David Tuch brings the remarkable story of Harold Derber - refugee, gun-runner, ethical people smuggler and revolutionary drug-trafficker - out of the shadows. And what a tale it is: an extraordinary life of adventure (and misadventure), and a rollicking good read. * Tim Tate, author of To Catch a Spy * A rollicking read, full of grit and hard-won truths. Derber is truly one of the greatest criminals we've never heard of - until now. * Patrick Winn, author of Narcotopia * An impressively well-researched and fascinating book about the Cold War, Cuba, Miami, spooks, spies, guns, drugs, and, general chaos. * Vince Houghton, intelligence historian and co-author of Covert City: The Cold War and the Making of Miami * David Tuch has unearthed a true story so bizarre that nobody would blame his readers for not believing that this is non-fiction. The protagonist, Harold Derber, transforms from a good Manchester boy to a daring pioneer of the drug trade in such improbable ways that it all feels like a feverish dream. * Lina Britto, Department of History, Northwestern University, author of Marijuana Boom: The Rise and Fall of Colombia's First Drug Paradise * An intriguing portrait of a real-life trafficker teeming with enterprise and international crime * Kirkus Reviews * A propulsive and illuminating biography. Tuch's deep dive is suspenseful and well researched, shedding fascinating light on a shadowy 20th-century figure. * Publishers Weekly * An incredibly exciting and twisted story of a larger-than-life figure. The author has done a terrific job pinpointing the rise and fall of a fascinating character. * Justin Black, host of Spycraft 101 podcast * A captivating and unsettling account of one man's extraordinary life ... . For anyone interested in the untold stories that lurk between official records, this book is a must-read. * Seattle Book Review * I'd recommend The Wireless Operator to readers who enjoy narrative nonfiction in the vein of Erik Larson or Ben Macintyre, stories where espionage, war, and crime collide in unforgettable ways. It's also a must for anyone fascinated by how personal survival can shape global history. * The San Diego Book Review * One of those barely known men who has accomplished extraordinary things ... Derber is shown intertwined with the world that shaped him and which he, in turn, helped to shape. * Portland Times * The Wireless Operator is history written with a fuse burning - WWII survival, Cold War spycraft, Miami mob politics, narcotics innovation, refugee smuggling, assassination attempts, and a romance between rival intelligence networks. Tuch turns a family secret into a sprawling chronicle of the twentieth century's shadow economies. * Film Daily * Very little has been written about Harold Derber despite his Hollywood-like exploits. David Tuch has remedied that scholarly deficiency. He has written a splendid and provocative account of this extraordinary person. * John Woodward, Professor at Boston University, former CIA operations officer, and author of Spying: From the Fall of Jericho to the Fall of the Wall *
