Agent Running in the Field
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A BBC 2 Between the Covers Book Club Pick
'The British spy thriller at its unputdownable best' Observer
SELECTED FOR BBC 2 BETWEEN THE COVERS
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Nat, a veteran of Britain's Secret Intelligence Service, thinks his years as an agent runner are over. But MI6 have other plans. To tackle the growing threat from Moscow Centre, Nat is put in charge of The Haven, a defunct substation of London General with a rag-tag band of spies. His weekly badminton session with the young, introspective, Brexit-hating Ed, offers respite from the new job. But it is Ed, of all unlikely people, who will take Nat down the path of political anger that will ensnare them all.
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'A rich, beautifully written book studded with surprises. Narrative is a black art, and Le Carré is its grandmaster' Spectator
'Blisteringly contemporary' Economist
'Subtle, wry and seamless, it's an utter joy, from first page to last' Daily Mail
'A very classy entertainment about political ideals and deception . . . laced with fury at the senseless vandalism of Brexit and of Trump' Guardian
'A fine piece of storytelling' Times
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Imprint: Penguin
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Published: 17/10/2019
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ISBN: 9780241986554
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Length: 384 Pages
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RRP: £8.99
Reviews
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A fine piece of storytelling. It is a neat, compact, slow-burning tale with just the right amount of twisting and turning and misdirection. Divided loyalties, uncertain motives, Russian agents, bureaucratic infighting, jaded spies, tatty offices - all of the things you want and expect from a high-quality le Carré thriller are here
The Times
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A very classy entertainment about political ideals and deception . . . laced with fury at the senseless vandalism of Brexit and of Trump. Le Carré is the master of the spy genre.
Guardian
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Le Carré delivers a tale for our times, replete with the classic seasoning of betrayal, secret state shenanigans and sad-eyed human frailty, all baked into an oven-hot contemporary thriller . . . Agent Running in the Field is right on the money, in psychology as much as politics, a demonstration of the British spy thriller at its unputdownable best
Robert McCrum, Observer
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As ingeniously structured as any of le Carré's fiction, skilfully misdirecting the reader for much of the time
Evening Standard
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A masterpiece
Mick Herron, TLS
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Master of the game
Sunday Times
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Le Carré's troubled new protagonist is developed with the author's customary skill . . . an impeccable piece of writing
i
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No other writer has charted - pitilessly for politicians but thrillingly for readers - the public and secret histories of his times
Guardian
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The master is back on form in this tale of Russian subterfuge and a middle-aged spy 's suspicious badminton partner
The Times
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A rich, beautifully written book studded with surprises. Narrative is a black art, and Le Carré is its grandmaster
Andrew Taylor, Spectator
