Review: Silverview by John le Carre

Author: John le Carre
Publisher: Viking
Released: October 12, 2021
Received: Own (BOTM)

3 kitties

Silverview by John le Carre came up as one of my Book of the Month options, and I grabbed it without hesitation. It wasn’t until after I started reading that I learned that Silverview is a novel le Carre had been working on over the course of a few years – never quite getting it to the point that he liked. So now I’m feeling a bit conflicted on the matter.

These days all Julian Lawndsley wants to do is run his bookshop. But his past keeps chasing after him, making that next to impossible. As it turns out, it is rather difficult to retire from certain careers, as the waters never stay calm for long.

“Edward Avon, and its official classification is top secret and beyond”

I originally grabbed Silverview because a.) John le Carre’s name was on it, and b.) I’ve been craving a good spy novel as of late. Unfortunately, I found this novel to be only midding-to-fair. That isn’t a bad thing, mind you. Just not great.

Part of the problem may lie with me (or rather, my mood at the time). I just really struggled to get into this one. It was slow at times and really danced around the issue on more than one occasion. I know, I know – it’s a SPY thriller. They’re not going to lay it out all nice and clean for you. But that’s not what I’m talking about – not exactly.

I wonder if part of the problem is that this novel was left unfinished when John le Carre sadly passed? I don’t know if that is my bias showing there (again, I am conflicted about this) or if that is really the case. I do know that this wasn’t the sweep me off my feet spy thriller I had been hoping for.

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About Liz (AKA Cat)

I am an avid animal lover, photographer, reader, and much more. While my photography blog is feeling a bit neglected at the moment, the other sites I'm involved in are going strong. ✧I review books, comics, and basically anything else in the literary world over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks (of Books). ✧I review comics and books, as well as write content for Word of the Nerd. ✧I review comics for Monkeys Fighting Robots. ✧I write content for Screen Rant and CBR. ✧I write book reviews for The Review Crew.
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