Publisher Viking on Wednesday announced that they would be publishing the final novel by John le Carré in October.
Silverview, le Carré’s 26th novel, was written at the same time as the author’s most recent releases, A Legacy of Spies and Agent Running in the Field. The only completed novel left unpublished at the time of his death, le Carré is reported to have given his blessing to publish the manuscript, which the author’s son calls “fraught, forensic, lyrical and fierce”.
Le Carré worked for both the British Security Service and the Secret Intelligence Service during the 1950s and 1960s. He rose to prominence with the resounding success of his novel The Spy Who Came In from the Cold in 1963 and its subsequent film adaptation, which starred Richard Burton as the title character, in 1965. His works have since sold more than 60 million copies worldwide.
Silverview, due out on October 14, is set in modern Britain, and follows Julian Lawndsley as he leaves a busy life in the city to run a bookshop in a small coastal town. Things get complicated, however, when a local Polish émigré who lives in the big house at the edge of town takes an unusual interest in the new store, while a dangerous leak being investigate in London leads a spy chief to Julian’s front door.
Speaking of the book, Brian Tart, editor at Viking Penguin, said, “Silverview is a brilliant novel and thrilling reminder of the genius of John le Carré. His inimitable voice is on every page, and I am so pleased that readers everywhere will be able to hear it once again.”
