Book review

Agent running in the field

John Le Carre has been writing spy tales for fifty years during which time he has turned out twenty five of these novels. Some of these such as  Smiley’s people, The little drummer girl and The night manager have been made into successful films.

It would be of no surprise if having written so many novels of the genre that they had become a bit formularised, however having read quite a few of them I find that this is not the case. Agent running in the field is another of Le Carre’s well thought out and told tales.

The lead character has had a successful career as an agent who is now back in England and given been given a nice quiet position as a manager of a small London station of no great importance to work out the remaining years to eventual retirement.  The station is a substation of the London Russian station and subservient to it. It is considered of no account in the scheme of things.

However he finds that some of the staff are more enthusiastic than the higher ups thought . One keen young member having found that some high ranking member of ‘The firm’ are making some money on the side by using their knowledge do some insider trading.  He also eventually suspects that a member of the Russian station is taking steps to sell his access to knowledge to another nation.

And so the story unfolds, I challenge any reader to guess the clever ending – and no peaking at the last chapter. 

Unlike ——-‘s James Bond spy tales Le Carre’s are more realistic and so believable. There are no bloody murders and trails of dead people. The spies are shadowy rather than flambouyant, and there are no seductive show girls. Having once been an agent himself Le Carre knows what really happens, of the tricks of the trade, the counter measures used and of other countries’ methods. This knowledge along with his obvious knack for developing a tale has once again produced a very readable  story.

Mike Beckett