Author: John Le Carré
Released: June 1974
George Smiley, who is a troubled man of infinite compassion, is also a single-mindedly ruthless adversary as a spy. The scene which he enters is a Cold War landscape of moles and lamplighters, scalp-hunters and pavement artists, where men are turned, burned or bought for stock. Smiley's mission is to catch a Moscow Centre mole burrowed thirty years deep into the Circus itself.
Rating: 4 Stars
Positives: Despite my original thoughts I really enjoyed this book once I got into it. I found myself being drawn into the world of the Circus and the politics that rage around us.
Le Carré has created some amazing characters each of whom have their own strengths, and I found my favourites had to be Jim Prideaux and Peter Guillam. I was intrigued to find out not only who the Russian mole was, but also what had happened to Jim back in Czechoslovakia.
I wasn't disappointed in the slightest when the truth came out, and the mole's identity was revealed. I had heard that with the film it's obvious who the mole was, but I'm glad to say where the book is concerned I was kept guessing. And my original assumption was wrong as well!
Negatives: My only problem was that the book got off to a bit of a slow start to me, and I would sometimes lose myself with the flashbacks. This meant I would often have to re-read whole chapters just to understand what was happening. However this can be overcome with perserverance.
Would I recommend this book? Yes I would. This was a thoroughly enjoyable read and I'm a little upset that I've finished it now.
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