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The Blurb On The Back:
Alec Leamas is tired. It’s the 1960s, he’s been out in the cold for years, spying in the shadow of the Berlin Wall for his British masters. Now Control wants to bring him in at last – but only after one final assignment. He must travel deep into the heart of Communist Germany and betray his country, a job that he will do with his usual cynical professionalism. But when George Smiley tries to help a young woman Leamas has befriended, it may prove the worst thing he could ever have done.
Le Carré’s breakthrough work of 1963 was an award-winning number one global bestseller and brought him international renown, redefining the spy story as a gritty and terrible tale of men who are caught up in politics beyond their imagining.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
The third in John Le Carré’s GEORGE SMILEY SERIES (a follow-up to CALL FOR THE DEAD) has Smiley very much in a minor (albeit critical) supporting role but that doesn’t matter as this ice-cold, ruthless, brutal spy thriller novel is an exquisitely plotted affair about treachery and counter-espionage and how lives become disposable to those in power when it suits their interests in what is commonly viewed as a classic spy novel.
Alec Leamas is tired. It’s the 1960s, he’s been out in the cold for years, spying in the shadow of the Berlin Wall for his British masters. Now Control wants to bring him in at last – but only after one final assignment. He must travel deep into the heart of Communist Germany and betray his country, a job that he will do with his usual cynical professionalism. But when George Smiley tries to help a young woman Leamas has befriended, it may prove the worst thing he could ever have done.
Le Carré’s breakthrough work of 1963 was an award-winning number one global bestseller and brought him international renown, redefining the spy story as a gritty and terrible tale of men who are caught up in politics beyond their imagining.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
The third in John Le Carré’s GEORGE SMILEY SERIES (a follow-up to CALL FOR THE DEAD) has Smiley very much in a minor (albeit critical) supporting role but that doesn’t matter as this ice-cold, ruthless, brutal spy thriller novel is an exquisitely plotted affair about treachery and counter-espionage and how lives become disposable to those in power when it suits their interests in what is commonly viewed as a classic spy novel.
