I rarely feel as content as when I'm starting a new Le Carré. His gentle but persistent ratcheting of tension, laying out of mystery, I find thrilling. The largest part of this novel is all taut, claustrophobic tension — reminiscent of Tinker, Tailor, and Smiley's People. The small problem with Le Carré is that the later pay-off may not quite match the superlative build-up — either diverging too far from Le Carré's strengths (Honourable Schoolboy, Night Manager) or kinda petering out (I think... Russia House, maybe even Drummer Girl?). I feel that Our Game delivers on its promise — I enjoyed it immensely. It continues Le Carré's themes from the last few books — fall of communism, evils of — and the West's complicity in — the arms trade, and the West's moral culpability in not caring about the oppressed. Le Carré on top, angry, outraged form. Excellent. ( )

The next unread book on my shelf was a John Le Carré novel and Our Game proved to be an excellent novel if you sign up to the idea that British Intelligence was run by a bunch of public schoolboys who never really grew up. Come to think of it that is also a description of the British government over the last fifteen years or so. In addition to this the hero of the story is Tim Cranmer; a retired spy and I enjoy reading about retired individuals who can bring a more balanced view to the world in which they live.

Tim Cranmer like many public schoolboys gets rich due to his inheritance and so is not unduly worried when he is forced to retire from British Intelligence after the fall of the Berlin Wall. He is disturbed from his struggles in managing his English vineyard by a visit from the police who wish to interview him about the disappearance of Professor Larry Pettifer who they believe was a close friend of Tim. In fact Larry Pettifer was a double agent who Cranmer handled throughout his service as a spy: Pettifer had also seduced Cranmer's younger girlfriend (the beautiful Emma). Things get more difficult for Tim when he is summoned back to MI5 headquarters and discovers that they believe that he is implicated in a plot to embezzle millions of pounds from Russian oligarchs, that he would have known when he worked for the intelligence services. Tim realises he must use all his spy-craft to work for himself and track down Pettifer.

Le Carré introduces his readers to the wilds of the North Caucasus and the tribal Russian republics of Chechenia, Ossetia, and Ingushetia following the breakup of parts of the Soviet republic, (decent map supplied), this contrasts with the gentlemanly culture of the British intelligence service which takes up two thirds of the novel and is really Le Carré's forte. Cranmer's character is well presented: a man having to get back into harness with a world that he thought he had left behind; he is not a super-hero, but with a little luck and some skill manages to make some headway. There is perhaps no fool like an old fool and Tim comes close to realising this when he looks back on his relationship with Larry and his love for Emma.

Le Carré takes the violence out of thriller writing, but still manages to create enough tension and grittiness to make his stories feel real enough and he has a good story here. He also imbues a more balanced and nuanced view of international politics and the world of spying. The Russians are not all beastly savages and the Brits and the Americans are not as sure footed or as unprejudiced as their governments would have us believe. A criticism of Le Carré's approach is that perhaps he makes it all appear too much of a game, (hence the title of this book). In this novel there is a bit of a hole, character-wise, because we only get to meet Larry Pettifer through flashbacks from Tim Cranmer and information from other characters, and so as readers we only get second hand information on his aims, ambitions and his conscientiousness. Is he a selfish, grasping, crook or is he an idealistic, man-of-his-word trying to make the world a better place? The answer of course lies somewhere in between, but he remains an inconsistent character. When the adventure part of the story gets going it becomes a page turner, but there is much to enjoy in the internal and external politics of the police and intelligence agencies in the meantime and so 4 stars. ( )

Agents that were working during the Cold War sublimated their interests and often their sense of self to those of the Crown. But in a post-Soviet Russia, there is a sense of betrayal as the agents are put out to pasture and, the Republics of Russia are sacrificed to the new Federation under Yeltsin. One agent, Larry Pffeifer decides to make an "All In" stand for what he personally believes in, breaking faith with Great Britain, his handlers and his girlfriend. This is a psychological thriller as much as a spy thriller as Tim Cranmer, Larry's one-time handler examines the past and his own psyche to track down his former "Joe" and decide if, in the end, we can only be true to ourselves after all-- despite our best efforts. ( )

Efter det kalla krigets slut och kommuniststaternas fall har Tim Cranmer tvingats lämna brittiska underrättelsetjänsten. Han har dragit sig tillbaka till sitt 1600-talsgods i södra England, fri att ägna sig åt sin vingård och åt sin unga älskarinna Emma Manzini.
Men nu har en av hans f d toppagenter försvunnit under mystiska omständigheter: Larry Pettifer, som i mer än tjugo år varit Cranmers närmaste vän och bittraste rival. Och ett avancerat dubbelspel är på väg att avslöjas: Pettifer har agerat bulvan åt ryska maffian, förskingrat pengar ur underrättelseväsendets fonder och bedrivit vapensmuggling i stor skala.

Tim Cranmer is a retired intelligence agent living in Bath with his young sweetheart, Emma. The story opens with two detectives arriving at his door, questioning him about the disappearance of his friend (and former double agent), Larry Pettifer. Cranmer goes to the Office to gain more information. He finds himself suspected of assisting Larry in stealing a large sum of money from the Russians. Both Larry and Emma have disappeared. It is set in the 1990s, after the Cold War and at the beginning of the Russian Federation.

We are privy to Tim’s thoughts as he pieces together what has happened. I was riveted to this story. We find out about the conflicts in the Caucasus between Russia and Ingushetia. This is a piece of history that is not told often, and I feel I learned quite a bit.

It is a complex mix of espionage, love triangle, and politics. It mixes action sequences with analysis. It portrays two contrasting personalities. Larry is the idealist. Tim is the practical one. Emma has chosen one over the other, creating conflict among friends. I had not read anything by le Carre’ in quite a while, and this book reminds me of why I enjoy his writing so much.

4.5 ( )