Entertainment · Books & Arts · 10 hrs ago
Nick Harkaway brings George Smiley back in Cold War thriller
Nick Harkaway has brought back George Smiley in The Taper Man, a new thriller continuing the fictional world created by his father, John le Carré.
The story takes place in California in 1965, where the British spy is searching for a Soviet agent.
Smiley also has to navigate tensions with “The Cousins,” le Carré’s fictional version of the CIA.
The book’s Cold War setting draws on strains between Britain and the United States, alongside anxieties about Britain’s decline and Russian meddling.
Harkaway says some debates from that era feel familiar today, though the global situation has also changed in alarming ways.
The Taper Man is Harkaway’s second le Carré novel since his father died in 2020; his earlier book, Karla’s Choice, appeared in 2024.
The new novel was published in the UK this week and is due in the US on November 17.
Nick Harkaway has published The Taper Man, a Cold War thriller that brings back George Smiley, the spy created by his father, John le Carré.
The novel sends Smiley to California in 1965 to hunt a Soviet agent.
It is Harkaway’s second book continuing his father’s fictional world since le Carré died in 2020.
The story explores tensions between British intelligence and “The Cousins,” le Carré’s fictionalised CIA.
The book was published in the UK this week and is due in the US on November 17.
- Who
- Nick Harkaway wrote the novel, which features George Smiley, a character created by John le Carré.
- What
- The Taper Man is a Cold War thriller in which Smiley hunts a Soviet agent.
- When
- It was published in the UK this week and is due in the US on November 17. The story is set in 1965.
- Where
- Smiley travels to California, in the United States.
- Why
- Smiley is hunting a Soviet agent. The title refers to a deep-cover operative left waiting for new orders after a spy ring is broken up.
British intelligence
The Cousins
Approach to espionage
British intelligence
British intelligence is described as watching and listening.
The Cousins
The Cousins are described as warriors who move fast and break things, including moral boundaries.
John le Carré died.
Harkaway’s previous le Carré novel, Karla’s Choice, was published and reintroduced readers to Smiley.
The Taper Man is set, with Smiley travelling to California to hunt a Soviet agent.
The Taper Man was published in the UK.
The Taper Man is due to be published in the US through Viking.
- Author
- Nick Harkaway, whose real name is Nicholas Cornwell
- Main character
- George Smiley
- Setting
- California, 1965
- UK publication
- This week
- US publication
- November 17, through Viking
- Previous le Carré novel
- Karla’s Choice, published in 2024
What people are saying
writing in the mirror
weirdly the same in some slightly alarming ways, it’s weirdly different in some alarming ways.
It is profoundly intelligent and has this beautiful moral murkiness,