John Le Carre
Agent Running in the Field by John Le Carré unfolds in the first-person voice of Nat, a forty-seven-year-old veteran of the British secret service and an avid badminton player. Nat is always up for a challenge when it comes to badminton. So when a young and fit Ed Shannon shows up at the Athleticus Club and challenges him to a game of badminton, Nat eagerly embraces the challenge. The two strike up a friendship, playing regularly and enjoying a cordial drink and chat at the end of each game. But all is not as it seems.
Ed wears his political anti-Trump, anti-Brexit views on his sleeve. He finds a sympathetic ear in Nat as he rants about the American president, slams his cozying up to Putin and his anti-Europe stance. But this wouldn’t be a Le Carré novel if things didn’t get complicated. Nat is disenchanted with his current demotion since it virtually consists of glorified baby-sitting a team of colleagues. Before long, he is actively embroiled in clandestine meetings with secret agents, double agents, and, possible triple agents. His long-standing, patient wife, Prudence, has learned through their years of marriage not to ask too many questions about his assignments. But when Nat finds himself in a precarious position with his own intelligence services, Prudence lends her unwavering and practical support.
After a slow beginning, the novel picks up its pace and moves rapidly along through twists and turns, surveillance operations, covert meetings in Europe, obscure codenames, a potpourri of watchers to observe and listen in on secret conversations, coded dialogue, false identities, and interrogations, all of which lead up to the final denouement. But this spy story offers more than thrills and suspense. It also explores the toll the profession of a secret service agent can take on a family.
Le Carre’s prose is brisk and energetic. The narrative is entertaining and holds the reader’s attention. The plot twists, misdirection, questionable loyalties, bureaucratic infighting, world-weary spies, and tight dialogue generate tension and suspense. Add to that the ongoing issues with Brexit, the Trump presidency, and Putin, and what we get is a spy thriller steeped in contemporary politics.