A delicate truth

As demonstrated in his masterpiece, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, le Carre shines when writing about the infighting among the powerbrokers within the British government and the subsequent revelations about human frailty and the difficulty of recognizing evil. These themes are at play on a smaller scale here, building slowly to a chilling conclusion reminiscent of the end of The Spy Who Came in from the Cold. This minor work may succeed better on audio than the printed page because of the consistent excellence of the reading. Le Carre's fiction is all about nuance and rhythm, and who better to know when to change emphasis and pace than the writer himself? While many authors are somewhat stilted when interpreting their works, le Carre is as skillful as any professional reader. It would be a joy to hear his Graham Greene or Eric Ambler. VERDICT Highly recommended for all collections. ["This is a guaranteed hair-raising cerebral fright, especially for anyone who enjoyed Robert Harris's The Ghost or who just knows his or her email account has been hacked," read the starred review of the Viking hc, LJ 4/15/13.-Ed.]-Michael Adams, CUNY Graduate Ctr., New York (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.