Peter Guillam, former disciple of George Smiley in the British Secret Service, has long retired to Brittany when a letter arrives, summoning him to London. The reason? Cold War ghosts have come back to haunt him. Intelligence operations that were once the toast of the Service are being dissected by a generation with no memory of the Berlin Wall. Somebody must pay for innocent blood spilt in the name of the greater good....
Its not imperative, and this book will still be excellent for you, but it will help if you have read-
The Spy Who Came In From The Cold, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Honourable School Boy and Smileys People.
Reading these four books will give you an introduction to all that happens in real time and recounted in flashback this book.
Guillman is brought to London to be de-briefed on an operation that resulted in the death of a British agent and a British communist at the height of the Cold War. An operation that was thought to be top secret but it transpires the agent had a child who was raised in East Germany and now threatens to reveal all in the British Courts.
Much of the story is told in flash back and this is where previous knowledge helps. Many of these flashbacks pad out the previous novels with quality information for the reader especially one who has read them several times.
Several novels back I though leCarre was past his use by date but his last three novels show a writer who is close to the best he has ever been and he has just turned 86 years old.
I thought this was fantastic and long may he carry on turning them out.
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