A book that can be enjoyed on several levels, as ever with Le Carre, from the quality of the prose, & the depth of the characters, to the complexity of the plot; and yet, unusually for Le Carre, a thinly veiled personal political statement on contemporary international affairs using the world he knows and writes about so authoritatively, espionage, to tell a tale and also to clearly send his message. Whether one does or doesn't agree with the author's blast at what he sees as the American and British governments' propaganda and imperialism, one cannot help but enjoy the story and feel some empathy with the lead player in the drama Ted Mundy, and despite a "Hollywood" style conclusion, recent real life events make it resonate with authenticity; maybe Mundy's life and character are just a tad overdone, but if that comment is nitpicking it's only because the work is of such outstanding quality that one feels forced to find a flaw, however difficult, to give a review some balance.