John le Carré’s 25th novel is blisteringly contemporary
If “you spy for long enough”, says its hero, “the show comes round again.” Not in Mr le Carré’s stories
Agent Running in the Field. By John le Carré.Viking; 288 pages; $29 and £20.
WHEN JOHN LE CARRÉ’S third book, “The Spy Who Came in From the Cold”, was published in 1963, it presented the world of espionage in a harsh new light. Spies were not brave, suave heroes. “They’re a squalid procession of vain fools, traitors too,” explains the flawed and beleaguered protagonist, Alec Leamas. They are “sadists and drunkards, people who play cowboys and Indians to brighten their rotten lives.” The novel preferred intrigue to adventure, gritty reality to escapist fantasy. Readers expecting a finale in which good conquered evil were instead offered convoluted twists and a bleak denouement.
This article appeared in the Culture section of the print edition under the headline "The enemy within"
From the October 19th 2019 edition
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