'Smiley is back at the Circus in the safest of hands' RICHARD OSMAN
Nick Harkaway's bestselling take on George Smiley is back, and this time the iconic spy is on the trail of a traitor right at the top of American intelligence…
It is 1965, and the Cold War has never been colder. The Circus - the secret centre of British intelligence - has one prize asset left in Moscow: a senior Red Army officer with access to the enemy's deepest secrets. But when a British agent is shot in Helsinki, George Smiley uncovers a Soviet operation that imperils this irreplaceable source.
The trail leads Smiley not to Berlin or Vienna, but Los Angeles - the most foreign place he has ever known. There, in the murky heart of US intelligence, a Communist sleeper agent - a 'Taper Man' - is poised to expose Britain's operative in Moscow. To save him, Smiley must navigate an America riven by divisions over race, loyalty and belonging, all while his spy in Leningrad, Roy Bland, risks everything in pursuit of a Russian defector who holds the final piece of the puzzle.
The Taper Man, the latest novel by Sunday Times bestselling author Nick Harkaway, is a gripping return to the shadow world of John le Carré. Elegant, tense and morally intricate, it is an extraordinary and timely continuation of one of literature's greatest espionage legacies - and a landmark work of modern spy fiction.
'Note-perfect'
MICK HERRON
'Le Carre's legacy is in good hands - Smiley is back with a vengeance!'
IAN RANKIN
| ISBN: | 9780241795309 |
| Publication date: | 5th November 2026 |
| Author: | Nick Harkaway, John Le Carré |
| Publisher: | Viking an imprint of Penguin Books Ltd |
| Format: | Hardback |
| Pagination: | 320 pages |
| Genres: |
Espionage and spy thriller Cold wars and proxy conflicts Historical crime and mysteries Historical Fiction |
'Smiley is back at the Circus in the safest of hands' RICHARD OSMANNick Harkaway's bestselling take on George Smiley is back, and this time the iconic spy is on the trail of a traitor right at the top of American intelligence…It is 1965, and the Cold War has never been colder. The Circus - the secret centre of British intelligence - has one prize asset left in Moscow: a senior Red Army officer with access to the enemy's deepest secrets.
The Taper Man features in the following genres: Espionage and spy thriller, Cold wars and proxy conflicts, Historical crime and mysteries, Historical Fiction
Hardback. £19.80, down from the £22.00 cover price. Pre-order. 5th November 2026.
The Taper Man was written by Nick Harkaway, John Le Carré and published by Viking an imprint of Penguin Books Ltd
The Taper Man has 320 pages
£19.80, reduced from £22.00. Pre-order. 5th November 2026.