A Murder of Quality

By: John le Carré

Narrated by: Simon Vance

Beautifully intelligent, satiric and witty Daily Telegraph

For Alisa Brimley, editor of the small magazine Christian Voice, receiving a letter from a longtime subscriber might otherwise be a perfectly normal occasionexcept Stella Rode, the reader in question, writes that her husband is planning to kill her. Brimley calls upon an old wartime friend to help her investigate: retired Circus spy, George Smiley.

Before Smiley can begin, Rode is found murdered, and Brimley asks Smiley to venture to the small town of Carne, home of the elite Carne School where Rode's husband is a public school junior master. Once there, he sets about peeling back the layers of pretense and artifice that cloak both town and institution, and discovers that there's more to Rodes murder than a simple crime of passion.

John le Carrs second novel finds George Smiley in a classic whodunnit-style mystery. Trading the international intrigue of the Circus for the small village of Carne, A Murder of Quality is a deft examination of another uniquely British institution: the elite public school.

Meh

Not my favorite Smiley mystery. These early short ones never quite do the trick for me.

a great mystery

I love these books, The Looking Glass War is still probably my favorite of the series, but damn. Each one is so excellent. Fantastic story telling, amazing narrator. Give it a listen.

Great mystery

Wonderful narrator, intriguing plot, great characters. I love that George Smiley is a pure detective here!

Decent

A bit out of the ordinary for Smiley fans. Not as good as most other Smiley books. I'm glad Le Carre stayed away from murder mysteries and kept to espionage for most of the Smiley books.

George Smiley the Detective

Excellent narration by Simon Vance of John LeCarre's murder mystery with George Smiley as an unassuming character in the story who solves the murder. It is reminiscent of a P. D. James mystery.