Estate of John le Carré
Silverview
"There are people we must never betray, whatever the cost. I do not belong in that category."
Julian Lawndsley has renounced his high-flying job in the City for a simpler life running a bookshop in a small English seaside town. But only a couple of months into his new career, Julian’s evening is disrupted by a visitor. Edward, a Polish émigré living in Silverview, the big house on the edge of town, seems to know a lot about Julian’s family and is rather too interested in the inner workings of his modest new enterprise.
When a letter turns up at the door of a spy chief in London warning him of a dangerous leak, the investigations lead him to this quiet town by the sea . . .
Silverview is the mesmerising story of an encounter between innocence and experience and between public duty and private morals. In this last complete masterwork from the greatest chronicler of our age, John le Carré asks what you owe to your country when you no longer recognise it.
Kate Cooper manages the translation rights for Silverview
Audio Rights
AvailableThe audio rights are handled by Penguin Audio Books.
Film Rights
AvailableContact Nick Marston for more information
Translation Rights Sold
This is a terrific bonus from beyond the grave...
The Daily Mirror
As ever, le Carré circles his characters masterfully, letting the parallel stories spiral down towards each other.
Barry DidcockThe Herald
There are few writers to match him, but fewer who are still alive.
Andrew RosenheimThe Spectator
[A] piercing portrait of moral ambivalence.
i
[T]here is much here to respect.
Nikhal KrishnanThe Oldie
[...] John Le Carré has lost none of his power to draw the reader straight into his world.
Damian WhitworthThe Times
[I]t is a worth coda, a commanding farewell from a much-missed master.
The Economist
Le Carré's final published novel is a graceful cudgelling of the intelligence services...
Paul ConnollyMetro
It is, I suppose, a sunset novel, but what a glow it leaves in the evening sky.
Allan MassieThe Scotsman
[O]ne last time we're in le Carré's familiar world: its themes, its principals, its impeccable style.
Mick HerronThe Guardian
Le Carré's compassion for his characters shines through, along with the gleam of humour.
Irish Times
[...] a pleasing coda to a brilliant career: a short, sharp study of the human cost of espionage.
Jake KerridgeThe Daily Telegraph
[...] a familiar tune played in a minor key, a slight but elegant story of western collapse...
Thankfully, what le Carré has left us, is a thoroughly enjoyable book, more accessible and less complex than his greatest works.
The Washington Post
This is a lyrical, poignant portrait of betrayal in a family [...] It is to be savoured gently rather than devoured.
Geoffrey WansellDaily Mail
First-rate prose and a fascinating plot distinguish the final novel from MWA Grand Master le Carré.
In this posthumous farewell, Le Carré is still showing us how literary fiction and the spy narrative can coexist in the same book.
i
Silverview [...] offers plenty to enjoy and admire.
Anthony CumminsThe Observer
[Silverview's] sense of moral ambivalence remains exquisitely calibrated.
The New York Times
Thematically, this is classic le Carré [...] The prose is as unshowily superb as ever, spiked with deliciously sharp barbs...
Jake KerridgeThe Sunday Telegraph
[...] a serpentine investigation into how a career spy can balance their morality with the demands of the job. A fitting coda to the work of our greatest spy novelist.
John WilliamsThe Mail on Sunday
Le Carré is arguably the greatest English novelist of his generation.
The Guardian
In almost every respect Silverview fulfils the late-period le Carré stereotype. It's deftly written, but so slight you can easily read it in one sitting. [...] le Carré's fans will probably like seeing the old formula given one last runout.
The Sunday Times
[...] the plot unfolds with as much cryptic cunning as a reader could want [,,,] it is enjoyable throughout, written with grace, and a welcome gift from the past.
The Wall Street Journal
[T]his is a suitable end to a storied career, a low-key thriller with a brain and a conscience.
Star Tribune
[...] a well-aimed parting shot.
Jake BittleThe New Republic
The stitches don’t show, and the novel possesses several elements of classic le Carré.
Air Mail
Still, [...] le Carré the stylist is a wonder.
Washington Independent Review of Books
One of [le Carré’s] most touching and satisfying [novels] – for putting into high relief this beloved author’s vision for his country and his disappointments, and perhaps most of all, the elegance and coloristic palette of his unique and incomparable prose.
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
John Le Carré at the top of his game – smart, candid, stylish, relevant.
[...] filled with intrigue, surprises and timely meditations on the relationship between individuals and nations...
Max Liui
