A Delicate Truth

A Novel

By: John le Carré

Narrated by: John le Carré

Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

From the New York Times best-selling author of A Legacy of Spies. John le Carré’s new novel: Agent Running in the Field.

A counter-terrorist operation, code-named Wildlife, is being mounted on the British crown colony of Gibraltar. Its purpose: To capture and abduct a high-value jihadist arms buyer. Its authors: An ambitious Foreign Office Minister, a private defense contractor who is also his bosom friend, and a shady American CIA operative of the evangelical far-right. So delicate is the operation that even the Minister’s personal private secretary, Toby Bell, is not cleared for it. Three years later, a disgraced Special Forces Soldier delivers a message from the dead. Was Operation Wildlife the success it was cracked up to be - or a human tragedy that was ruthlessly covered up? Summoned by Sir Christopher “Kit” Probyn, retired British diplomat, to his decaying Cornish manor house, and closely observed by Kit’s daughter, Emily, Toby must choose between his conscience and duty to his service. If the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing, how can he keep silent?

©2013 John le Carré (P)2013 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"A novel that beckons us beyond any and all expectations." (Jonathan Yardley, The Washington Post)

The Constant Gardener redux?

I really enjoy John LeCarre books. They are all so erudite. However, I have two complaints with this reading. First, the language of the British elite becomes very annoying over time and very difficult to understand for a non-Britisher. Do they really speak this way? It was almost as if LeCarre was reading at 1 1/2 speed. I even tried to listen to the book at .75 speed but it sounded ridiculous. My second complaint is that this plot seemed exactly like The Constant Gardener. It's nice to think that there are people like the protagonist who is willing to sacrifice his life for "the truth" but I find it hard to believe that a person with his experience in Government service would have stayed in this service. The fact that several innocents who are collateral damage in a botched plot would drive all of these hard bitten men to sacrifice their lives is too much to swallow. I think the statement by the "bad guy" at the end who said, "if you want to see collateral damage, watch the films of drone strikes," was really the most rational argument against the protagonist's idealistic pleadings. The plot veered to much towards a "Bourne Identity" one in that every move the protagonist made was instantly known and acted upon by the Government and its henchment and undercut LeCarre's belief that the Government was stupid and plodding. The fact implied in the book that the Government was bought and paid for by private industry and that its agents had the ability to instantaneously react to a phone call is not believable. The ultimate feeling one comes away with is that the situation is hopeless and all good mens' actions are a waste of time and they will die in the attempt to fulfill their ideals. Wasn't that the take away from The Constant Gardener?

Le Carré just gets better and better

I didn't want this one to end. Le Carré is so refreshing after all the pointless schlock the espionage genre seems to kick out these days - mostly a contest to see how many bad guys can get blowed up in the shortest possible time. in contrast, this is an actual novel, with actual characters who actually develop! the only problem is that you'll find yourself wishing this was more like fiction and less like how the world is actually being run. if the novel doesn't make you uncomfortable, you might want to check if you still have a working conscience.

Well done as usual

The depth of
Character is really impressive as are most all of Le carre’s novels. You need to think on this though. Not the beast to fall asleep to

He can't write his novels fast enough for me.....

Would you listen to A Delicate Truth again? Why?

First of all, he's a marvelous reader. Usually I hate it when an author wants to read his own book, but he was great. He had accents for everyone. He just couldn't do it for women though. And the story is intricate enough to deserve a second listen. But I want more too. Write faster please.

Le Carre is better than a professional actor

I was delighted with Mr. Le Carre's performance of his own work. His range and ability of so many voices is astonishing.

This book is on target

This is a great book and very topical for what is happening in the world today in the world on intelligence and contracting out wars

A brilliant, realistic, and sad story by a keen observer of our twenty-first century world.

It feels as though lifetimes have passed since a thoughtful and decent man named George Smiley uncovered a mole operating in the deepest and most trusted quarters of England's intelligence services. Somehow, during this time, the ethics and values of intelligence operatives -- and the democracies for which they work -- have eroded.

Continuing along the path Le Carre set 'with his recent works ("A Perfect Spy", "Absolute Friends" and "Our Kind of Traitor"), he documents the intrinsic dishonesty of spying as a profession, and the progressive corruption of Western democratic values we have witnessed over the past two or three decades. In a calm style, and with an exquisite ear for human dialogue, he leads us through a post-Gulf War world in which torture is euphemized by phrases such as "enhanced interrogation" and kidnappings which require violation of another nation's sovereign territory are obfuscated by declaring that the War on Terror requires occasional cases of "extreme rendition".

It is this world, painfully contemporary and real, in which the protagonist of "A Delicate Truth" finds himself. At one level this is a taut, well written spy story which hooks the reader and makes him want to keep reading until the last words are done, at another, it is a deep and considered account of the descent of Western democracy into a darkness which makes it increasingly difficult to distinguish it from its totalitarian and terrorist enemies.

The narration by Le Carre is a real treat

If you could sum up A Delicate Truth in three words, what would they be?

Le Carre's spy thrillers are never simple so I would never try to summarize this book in three words; the novel is moral tale as well as the story of political maneuvering gone awfully wrong. It is entertaining enough but far from Le Carre's best. What makes it such a treat is the unabashedly "hammy" reading by none other than the author himself.

If you’ve listened to books by John le Carré before, how does this one compare?

In my experience, Le Carre's books are better read than listened too. The twists, turns and nuances of his complicated characters and plots are probably a little easier to follow when one can take them in at one's own pace. I have listened to a couple of his novels that I had previously read and always enjoyed reading rather than listening until this one.

What about John le Carré’s performance did you like?

You can tell Le Carre really enjoyed the reading. He definetly went at it with great gusto and "performed" each character, making them come alive. Le Carre is usually able to weave complicated plots and very full characters...this was definetly a character driven book and the author's reading contributed to it.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

The plot was contrived but I thorougly enjoyed the experience of listening to Le Carre bringing his characters to live.

Any additional comments?

I would love to listen to some of the author's better novels (such as The Patient Gardener, Little Drummer Girl or Tinker, Taylor, Soldier, Spy) narrated by him. He has been one of my favorite authors for many years and he could conceivably become one of my favorite narrators.

Excellent from the master

This is pure Le Carre. Subtle, tense, dark, exciting, and most of all plausible. Gets you thinking. And as always completely unsentimental.

Well-written, very nicely performed

Beautifully written--I love the author's gift for creating sympathetic characters drawn into difficult situations, flawed heroes. I also appreciate his gift for presenting evocative settings without slowing the action.

I was also delighted at the author's skill at reading his own work--the voices and accents were varied enough that it was easy to keep track of a fairly large cast of characters, and all the voices seemed credible, not forced.

I found John Le Carre's pacing as both author and reader impeccable.