The Spy Who Came In from the Cold by John le Carré (April 2018)

[Judy]

Looking forward to that discussion, Andrew ... I need to get on and finish this! I've had little opportunity to read on paper over the past couple of days, but will hopefully make up for that over the next day or two.

[Judy]

I'm halfway through now, and the descriptions of East Berlin are certainly very atmospheric - grey and bleak.

I am finding it a bit of a struggle to read just because it is so bleak, dry, stripped-down - I suppose after reading The Human Factor I'm making unfair comparisons with Graham Greene, and thinking this book could do with more of a human factor!

[Tania]

I found it very bleak too, Judy. It was harder to sit down and read a chunk of it. He certainly doesn't glamourise the life of a spy, does he.

[Susan]

Had either of you read any Le Carre before? I think I preferred the two previous Smiley books to this one, although this was his breakthrough book. I did think I missed Smiley in this novel, but I really enjoyed both this and The Human Factor, in different ways.

[Tania]

No Susan. This is my first Le Carre novel.
I did enjoy it, I gave it 4*, I just found that I didn't want to read long chunks of it in one go. Towards the end I did get more into the story and I picked up the pace. I think I would enjoy more of his books and would like to get to them eventually.

[Susan]

I am looking forward to reading the Karla trilogy, which Nigeyb tells me are his favourites in the series, Tania.

[Judy]

First time I've read anything by le Carre too - I am more than halfway now.

[Pamela]

I have just started, read the first three chapters. The opening was very dramatic, I was instantly hooked. This is my first le Carré too.

[Nigeyb]

In many ways the Cold War was a bleak time - and the le Carre books bring the era to life

[Judy]

I've finished this now and in the end I found it really gripping and well-written, but have knocked it down from 4 to 3 stars because I just couldn't believe in a couple of plot twists - though I'd better say no more on those until we get into serious spoiler territory, later in the month!

I thought the afterword by le Carre was very interesting, suggesting he feels that he poured quite a bit of himself into Alec.

[Susan]

Good to hear you liked it, Judy. The central character certainly did seem very realistic, as did the setting of the novel.

[Judy]

Yes, and I also thought it addresses interesting questions about going undercover - how deep can you go before you become the thing you're pretending to be, for instance with Alec's drinking?

[Roman Clodia]

I've just started le Carre's latest, A Legacy of Spies, and one of the plot strands is about a present-day enquiry into the operation that is recounted in Spy/Cold. It's hugely interesting to have the story re-opened from a modern perspective, and viewed by players who didn't participate in the Cold War at its height. What a clever idea of le Carre's for a book! Has anyone else read Legacy?

[Lynaia]

Finished this today and wow! This is the first book I've ever read by Le Carre but it definitely won't be the last.

[Susan]

RC, I want to read all the Smiley's in order, before reading his latest. I agree, though, it is a great idea for a plot!

Lynaia, glad you found a 'new' author. Have you read Mick Herron? Sorry, can never resist, but I think the two share a lot of similarities.

[Nigeyb]

Roman Clodia wrote: "Has anyone else read Legacy?"


Read it - and loved it. It came out just as I finished what I thought was the last Smiley and then, to my delight, Legacy was published

Lynaia wrote: "Finished this today and wow! This is the first book I've ever read by Le Carre but it definitely won't be the last."

Wonderful news - gratified that we have another new convert

[Susan]

I will definitely carry on now and read all of Le Carre's Smiley books, at least.

[Susan]

A Legacy of Spies is available on NetGalley is anyone wants to read it. I will wait until I have read the previous novels, as I want to read them in order.

[Roman Clodia]

I'm enjoying Legacy a lot - I would suggest that to get the most out of it, it's worth reading/refreshing your knowledge of Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy and this one - there are some harsh reviews from people who have never read them and say they couldn't follow what was happening. Not a place to enter le Carre's world but a wonderful way of acknowledging how that world has changed since they were first written.

[Lynaia]

Susan wrote: "RC, I want to read all the Smiley's in order, before reading his latest. I agree, though, it is a great idea for a plot!

Lynaia, glad you found a 'new' author. Have you read Mick Herron? Sorry, ca..."

I have Slow Horses on my kindle. I just haven't gotten to it yet. If I finish A Talent for Murder in time, I will probably read it next before May. Once May hits, I agreed to join the discussion of 4 of the buddy reads so I don't know that I'll have time for any other books.

[Susan]

As long as you enjoy what you are reading, that's what is important, Lynaia. If you feel stressed about what you are reading, then drop some of the books. You can join in discussions, even if you haven't read all the group reads :)

[Pamela]

Just finished, this was excellent. I really liked the bleak, grey feel of the setting, conveyed by the spare writing, and it became more chilling as the plot progressed.

I think I might be the last to finish here, but I'll wait for the thread to allow spoilers before I say more anyway.

[Judy]

Shall we fix a date to get on to spoilers? Should we say maybe the 20th?

[Nigeyb]

Looking through the thread, of the people who have contributed it appears it's only Susan who has yet to finish it (Susan - added it). However, I know Susan has actually finished so I don't think there's anyone who has contributed who has yet to finish so I would say we can go for spoilers now.

If I'm wrong please add a message

[Susan]

I have definitely finished, even if I mistakenly didn't say so! Sorry about that, I am fine for spoilers.

