Synopsis

From premier spy novelist John le Carre, a magnificent thriller, a love story and an ethical puzzle for our time.

We are in the third year of perestroika and glasnost. The place is Moscow. The man is Barley; a derelict, English publisher with a passion for jazz and a penchant for booze, who visits the Moscow Book Fair.

The woman is Katya: a beautiful Russian with a mission to save mankind and access to some of the hottest defense intelligence to come out of the Soviet Union in years. It's source: a disillusioned and desperate Russian physicist who wants Barley to publish the secrets . . but the British Secret Service and the CIA have other ideas.

What the Critics Say

"An exciting spy story, which is at the same time a lively international comedy...a well-informed, up-to-the-minute political parable, incisive and instructive...rich...poignant...fascinating." - The New York Times Book Review