Robert Littell is the undisputed master of American spy fiction, hailed for his profound grasp of the world of international espionage. His previous novel, The Company, an international bestseller, was praised as "one of the best spy novels ever written" (Chicago Tribune). For his new novel, Legends, Littell focuses on the life of one great agent caught in a "wilderness of mirrors" where both remembering and forgetting his past are deadly options. Martin Odum is a CIA field agent turned private detective, struggling his way through a labyrinth of past identities - "legends" in CIA parlance. Is he really Martin Odum? Or is he Dante Pippen, an IRA explosives maven? Or Lincoln Dittmann, Civil War expert? These men like different foods, speak different languages, have different skills. Is he suffering from multiple personality disorder, brainwashing, or simply exhaustion? Can Odum trust the CIA psychiatrist? Or Stella Kastner, a young Russian woman who engages him to find her brother-in-law so he can give her sister a divorce. As Odum redeploys his dormant tradecraft skills to solve Stella's case, he travels the globe battling mortal danger and psychological disorientation. Part 'Three faces of Eve', part 'The Spy Who Came in From the Cold', and always pure Robert Littell, Legends - from unforgettable opening to astonishing ending - again proves Littell's unparalleled prowess as a seductive storyteller.

羅伯特·裏特爾（Robert Littell），1935年1月8日齣生於紐約的布魯剋林，是一位旅法美籍作傢，他擅長於創作間諜小說，其內容多涉及中央情報局和蘇聯。

1956年畢業於阿爾弗萊特大學後，他在美國海軍服役四年，期間做過航海反潛戰官員，通信官員，甲闆值班官員。

在冷戰期間他曾做過《新聞周刊》的記者。他還是業餘登山愛好者，並且是獲奬小說傢喬納森·裏特爾的父親。