The Unexpected Spy

The Unexpected Spy: From the CIA to the FBI, My Secret Life Taking Down Some of the World's Most Notorious Terrorists is a 2019 memoir by Tracy Walder about her work in the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

Jeff Rowe of the Associated Press (AP) stated that the book "is more a diary of the author’s journey" instead of "an exploration of decision-making at the highest levels of government".

[1] The author, born Tracy Schandler, grew up in the Van Nuys neighborhood of Los Angeles.

She stated in an interview with Zac Crain of D Magazine that Walder is "obviously brilliant, but she doesn’t have a sense of what about her is interesting".

Kirkus Reviews wrote that, including in regard to the Iraq War, the author "fiercely defends the CIA".

[1] She defended the CIA's role in regard to the 9/11 Commission Report and torture in the George W. Bush administration.