The Western and the liberal consensus on Joseph Stalin:
Stalin was an evil autocrat who seized all power from his people to establish a brutal and murderous authoritarian regime.
Stalin in reality
Stalin: Please, let me resign in peace. This is the fourth time I am submitting my application.
The central comittee: Dear Comrade Stalin, we have rejected your request for the fourth time. See you at work tomorrow.
If anyone is interested in reading about Stalin in the words of contemporaries and their first hand accounts:
https://www.marxists.org/reference/archive/strong-anna-louise/1941/x01/stalin.htm
And here is a book recommendation for further reading: “The Stalin Era”