Karla's Choice

A brilliant and almost uncanny incarnation of le Carré’s voice and world - and an exceptional espionage novel in its own right

William Boyd

Karla’s Choice is a note-perfect tribute to le Carré that feels fresh and new, and yet fits seamlessly into the world of Smiley’s Circus in its heyday.

Mick Herron

Tense and atmospheric, meditative and moving. Fans of le Carré will have much to rejoice about

Tan Twan Eng

Gripping, clever, and full of tension, Karla’s Choice bridges the gap in the Smiley saga perfectly. Fans of John le Carré will not be disappointed.

Lisa Hall

It’s thrilling to be back with old friends and enemies. Smiley’s tested, essential goodness sings through the pages. I couldn’t put it down.

S J Bennett

Every reader of John le Carré will love this brilliant book

Tony Parsons

The legendary Smiley’s return is a classic thinking person’s espionage thriller packed with more secrets, tricks and deceptions than a roomful of triple agents. We have witnessed the rebirth of an icon

Scott Mariani

Smiley and his people are back, and thank god for that. Karla's Choice is a beautifully rendered spy story full of familiar characters and authentic Cold War tradecraft. It's the missing chapter of Smiley's battle with Karla that we've always wanted, and Harkaway delivers.

David McCloskey, author of The Damascus Station

The legendary Smiley’s return is a classic thinking person’s espionage thriller packed with more secrets, tricks and deceptions than a roomful of triple agents. We have witnessed the rebirth of an icon,

Scott Mariani, Number One Sunday Times Bestselling author of the Ben Hope series

Karla’s Choice is a glorious conjuration of a lost era. It’s a book as rich and complex as its cast of characters. But it’s also a feat of extraordinary literary alchemy. Harkaway has summoned Smiley, his colleagues, antagonists, and the dark moral machinations of their secret Cold War institutions back into existence with all the deft emotional precision of the best of Le Carré, but in so doing he has given us something wondrously new: a giddying, compulsively fierce novel that is very much his own. I read it twice in as many days and am about to pick it up and read it again.’

Helen MacDonald, author of H is for Hawk

Elegant as smoke, ruthless as steel, Karla’s Choice is a love letter to fans of Smiley, but it’s also got le Carre’s furious humanity and Harkaway’s playful intellect. A genuinely surprising treat.

Patrick Ness, author of A Monster Calls

Reads like a lost le Carrè. Smiley is back at the Circus in the safest of hands

Richard Osman

Le Carre’s legacy is in good hands - Smiley is back with a vengeance!

Ian Rankin

‘Is this new ‘le Carré’ novel even better than the master himself? Harkaway has done an extraordinarily good job with his father’s legacy. Karla’s Choice is note-perfect.’

Jake Kerridge, The Telegraph

A loving tribute as well as an excellent novel in its own right

Anthony Cummins, The Observer

Karla’s Choice breathes new life into the murky world of the Circus. If you haven’t read any Smiley books, then this wouldn’t be a bad place to start

David Mills, Sunday Times

It is difficult to encapsulate what a remarkable achievement this novel is. Karla’s Choice is absolutely first rate, as both a homage to le Carré and as a work in its own right

Stuart Kelly, The Scotsman

Harkaway is a fine writer and he has resurrected his father’s books brilliantly

The I

A satisfyingly intricate tale filled with intrigue and suspense. Karla's Choice is an accomplished homage and a captivating thriller.

The Economist

What a treat! Karla's Choice expertly evokes the atmosphere of the originals

Guardian

An accomplished and welcome addition to le Carré's oeuvre. Harkaway has drawn on his deep knowledge of his father's work to produce a tale faithful to the originals, while subtly adding a lighter, more modern touch.

The Financial Times

An accomplished homage and a captivating thriller

Economist - Best books of 2024

Harkaway has done a wonderful job, balancing a tricksy plot with a satisfyingly grimy evocation of Sixties London

Kate Rosseinsky, Independent – Five writers on the five books they’d give for Christmas

When John Le Carré wrote The Spy Who Came in from the Cold and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, he missed out an entire decade of his famous creation George Smiley's life. Now, his son, a successful novelist in his own right, fills that gap by setting his own Smiley story in 1963, and doing a very fine job of it too

iPaper – The 30 best books for Christmas 2024

Brilliant – every bit as suspenseful and knowing as the original, and often more humorous

The Spectator – Books of the year II

Harkaway takes over the family business, sending George Smiley on a hazardous mission to eastern Europe in this superb sequel to his father John le Carré’s classic, The Spy Who Came in From the Cold

The Telegraph – The 50 best books of 2024

The spirit of le Carre is absolutely here. The world is foggy, the prose elegantly wood-panelled, the Cold War moral murk and our protagonist’s griefs and compromises all present and correct – and it’s a cracking story. Smiley lives

The TLS – Books of the Year 2024

This new novel, read richly and atmospherically, takes us to the heart of the Circus in 1963, with the spymaster in pursuit of the Russian agent who was to become his greatest foe

FT – Best books of 2024: Audio books

The welcome return of John le Carré’s spymaster George Smiley in a well-crafted tale by his creator’s son. Set in 1963, the story ups the pace as Smiley untangles the mysterious disappearance of a Hungarian exile and literary agent from his London home, with Harkaway featuring a pleasing mix of familiar and new faces…

FT – Best books of 2024: Crime and thrillers