Karla's Choice - Nick Harkaway

Karla's Choice

By Nick Harkaway

  • Release Date: 2024-10-22
  • Genre: Mysteries & Thrillers
Score: 4
4
From 36 Ratings

Description

The instant international bestseller set in the world of John le Carré's most iconic spy, George Smiley, written by acclaimed novelist Nick Harkaway

It is spring in 1963 and George Smiley has left the Circus. With the wreckage of the West’s spy war against the Soviets strewn across Europe, he has eyes only for a more peaceful life. And indeed, with his marriage more secure than ever, there is a rumor that George Smiley might almost be happy.

But Control has other plans. A Russian agent has defected in the most unusual of circumstances, and the man he was sent to kill in London is nowhere to be found. Smiley reluctantly agrees to one last simple task: interview Szusanna, a Hungarian émigré and employee of the missing man, and sniff out a lead. 

But in his absence, the shadows of Moscow have lengthened. Smiley soon finds himself entangled in a perilous mystery that will define the battles to come and set him on a collision course with the greatest enemy he will ever make. 

Set in the missing decade between two iconic instalments in John le Carré's George Smiley saga, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, Karla’s Choice marks a momentous return to the world of spy fiction's greatest writer.

Reviews

  • Yes read this book

    5
    By Pinpanicus
    Was a bit reticent, no one writes like LeCarre’ did. An absolute pleasure to read. I quit making comparisons quite early in, it isn’t LeCarre and it is quite ok. Extremely well written without being LeCarre. There is a grasp of how to present a story without giving it, allowing the reader to arrive at an understanding rather than a technicolor picture. I love this skill.
  • My First Smiley Book

    4
    By Jpalasky
    I think it would have helped to have read previous Smiley books. I thoroughly enjoyed this, but had to circle back often to help me understand who the characters were. I also had trouble grasping some of the spy craft references. Having said all that, the last 3rd of the book is riveting. And all through the book the issue of balancing morality with political expediency is a challenging exercise. I am more familiar with Le Carre’s later books, but am now motivated to go back and read the earlier ones because of this excellent effort by Nick Harkaway. And I look forward to reading more by him.
  • Karla’s Choice

    1
    By oldcandide
    In this misguided attempt to create a kind of filling in a bit of Smiley’s past in the unique style of his creator the narrative slips into something like parody.

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