[Nigeyb]

I think you might need to shelve it as "read" and not "to read"...

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Bronwyn]

I'm still on hold with the library (finally #2!), but feel free to post spoilers. I won't pop back in until I can read it. I enjoyed the first two (two moreso than one) so am looking forward to getting to this one.

[Val]

I have not started reading it yet, but I have read it before and don't mind spoilers.

[Lynaia]

Susan wrote: "As long as you enjoy what you are reading, that's what is important, Lynaia. If you feel stressed about what you are reading, then drop some of the books. You can join in discussions, even if you h..."

I'm not feeling stressed. (at least not yet) Just trying to plan out my reading and what I can fit in. Luckily, 2 of the books for May will be rereads and those usually go faster. I do hope I get to the Mick Herron book this month though.

[Susan]

Good to hear, Lynaia. Lucky you, having Mick Herron to discover :)

[Nigeyb]

What do you think the title refers to....?


Leamas' refusal to take a desk job and staying out in the cold world of espionage for the majority of the book
Leamas ultimately becoming more human
Leamas rejecting his role in the Cold War

Or something else?

[Judy]

I took it to refer to his Cold War role but I can see the other meanings you mention are there too, Nigeyb, and that’s what makes it such a strong title.

[Susan]

I took it for the first meaning, but, as Judy says, it could refer to other things and that is, of course, which makes it so good.

[Nigeyb]

It's certainly the most obvious explanation although, if that were the case, wouldn't a more accurate title be The Spy Who Went Back Out Into The Cold?

[Susan]

Well, he did, technically, return to the Cold, for his last mission.

[Lynaia]

I think the final chapter definitely fits multiple interpretations of the title. The last thing he does in the book definitely shows a more human, less uncaring person than what we see at the beginning of the book.

[Judy]

I agree, Lynaia - also he comes in from the"Cold" zone with his last action.

[Susan]

Wonderful ending to this novel, I quite agree.

[Roman Clodia]

Judy wrote: "I agree, Lynaia - also he comes in from the"Cold" zone with his last action."

And how ironic and cynical that is, in a typically le Carré way (view spoiler)[that to 'come in from the cold' can only be achieved through death (hide spoiler)]

[Susan]

What did everyone think of Alec Leamas as a central character? He felt quite modern to me - an anti hero, who was courageous but also flawed.

[Nigeyb]

I agree Susan, perhaps even one of the original anti-heroes? What was his motivation?

One of the snippets that I have picked up from the JLC biography is that Soviet recruiters would look for people with a high degree of class resentment but who were adept at hiding this and appearing to fit in. I'm not sure this applies to Leamas, based on what we know, however he does seem to harbour a certain amount of anger and resentment, and is clearly not suited to an office role.

[Roman Clodia]

The anti-hero has been around long before le Carre: the 'creature' in Frankenstein, the protagonist in A Hero of Our Time, Raffles: The Amateur Cracksman, but yes, Leamas makes a great addition to the list.

I thought it was smart to make him unprepossessing (as I found him) since it makes his later actions intriguing for the reader and even confronts ideas of what courage might consist of.

I admit I found it hard to believe in his feelings for Liz - they seemed a little too much a necessity of the plot than an organic development.

Had Leamas lost his own sense of identity, to some extent, after so long 'in the cold'? Is that one of the things he finds again at the end?

[Nigeyb]

That's a great point about the antecedents of the anti-hero. I always have Philip Marlowe in my mind as a touchstone, but - as you suggest - there are many earlier examples.

[Lynaia]

Roman Clodia wrote: "The anti-hero has been around long before le Carre: the 'creature' in Frankenstein, the protagonist in A Hero of Our Time, Raffles: The Amateur Cracksman, bu..."<

I didn't really get the impression that Leamas was in love with Liz so much as fond of her and didn't want her to pay the price for knowing him. I did find it hard to believe that Liz was so in love with Leamas. The only way it made sense to me was that she was very young and naïve and that this was like a "first love" type of scenario.

[Michael]

The 'cold' I beleive was whereever the reader thoughts it was.
Was Leamas out in the cold as he's was away from the spy game or because was was on the periphery of humanity or did he regain an empathy and trust with another human, Liz.
The cold is where we want it to be.
I personally think coming in from the cold was being back in the spy game.

[Susan]

What did we think of Liz? It was quite an unequal relationship, wasn't it?

I quite liked the librarian, who was so irritated by Leamas!

[Roman Clodia]

That librarian! The fuss over where to put Leamas' carrier bags! All that gave off an aura of 1960s to me.

Liz as a character seemed incredibly naive - maybe, again, a sign of the times. I wasn't convinced by her relationship with Leamas - it seemed too much a necessity of the plot than an organic development.

Interestingly, le Carre re-opens this point in his A Legacy of Spies as if, with hindsight, he felt it needed more explanation - can't say more for fear of spoilers.

[Michael]

I felt both Liz and the older librarian as caricatures or stereotypes.
Liz the naive innocent do desperately wanting to be loved or be with someone and is blind to the inequities and flaws of Leamas whilst the other potentially beaten down be life had to be content with reality as all hope had been removed years earlier.

[Susan]

I've worked in libraries, so perhaps it had a certain resonance for me :)

[Nigeyb]

I've never worked in a library but find the idea of libraries and librarians hugely appealing.