London Match

MI6 agent Bernard Samson suspects that there may be a second mole within the department. A recent KGB defector may have information that would identify the mole. But is all what it seems?

Although it’s been a long time since I read Berlin Game and Mexico Set, I’m not sure how much that more recent familiarity with the first two books would have helped me follow the plot in this book. It’s hard to distinguish between the heroes and the villains. The London and Berlin settings kept me engaged, and the strong sense of place will be what I remember most about this book.

Of the three books in the trilogy, this one was the hardest to put down. It was suspenseful, with twists and turns everywhere. As new complications arose, I could feel the world closing in on Samson, and as the last few chapters unfolded, I plowed along recklessly with him, heart in my throat, unsure of how it would all play out.

To be honest, I probably read the end of it *too* quickly, because I feel as if I missed a couple of things in my rush to find out how it ended. I shall keep this review spoiler-free, but suffice to say the ending was neat enough to resolve most plot threads while leaving a few dangling, just as it goes in life.

One thing I really liked about the series was that I was able to leave a one-month gap or so between show more books and still have some idea of what was going on when I returned. Most trilogy writers probably tend to do that, but it's especially a blessing in espionage works where the plots can become insanely complicated. show less

The trilogy - Berlin Game, Mexico Set, & London Match were first published in 1983 - 1985, only a generation ago, but they seem dated when read today. Apart from the obvious changes in technology - no mobile phones and no PCs - it is the smoking, the incessant drinking and the sexism that seem out of place.
Deighton's writing style seems more screenplay than novel. Just as a movie is often a distillation of the original novel, these books seem spare to a fault - nothing is included that is not needed for the plot. For example, when the hero's wife defects and leaves him with the children, the kids are not meetings for the next 100-odd pages, when their existence becomes important to the plot as a bargaining point.
I think that all Cold show more War era spy novels are inevitably compared with Le Carre books, and you can see the influence here. Deighton ties hard to be cerebral rather action-driven, but fails to be as convincing as Le Carre. But, interestingly, I found the flaws to lie in the action parts of the writing - the southeast seems comically inept, the spies drinking gallons of hard booze before, during and after field operations; the fact that there seems to be only 5 spores in MI6 etc etc.
But while there are minor quibbles, I enjoyed my trip back in time with Deighton and found the books hard to put down.
Read November 2013. show less

The third book in the trilogy, is one is probably the most suspenseful. It is also the one in which the hero is the most conflicted. He is finally dealing with the betrayal of his wife on two levels. Her betrayal of her country and values, and her betrayal of him. Like most spy novels, Samson finds solace for the personal betrayal in the arms of a much younger woman, a affair for which he has very ambivalent feelings, and not a little guilt. The other betrayal, of the Company and the Western values, he finds much harder to deal with, and his confusion about, and emotional ties to, various bumbling bureaucrats in charge causes as much confusion in his life as has the defection of his wife.

This series of spy novels is unusual in that, show more most of the action is the emotional reactions, and actions, of the hero, Bernard Samson, and not in the maneuverings and politics, although there is plenty of that, of the spy world. This won't be my last Len Deighton novel.

I read these books because they have been reissued in digital format for the Nook. (the Barnes & Noble e-reader) Issuing these in this format should open up these stories to a whole new audience of readers. I hope they enjoy them as much as I did. show less

The final book in the Game Set & Match trilogy, in which Bernard Samson helps capture a KGB courier using information from former KGB major Erich Stinnes – whom Samson convinced to defect in the previous book. But the courier’s confession implies that there is another KGB mole in London Central – which is bad news for Samson, whose loyalty has been questioned since his wife turned out to be a KGB mole herself. Now he must find out who the mole is – or if the courier is lying. Deighton delivers a very good spy yarn that makes the most of the chief problem of the espionage business: never knowing for sure just who is on whose side, and who is telling the truth. London Match gets a bit too bogged down by the domestic lives of the show more characters – everyone seems to be having affairs with someone else and expecting Bernard to deal with it – and it gets a little tedious for the likes of me. But the twists and turns of the espionage angle more than make up for it. show less

The 3rd in the Bernard Samson Books.
A smashing end to a great trilogy - highly recommend reading.
The twist and turns in the plot are convincing and the final outcome is a difficult one to foresee.
I found myself really joining the world of all these characters as well once again the feel of the city of Berlin.
The book vacant be read and enjoyed as a stand alone read but I would recommend reading the prior books to get the most enjoyment from them.
I am looking forward to the next trilogy set of hook, line & sinker.

last of the 'Game, Set, Match' trilogy, less satisfying than I had hoped.