Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

There needs to be a happy medium…

Advise and Consent by Allen Drury

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I seem to do one of two things when writing a review. In the first instance, I try cobbling together my thoughts weeks or months after reading a book (a failed experiment that I keep trying), and unloading the errant thoughts I have while reading, or I write as I read and end up writing way more than any reasonable person wants to read. You can always tell the difference because one review is 5,000 words while the other is usually a short review dump […]

With Enemies Like These

A Spy Among Friends: Kim Philby and the Great Betrayal by Ben Macintyre

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I don’t think there’s much of a distinction between this and Ben Macintyre’s other works: it’s well researched, narratively streamlined, and occasionally thrilling. But this feels like his best book by far. And I don’t have much in the way of justification for saying that aside from how deeply personal it feels like Kim Philby’s betrayal still feels to him and the English. I say “the English” specifically because while MI-6 technically serves the United Kingdom, this is very much an English story. A story […]

Have Seen the Enemy

Smiley's People by John Le Carré

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Of the many things that can be said about John Le Carré’s George Smiley series — and there is a lot to be said — the overarching lesson is how you can never really “win” at espionage. Oh sure, you can occasionally foil the enemy, maybe draw some large gains or uncover revelations. Espionage helps win war when an actual war is going on. But when war is fought in the shadows — and the Cold War most certainly was — one’s never going to […]

This One’s A Thriller

The Spy and the Traitor: The Greatest Espionage Story of the Cold War by Ben MacIntyre

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First of all: RIP Oleg Gordievsky. I picked this up unaware he died earlier in March. Or maybe I had heard it and my subconscious urged me to read it. Either way, hope he rests in peace. Yeah the “reads like a thriller” tag is accurate here. I really do need to read more Ben MacIntyre. I’ve tried with MacIntyre before and while his books are good, I need to be in a specific headspace to read non-fiction and stuff kept getting in the way. […]

The End and the Beginning

London Match by Len Deighton

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I’m glad I slept on this review. I confess to some disappointment when I finished it…that was the resolution? That was the best Deighton could do after an excellent two-book buildup? I expected a massive conflict and was sort of let down. But then I thought about the final conversation in the book, which I won’t use to spoil the plot but basically talks about the stagnancy of the spy game. You’re never really winning, per se, and you almost don’t know what constitutes winning. Occasionally, you […]

Ohhh Mexico

Mexico Set by Len Deighton

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I’m going to review this under the assumption that the reader has read the first book in Len Deighton’s Game, Set, Match trilogy. If you have not, I encourage you to do so (it’s very good!) and skip this review until you have. I liked this one almost as much as Berlin Game, perhaps even more! I love how Len Deighton writes books where he ratchets up the tension just by having people talk. It’s fun. His dialogue is great and it works well to building the story. […]



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