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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A myriad of mysteries spanning continents and cultures, The Honourable Schoolboy finds Smiley trying to lead the Circus out of the darkness following the uncovering of Karla's mole. As he wades through the interweaving information about Karla's movements, Le Carre made me love Smiley even more than I did in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy as you see the depths of understanding he has for his long-term Russian opposition. Although The Honourable Schoolboy is not as engaging as the first book in the Karla trilogy, is is fast-paced, full of twists and intrigues, and sets up the final chapter in the Smiley story, Smiley's People.
challenging
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Wow, this was a hard dry read
Reading this through a contemporary lens it has very dated view of women characters
Even though I have loved the detail & background of 'tinker tailor' & 'smiley's people' tv dramas, this was such hard work - peripheral characters spoke in the such outlandish ways that it tended toward soap opera at times
500 dense pages - and then no resolve with the lizzie worth character, left this reader disaffected by the conclusion
Reading this through a contemporary lens it has very dated view of women characters
Even though I have loved the detail & background of 'tinker tailor' & 'smiley's people' tv dramas, this was such hard work - peripheral characters spoke in the such outlandish ways that it tended toward soap opera at times
500 dense pages - and then no resolve with the lizzie worth character, left this reader disaffected by the conclusion
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A friend of mine warned me that this book was pretty heavy going. He didn't lie! Not in a negative way, but the storyline seizes you, grips you in tight then wrings out your nerves until you're almost as frayed as hapless protagonist Weatherby.
Of all the le Carré books that I have read this was the most gripping and tense. The action takes place in Hong Kong, Thailand and Cambodia and stalks through opium dens, war zones, and nightclubs while back in the decrepit and recently depleted control room of The Circus in London, the Brits must fend off the Cousins, and fight to restore it's reputation which is still in tatters after a mole all but destroyed the old order.
For an ardent fan of the legendary George Smiley (as I am) this was a heartbreaking read and left me reeling. I'm almost tempted to say if you haven't read any other le Carré start here. A true spy novel, with all the nuts and bolts and politicking and backstabbing that goes with it.
Roll on the next Smiley novel, [b:Smiley's People|18999|Smiley's People (George Smiley, #7)|John le Carré|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348407722s/18999.jpg|2144486] <3
Of all the le Carré books that I have read this was the most gripping and tense. The action takes place in Hong Kong, Thailand and Cambodia and stalks through opium dens, war zones, and nightclubs while back in the decrepit and recently depleted control room of The Circus in London, the Brits must fend off the Cousins, and fight to restore it's reputation which is still in tatters after a mole all but destroyed the old order.
For an ardent fan of the legendary George Smiley (as I am) this was a heartbreaking read and left me reeling. I'm almost tempted to say if you haven't read any other le Carré start here. A true spy novel, with all the nuts and bolts and politicking and backstabbing that goes with it.
Roll on the next Smiley novel, [b:Smiley's People|18999|Smiley's People (George Smiley, #7)|John le Carré|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348407722s/18999.jpg|2144486] <3
The real question that stems from the start of reading The Honourable Schoolboy is not necessarily an obvious one. It is less about questions such as "How did Haydon do it?" or "How will Smiley change the Circus?" but more about the simple question of "How is le Carré going to top Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy"
The key thing to remember then is, he doesn't. He matches it instead and doesn't engage in one-up-man-ship with his previous work, heralded as one of the greatest espionage novels ever written. Instead, we are treated to an overtly ambitious story that progresses the Karla trilogy well. It set's up Smiley's People, but most interestingly, it shows George Smiley in a position that he has never desired, power. George's problems, seen throughout the rest of the Smiley books, include his fierce loyalty, his faith in country, and his polite, kind, humble nature. All of these place him at odds to a tragic ending in which the casualties are in equal ways obvious and well-hidden.
Do not expect a Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, because the book is not setting out to do that. In some places you may struggle, after all this is le Carré's longest novel and part of me can see why. In the odd place there seems to be a little bit of filler, and the pacing of the book can seem slightly mismatched occasionally, but none the less the book still represents another victory in the le Carré pantheon
The key thing to remember then is, he doesn't. He matches it instead and doesn't engage in one-up-man-ship with his previous work, heralded as one of the greatest espionage novels ever written. Instead, we are treated to an overtly ambitious story that progresses the Karla trilogy well. It set's up Smiley's People, but most interestingly, it shows George Smiley in a position that he has never desired, power. George's problems, seen throughout the rest of the Smiley books, include his fierce loyalty, his faith in country, and his polite, kind, humble nature. All of these place him at odds to a tragic ending in which the casualties are in equal ways obvious and well-hidden.
Do not expect a Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, because the book is not setting out to do that. In some places you may struggle, after all this is le Carré's longest novel and part of me can see why. In the odd place there seems to be a little bit of filler, and the pacing of the book can seem slightly mismatched occasionally, but none the less the book still represents another victory in the le Carré pantheon