A Legacy of Spies

In le Carré's 24th novel, agents from the British Secret Service, with little memory of the Cold War, summon John Guillam to London to justify past misdemeanors he and his intelligence colleagues committed during the time period of The Spy Who Came In from the Cold and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, including the cover-up of covert activities, the death of innocent people, and the endless trail of unaccounted expenditures. Believing that this particular era was marked by an ethos of a surveillance society run amok, the agents pursue a blame game: history speaks—heads roll, regardless of the consequences. Guillam recalls, in great detail, many past operations with his fellow agents, specifically his mentor, George Smiley (last seen in 1991's The Secret Pilgrim). However, revisiting old times under these circumstances conjures feelings of not only nostalgia but also frustration, humiliation, and outrage as a new generation throws back the past in Guillam's face.