The Shutting Books of Len Deighton in Berlin Game.

I didn’t want to read any next book in the series about nameless agent by Len Deighton, they weren’t improve to better in my research, and the fourth Billion-Dollar Brain pushed away after seeing a plot’s premise in the movie incarnation. The writer’s novels were adapted into Harry Palmer features with Michael Caine, which usually are splendid. The Ipcress File was followed by much excellent sequel Funeral in Berlin by its intricacy, and after that was the deliriously-plotted threequel Billion Dollar Brain, which perceives anti-American by cartoonish main villain with a characterizing for commie production last name General Midwinter and who embodies everything evil in capitalism and militarism in the United States in communists’ vision whereas his plan isn’t monstrous–its fight with red threat by invading the Baltic countries–but it ends ridiculous through destroying him and his army which still continues to walk on the ice. Furthermore, the lead hero collaborates with Reds in stopping Midwinter. The third part flopped in box-office. The nineties revived the series in two films that don’t relate to Denton’s novels, but the writer was ready to approve screenplays if Michael Caine will return. He didn’t believe in that, but it happened, and Deighton gave his blessing. The first Bullet to Beijing is likeable journey including merciless of intelligences while the second Midnight in Saint Petersburg could be splendid as a separate story because it illogical after what characters experienced in the previous part – it was akin to TV series where a villain commits evil every time and the main characters don’t stop him for good despite they could do it.

The second chance to Deighton’s books was to the espionage series with protagonist Bernard Samson, which starts with Berlin Game (it follows to Mexico Set and London Match in that first trilogy). The premise takes two sides of Germany’s capital that was separated by the Berlin Wall, the imposing symbol of First Cold War.

Since publishing The IPCRESS File in 1962, the writer advanced in prose when this book was released in 1983. At least in these few dozen pages that I saw, metaphors were rare, and they were swell ones. The reading was comfortable.

Still, it wasn’t likeable with a plot. It was from the previous attempt to read Len Deighton that heroes have a peculiar vision about things. I can accept, but it was not usual when Samson says to his superior that all tastes of Nescafe are the same for him, and his boss gives a gesture on the attempt to annoy him. Impossible was a conversation of the lead character with his wife. The protagonist finds funny to lie to her that his friend had many affairs. His spouse assumes that he uttered it to make her jealous. Or, her reaction on that wife of his friend left him was, “that sort of smile that women save for men who have lost their woman.” I’ve never heard about that because it is an illogical reaction for normal people.

Deighton wanted to mix espionage and regular business, but it loses authenticity turning it looks as a day in the office. I hadn’t seen a serious confusion, but a story wasn’t to my taste. Aside of everyday side, Samson was sent to the Berlin Wall to pick up an agent, but no one appeared in three days, and no reaction when he returns in so-called intelligence. The protagonist tells about his experience to his wife Fiona, who is also on the same job, and she calls him “fool” because agency tricks with him. The English author still didn’t learn about work of spy agencies. If the hero thinks that he should be in Berlin after five years of his outside of the field at all because his face is familiar there, it means he an awful agent. Besides, he took a desk job at thirty-five years, and considers too old to be on the field in his forty.

I’ve learnt before that Samson will look for a traitor in his agency, who reveal is his wife Fiona. I moved farther with paging by taking London Match. It reveals the part of initial, as can see, the presented espionage becomes a family drama. They have a talk that she wants to keep their children because she is out of age to make more while he is able to do. The English writer’s book are hopeless about reading.

Deighton was a peculiar man by himself by writing in 2010 introduction to the novel about what was occurred in the period when he was lettering Berlin Game, “the border guards were shooting fewer escapers, which had to be a good sign”. He was a heartless and cynical person.