Karla's Choice - An Impression (No Spoilers!)

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I suspect most visiting this website are aware of the recent addition to the literary world of George Smiley. Karla's Choice is written by Nick Harkaway and, as an established novelist in his own right and John le Carré's son, there are few more qualified to take on the responsibility. 

Harkaway acknowledges in his introduction that “there will be people who love the book whatever it is, because their attachment to George Smiley and the Circus is so deep that any slight touch of his hand is enough to bring them joy. There will be others who, for the exact same reasons, cannot conceive of reading it, and whose hackles rise at the mention of my absurd hubris.”

I am sure there are many more of us who are just unsure whether to take this journey. Would it add to the legend or detract from the memory? If you fall into this camp, then this 'impression' is for you. It is not a 'review' and you will not find any information about the plot or the characters here.  

Long before this novel was published I often wondered why le Carré had not written a Karla book set between The Spy Who Came In From The Cold and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. I decided the reason that he hadn't was because any story that featured 'Gerald' would inevitably mean having to position him out of the way at key moments and this would feel clumsy and obvious to an audience familiar with the later books. And then I thought again. 

When the allies broke the Enigma code during World War II, it was critical to keep the fact they had cracked it secret from the Germans. Any information gleaned from Enigma and utilised in the war had to plausibly come from another source. Karla would have had a similar problem with information fed to him by 'Gerald'. To protect his source, Karla may well have chosen sometimes not to act on information he received. He would have allowed the Circus 'victories' to protect the mole and perhaps to distract attention away from more important operations. 

All of which I decided would make an interesting subtext to any novel set in this time period. Those familiar with the later books would be trying to work out the unspoken narrative of what Karla was hoping to accomplish through his action or inaction - my thesis you understand, formed prior to reading this novel.

I approached Karla's Choice with a little trepidation. Would it feel like a story that belonged in Smiley's world? It took me a few chapters to decide that it absolutely does. I found the central story line intriguing and original. It was great to meet some familiar faces in their prime. Where we met existing characters I felt their inclusion was justified and appropriate. One or two characters were mentioned only in passing and this suggested to me we might meet them properly in subsequent novels set in this timeline. 

If you are on the fence about reading Karla's Choice, I'd certainly recommend it. I actually listened to the audiobook read by Simon Russell Beale and very much enjoyed this. (I can only see Guinness as Smiley but when I close my eyes I only hear Simon Russell Beale.) I hope this will be the first in a series of Nick Harkaway novels set during this period. 

You can purchase Karla's Choice in hardback, Kindle and audiobook (and order in paperback for publication in April 2025) by clicking here.