Smiley's People by John le Carré

Today, I'm kicking off the John le Carré blog tour! I'm so excited to be taking part and even more excited to be celebrating John le Carré's wonderful achievement of becoming the living author with the greatest number of works awarded the classic status on the 27th of September, after Penguin complete a major nine-year project to publish twenty-one of his novels in Penguin Modern Classics.
Like celebrated authors Samuel Beckett, James Joyce and George Orwell, John le Carré's presence on the Penguin Modern Classics list acknowledges him not just as a writer for today but for all time.
For over half a century John le Carré has exposed and interrogated the murky world of espionage, from the Cold War to the War on Terror, creating masterpieces that have come to define the age and change the way we look at the world. A master storyteller, his books grip readers around the world — from his Cold War novels, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, to recent works The Pigeon Tunnel and A Legacy of Spies.
New to the list will be The Little Drummer Girl — a page-turning story of love and loyalty set against the backdrop of the Middle East conflict and the subject of a major six-part BBC adaptation this October. Produced by the award-winning team behind The Night Manager, The Little Drummer Girl will star Alexander Skarsgård and Florence Pugh.

​The Synopsis

The concluding part of John le Carré's celebrated Karla Trilogy, Smiley's People sees the last confrontation between the indefatigable spymaster George Smiley and his great enemy, as their rivalry comes to a shattering end.

A Soviet defector has been assassinated on English soil, and George Smiley is called back to the Circus to clear up - and cover up - the mess. But what he discovers sends him delving into the past, on a trail through Hamburg and Paris to Cold War Berlin - and a final showdown with his elusive nemesis, Karla.

​My Review

With a novel like this, it’s really easy to see why le Carré’s works have become classics. Smiley’s People is written with such skill and precision that you can’t help appreciating the masterful writing as you read. The plotting is tight and intricate with just the right balance of detail and action that kept me reading on and on.
At 426 pages, it could be quite a long read for some people, but don’t let that put you off, as once you become absorbed in the book it feels like no time at all, so it’s well worth persevering if that sort of length usually scares you.
All of the characters are brilliantly drawn, they’re so human, with their personalities, quirks, strengths and weaknesses captured and explored so very well.
I also loved the fact that le Carré doesn’t give everything away too fast. He slowly builds up to the climax, maintaining the tension throughout.
Overall, I’m giving Smiley’s People 4.5 out of 5. It’s sophisticated, gripping and gritty and I’d highly recommend giving it a read.
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​Giveaway!!

To celebrate John le Carré becoming the living author with the greatest number of works awarded the classic status, I have one copy of Smiley's People to give away! To enter, simply head over to my twitter account here, follow me and retweet the tweet with the above image! Best of luck, it really is a fantastic read!

​About John le Carré

John le Carré was born in 1931. His third novel, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold, secured him a worldwide reputation, which was consolidated by the acclaim for his trilogy Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Honourable Schoolboy and Smiley's People. His recent novels include A Most Wanted Man, Our Kind of Traitor and A Legacy of Spies. John le Carré is represented by Jonny Geller at Curtis Brown

​About Penguin Modern Classics

Penguin Classics represents the greatest repository of our shared cultural imagination and a treasure trove for readers. Penguin Modern Classics launched in 1961 as an ever-evolving list of books from the 20th and 21st centuries that have achieved classic status. The Modern Classics list is continually expanded with contemporary authors whose works are considered timeless.