The Spy Who Came in from the Cold

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"What the hell do you think spies are!? Moral philosophers measuring everything they do against the word of God or Karl Marx? They're not! They're just a bunch of seedy, squalid bastards like me: little men, drunkards, queers, hen-pecked husbands, civil servants playing cowboys and Indians to brighten their rotten little lives. Do you think they sit like monks in a cell, balancing right against wrong?" —Alec Leamas

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold is the third novel by John Le Carré.

After the death of a number of British-run agents in East Berlin, SIS officer and head of Berlin station Alec Leamas is recalled to London by the head of the service, Control. When Leamas refuses a demotion, Control then suggests to him a plan to bring about the downfall of Hans-Dieter Mundt, the agent of East German Intelligence responsible for the death of Leamas' agents. But the mission is not what it seems...

Reflecting the cold and somewhat inhuman nature of intelligence work in the early days of the cold war, the novel suggests the uncomfortable thought that the difference between the Western intelligence agencies and their opponents was very little indeed, with both resorting to underhanded methods to achieve their aims.

A screen adaptation of the novel starring Richard Burton as Leamas and directed by Martin Ritt was released in 1965.

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Tropes:

• Darker and Edgier: for its era, anyhow. Unlike James Bond novels, this book tries hard to prevent spydom from looking glamorous.
• Deconstruction
• Doomed Protagonist
• Early Installment Weirdness: George Smiley Is alot less humane and quite ruthless in his supporting role.
• Fake Defector: Leamas has to pretend to quit the SIS (spectacularly) and join the East German Intelligence Service to pull this plan off.
• Hero of Another Story: George Smiley gets the occasional mention, and appears in maybe one or two scenes.
• Grey and Gray Morality
• Improvised Weapon -- Leamas manages to kill a man with a wooden matchbox.
• Kansas City Shuffle
• May December Romance: Leamas is in his late forties or early fifties and has a divorce under his belt. Liz Gold is an early 20's librarian.
• Not So Different
• One Last Job: The title refers to Leamas' desire to quit the spy game; he'll be able to after he completes this job.
• Retirony
• Reverse Mole
• Spy Drama: a Trope Codifier for the Stale Beer version.
• Surprise Witness
• Title Drop
• We Would Have Told You But
• Well Intentioned Extremist: one of the people Leamas works with in East German intelligence is a True Believer in Communism.
• Worthy Adversary: The same. They get on very well together and like each other as persons, though Leamas has the duty to feed him false information.