In the wake of the terrible shock of 9/11, the CIA scrambled to work out how to destroy Bin Laden. Superficially the invasion of Afghanistan was quick and efficient, but Bin Laden’s successful escape created a quagmire which has lasted many years. Today we know that war in Afghanistan would falter badly because of military hubris at the highest levels. But more than anything, as Steve Coll makes it clear, it was doomed because of the failure of the US to apprehend the motivations and intentions of ‘Directorate S’. Resuming the narrative of Ghost Wars, Steve Coll tells for the first time a powerful, bitter story of a struggle of historic proportions, involving multiple secret intelligence agencies, a litany of incongruous strategies and tactics, and dozens of prominent players.