🎄🙏
www.amazon.com/dp/B0C54D3SY4
www.amazon.com/dp/B0C54D3SY4
Once upon a time, there was a playground bully who kept picking fights with younger weaker kids. He hated their ethnicity, accused them of invading his space, standing too close in assembly so he couldn't breathe or accused them of "looking at him in the wrong way". Kids tried to keep clear of him
December 20, 2025 at 10:24 AM
Once upon a time, there was a playground bully who kept picking fights with younger weaker kids. He hated their ethnicity, accused them of invading his space, standing too close in assembly so he couldn't breathe or accused them of "looking at him in the wrong way". Kids tried to keep clear of him
#DeadSpiesTellNoLies: #CIA #MI5 #KGB #spies #secrets & #lies in a #ColdWar #spy story of #intrigue, #menace & #murder.
On the brink of #Armageddon, a #British #banker, a #journalist & two KGB spies risk death in an effort to save millions. Was it worth it?
amazon.com/dp/B0C4MRW4Z8
On the brink of #Armageddon, a #British #banker, a #journalist & two KGB spies risk death in an effort to save millions. Was it worth it?
amazon.com/dp/B0C4MRW4Z8
December 18, 2025 at 11:48 AM
#DeadSpiesTellNoLies: #CIA #MI5 #KGB #spies #secrets & #lies in a #ColdWar #spy story of #intrigue, #menace & #murder.
On the brink of #Armageddon, a #British #banker, a #journalist & two KGB spies risk death in an effort to save millions. Was it worth it?
amazon.com/dp/B0C4MRW4Z8
On the brink of #Armageddon, a #British #banker, a #journalist & two KGB spies risk death in an effort to save millions. Was it worth it?
amazon.com/dp/B0C4MRW4Z8
Reciprocity by John Drinkwater
1/2
I do not think that skies and meadows are
Moral, or that the fixture of a star
Comes of a quiet spirit, or that trees
Have wisdom in their windless silences.
Yet these are things invested in my mood
With constancy, and peace, and fortitude,
1/2
I do not think that skies and meadows are
Moral, or that the fixture of a star
Comes of a quiet spirit, or that trees
Have wisdom in their windless silences.
Yet these are things invested in my mood
With constancy, and peace, and fortitude,
December 17, 2025 at 11:56 AM
Reciprocity by John Drinkwater
1/2
I do not think that skies and meadows are
Moral, or that the fixture of a star
Comes of a quiet spirit, or that trees
Have wisdom in their windless silences.
Yet these are things invested in my mood
With constancy, and peace, and fortitude,
1/2
I do not think that skies and meadows are
Moral, or that the fixture of a star
Comes of a quiet spirit, or that trees
Have wisdom in their windless silences.
Yet these are things invested in my mood
With constancy, and peace, and fortitude,
If any headless drunk snowmen are wondering how Putin and his friends make hundreds of millions on vodka, here's a link to the report by Proekt on the subject:
share.google/SZRnvWUSPCpd...
share.google/SZRnvWUSPCpd...
Putin and his friends make hundreds of millions on vodka, Proekt reports
Proekt discovered that Vladimir Putin and his friends made hundreds of millions of dollars from the vodka company
share.google
December 17, 2025 at 7:21 AM
If any headless drunk snowmen are wondering how Putin and his friends make hundreds of millions on vodka, here's a link to the report by Proekt on the subject:
share.google/SZRnvWUSPCpd...
share.google/SZRnvWUSPCpd...
A 2023 memory with music & video by @bbcstever.bsky.social. The war was only 18 months old, but already everything had changed and would never be the same.
Words to accompany the clip:
"So what has changed
(Right now)
On this winter's morning?
Nothing has changed
Still the trams are running
Words to accompany the clip:
"So what has changed
(Right now)
On this winter's morning?
Nothing has changed
Still the trams are running
December 16, 2025 at 2:10 PM
A 2023 memory with music & video by @bbcstever.bsky.social. The war was only 18 months old, but already everything had changed and would never be the same.
Words to accompany the clip:
"So what has changed
(Right now)
On this winter's morning?
Nothing has changed
Still the trams are running
Words to accompany the clip:
"So what has changed
(Right now)
On this winter's morning?
Nothing has changed
Still the trams are running
CIA MI5 & KGB secrets exposed in a Cold War spy novel. A journalist drawn into espionage risks prison & death to avert nuclear Armageddon. It's fiction inspired by 1983 events that's just as topical today!
@ProstateUK will get all 99p proceeds.
amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C54D3SY4
amazon.com/dp/B0C54D3SY4
@ProstateUK will get all 99p proceeds.
amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C54D3SY4
amazon.com/dp/B0C54D3SY4
December 15, 2025 at 4:39 PM
CIA MI5 & KGB secrets exposed in a Cold War spy novel. A journalist drawn into espionage risks prison & death to avert nuclear Armageddon. It's fiction inspired by 1983 events that's just as topical today!
@ProstateUK will get all 99p proceeds.
amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C54D3SY4
amazon.com/dp/B0C54D3SY4
@ProstateUK will get all 99p proceeds.
amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C54D3SY4
amazon.com/dp/B0C54D3SY4
Moscow 1990 when there was little in the shops and fast food at the first Mcdonald's meant queueing for hours for a burger lunch @ 78 rubles (half a day's wages). Curious customers were puzzled to be greeted by smiling staff who weren't the usual sad surly types. Happy days! Vkusno i tochka!
December 15, 2025 at 11:27 AM
Moscow 1990 when there was little in the shops and fast food at the first Mcdonald's meant queueing for hours for a burger lunch @ 78 rubles (half a day's wages). Curious customers were puzzled to be greeted by smiling staff who weren't the usual sad surly types. Happy days! Vkusno i tochka!
Is it a risk to buy 'Dead Spies Tell No Lies'? Not as big a risk as Sam took in Moscow's nuclear bunker in 1983.
On sale for 1 week only @ 99p or $0.99. For less than a cup of coffee.
And all proceeds will go to Prostate UK Cancer charity.
No risk. It's a win-win!
amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C54D3SY4
On sale for 1 week only @ 99p or $0.99. For less than a cup of coffee.
And all proceeds will go to Prostate UK Cancer charity.
No risk. It's a win-win!
amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C54D3SY4
December 14, 2025 at 8:57 AM
Is it a risk to buy 'Dead Spies Tell No Lies'? Not as big a risk as Sam took in Moscow's nuclear bunker in 1983.
On sale for 1 week only @ 99p or $0.99. For less than a cup of coffee.
And all proceeds will go to Prostate UK Cancer charity.
No risk. It's a win-win!
amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C54D3SY4
On sale for 1 week only @ 99p or $0.99. For less than a cup of coffee.
And all proceeds will go to Prostate UK Cancer charity.
No risk. It's a win-win!
amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C54D3SY4