Agent Running in the Field

A Novel

By: John le Carré

Narrated by: John le Carré

“[Le Carré’s] novels are so brilliant because they’re emotionally and psychologically absolutely true, but of course they’re novels.” —New York Times Book Review

A thrilling tale for our times from the undisputed master of the spy genre

Nat, a 47 year-old veteran of Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service, believes his years as an agent runner are over. He is back in London with his wife, the long-suffering Prue. But with the growing threat from Moscow Centre, the office has one more job for him. Nat is to take over The Haven, a defunct substation of London General with a rag-tag band of spies. The only bright light on the team is young Florence, who has her eye on Russia Department and a Ukrainian oligarch with a finger in the Russia pie.

Nat is not only a spy, he is a passionate badminton player. His regular Monday evening opponent is half his age: the introspective and solitary Ed. Ed hates Brexit, hates Trump and hates his job at some soulless media agency. And it is Ed, of all unlikely people, who will take Prue, Florence and Nat himself down the path of political anger that will ensnare them all. Agent Running in the Field is a chilling portrait of our time, now heartbreaking, now darkly humorous, told to us with unflagging tension by the greatest chronicler of our age.

Critic reviews

“Superb writing, precise portraiture, clever tricks of tradecraft—all Mr. le Carré’s hallmarks are present in this swift, surprising, bittersweet story.”
—The Wall Street Journal

“So topical it arrives with the beeping urgency of a news alert.”
—The Washington Post

“A word about le Carré's prose: Not only does it hold the coiled energy of a much younger writer, it fits the bitter, angry narrator's voice exceptionally well.”
—NPR.org

“Le Carré is one of the best novelists—of any kind—we have.”
—Vanity Fair

“Le Carré remains a master at showing us what spies do, wily spiders to the unsuspecting flies they entrap.”
—Booklist (starred)

“Deeply pleasurable.”
—Vogue

“A tragicomic salute to both the recuperative powers of its has-been hero and the remarkable career of its nonpareil author.”
—Kirkus

“John le Carré is the great master of the spy story. . . . The constant flow of emotion lifts him not only above all modern suspense novelists, but above most novelists now practicing.”
—Financial Times

“One of our great writers of moral ambiguity, a tireless explorer of that darkly contradictory no-man's land.”
—Los Angeles Times

“No other writer has charted—pitilessly for politicians but thrillingly for readers—the public and secret histories of his times.”
—The Guardian (UK)

Brilliant in every way

Having been a fan of the authors for many years it was Especially. satisfying to hear him read his most parents and revealing tome.

I highly recommend this book for anyone who is politically aware, interested in modern history, or lovers of mystery

Couldn't turn it off.

Le Carre's delivery is spellbinding. No surprise the story is top-notch.; but in a contemporary setting that feels like non-fiction.

Disappointing and a bad buy

I have read or listened to all of LeCarre’s books and this is the weakest of all of them. Never mind his often disjointed writing style which often disguises nuggets of gold, in this case he reveals his animosity to Brexit and openly disparages President Trump. In all, I wish I hadn’t wasted my money.

The Russians are Back; Thank the Lord

But the real enemy is the Service itself and its moronic American big brother. Le Carre at his near best is way better than most, though the denouement the reader eagerly awaits would have been better kept untied. While a good reader, LC should have left it to the professionals.

Brisk, Intriguing, Timely, and Satisfying

Timely, memorable, and rewarding Le Carré. He knows how to start off a story with intrigue, hook you, and carry you along briskly to a satisfying conclusion. His characters are fully-realized and recognizable, and he writes as swiftly and beautifully as ever, capturing so much in his dialogue and brief sentences. For instance, I love the way he writes the impassioned, young Ed -- "I want to play you, right? You're the champion. Trouble is, I've only just joined the Club. Last week. Yeah." Or this section describing the town of Karlovy Vary in the Czech Republic:

"Glistening hotels, bathhouses, casinos and jewellery shops with blazing windows float sedately past on either side. Between them flows a river crossed by a noble footbridge. Twenty years back, when I came here to meet a Chechen agent who was enjoying a well-earned holiday with his mistress, the town was still ridding itself of the drab grey paint of Soviet Communism. The grandest hotel was the Moskva and the only luxury to be found was in secluded former rest homes where a few years previously the Party's chosen and their nymphs had disported themselves safe from the proletarian gaze."

It took me a minute to get used to le Carré as a narrator. He's 88 years old, reading a protagonist who's 47, and that's somewhat jarring. He also reads rather slowly, but I love being able to hear the characters as they sound to him, and especially enjoy the way he drops into various accents, particularly that of Ed, so after the first hour or so I embraced and came to love his narration.

Last but not least I love the relationship between the narrator, Nat, and his wife, Prue. Also I love picking up British slang like "doddle" and "tot."