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jeranimo's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Crazy that Le Carre writes Spy Who Came in from the Cold and then follows it up with this snoozer.
It’s a neat window into the operations of being a Cold War spy, which is Le Carre’s bread and butter. But the plot and ending of the story is quite boring.
It’s a neat window into the operations of being a Cold War spy, which is Le Carre’s bread and butter. But the plot and ending of the story is quite boring.
ruminating_blayne's review against another edition
4.5
A sense of impending doom lurks in the shadows as an over-confident and decrepit department prepares for an operation it hasn't done in decades demonstrating a similar self-awareness to Michael Scott. This should be categorized as a "cringe-thriller".
gabrielrobartes's review against another edition
3.0
Beautifully done but bleak, bleak, bleak. I'm not sure the slightly plotted story can carry the weight of the horror and cynicism slipping along beneath its surface.
masonmaguire's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.25
jeremy_felt's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 - like the other Smiley books, this is very readable and interesting. It's not as much of a thrilling spy story as the others. Instead, there's an almost humorous amount of detail covering a possibly more realistic version of how "spy" work is handled.
aga89's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
brig_berthold's review against another edition
4.0
This book has two lives, thus, requiring two opinions.
1- As a fictional work, aimed at entertainment, the book succeeds until the climax. In the end we aren't entertained. Rather, readers are forced to accept the reality Le Carré has been insisting upon since the introduction. The characters were interesting and easy to relate with; especially John Avery. The storyline was smooth and we follow an incipient intelligence operation from composition, through training, and to execution. The execution was hacked off, leaving us feeling betrayed and left in the cold. With that, we see the author's brilliance, brashness, and the real story he showed us.
Calling this a Smiley novel is a stretch but the little gray man does make intermittent appearances.
****SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT****
2- Reading the introduction by the author, penned in 1991 and almost thirty years after original publishing, insight is obtained. His goal was to show the world the more realistic side of intelligence work. The mistrust between allied agencies. The deliberate lies told to recruited agents. The mystery of failed operations.
At the beginning of the story, we are shown a failed operation. One that ought to have been quite simple. We then observe as the same agency stages another operation, this one much more complex. As both fail, by the end of the book the author has shown us a complete cycle; ominous though it is.
This novel should be a study in all that can go wrong during an intelligence collection operation. The point punctuated by a poorly equipped group of overly eager "wanna-be's" lead by one or two "has been's." A nightmare of counterintelligence indicators are on grand display as the ineptitude goes unanswered. The author chose not to highlight the damage done by such crude lacks of security. The behavior was more befitting a gaggle of middle schoolers in a lunch room rather than a military intelligence agency.
The book stressed me out, and for that, I think Le Carré deserves some sort of award.
1- As a fictional work, aimed at entertainment, the book succeeds until the climax. In the end we aren't entertained. Rather, readers are forced to accept the reality Le Carré has been insisting upon since the introduction. The characters were interesting and easy to relate with; especially John Avery. The storyline was smooth and we follow an incipient intelligence operation from composition, through training, and to execution. The execution was hacked off, leaving us feeling betrayed and left in the cold. With that, we see the author's brilliance, brashness, and the real story he showed us.
Calling this a Smiley novel is a stretch but the little gray man does make intermittent appearances.
****SPOILERS BEYOND THIS POINT****
2- Reading the introduction by the author, penned in 1991 and almost thirty years after original publishing, insight is obtained. His goal was to show the world the more realistic side of intelligence work. The mistrust between allied agencies. The deliberate lies told to recruited agents. The mystery of failed operations.
At the beginning of the story, we are shown a failed operation. One that ought to have been quite simple. We then observe as the same agency stages another operation, this one much more complex. As both fail, by the end of the book the author has shown us a complete cycle; ominous though it is.
This novel should be a study in all that can go wrong during an intelligence collection operation. The point punctuated by a poorly equipped group of overly eager "wanna-be's" lead by one or two "has been's." A nightmare of counterintelligence indicators are on grand display as the ineptitude goes unanswered. The author chose not to highlight the damage done by such crude lacks of security. The behavior was more befitting a gaggle of middle schoolers in a lunch room rather than a military intelligence agency.
The book stressed me out, and for that, I think Le Carré deserves some sort of award.
imminentgiallo's review against another edition
3.5
Some of the same weird, unnecessary misogyny as the last in the series, but I enjoyed this book a lot more. Maybe it’s the fact that Avery and Leiser at the very least have some other likable characteristics. And they’re in love with each other.