Scan barcode
A review by futurelegend
The Ipcress File by Len Deighton
3.0
This was a groundbreaker in its day; a grittier, darker, more morally ambiguous kind of spy thriller than the glamorous escapist fantasies of James Bond. The unnamed protagonist is notoriously not called Harry Palmer as he is in the film (he specifically denies being called Harry), nor is he the young Michael Caine's chirpy cockney (he's from Burnley). He's not particularly likeable either, but then neither is anybody else, very much. It's a murky old world and it's impossible to tell who's a goodie and who is a baddie. Nothing is so clear-cut.
Reading it today it feels dated. It's long been eclipsed by the cerebral spies of John le Carré. It was an enjoyable read but no more. I'd suggest that you'd do better to stick to the films. If you do go ahead, don't expect an easy read; it's pretty dense and you need to pay attention because it twists and turns more than the roads blasted out of the atoll where so much of the action takes place.
Reading it today it feels dated. It's long been eclipsed by the cerebral spies of John le Carré. It was an enjoyable read but no more. I'd suggest that you'd do better to stick to the films. If you do go ahead, don't expect an easy read; it's pretty dense and you need to pay attention because it twists and turns more than the roads blasted out of the atoll where so much of the action takes place.