Our Kind of Traitor
Encyclopedia
Our Kind of Traitor is a 2010 espionage novel
by the British novelist John le Carré
about a Russian money launderer seeking to defect to the UK after a close friend of his had been killed by the new leadership of his own criminal brotherhood
.
, British university lecturer Peregrine "Perry" Makepiece and his lawyer girlfriend Gail Perkins meet mysterious Russian business oligarch
Dmitri "Dima" Vladimirovich Krasnov and his family. Dima who describes himself "the world's number one money launderer" deliberately sought contact with Perry hoping that he is a British spy or knows one, because he wants him to pass on information about his criminal activities to British intelligence in exchange for protection for himself and his family. Dima fears for his life, because "The Prince", the new leader of his criminal brotherhood, had a good friend of his and his wife murdered and wants him to come to Bern to sign over control of his money-laundering operations to him.
Back in the UK, Perry contacts a colleague with contacts in the British intelligence community and hands over Dima's notes. Since these implicate a high-ranking decision maker in the UK, British intelligence decides to put government fixer Hector Meredith in charge of a secret semi-official investigation. Hector recruits disgraced intelligence officer Luke Weaver to handle the investigation. Luke, eager to redeem himself, makes all the necessary arrangements. Dima insists that Perry and Gail be present during his first contact with British intelligence in Paris during the 2009 Roland Garros final, so the couple travel to Paris where they again meet with Dima and his family.
After Dima signing the papers handing over his assets to a representative of "The Prince", he meets with Luke and is extracted along with his family to a safehouse in the Swiss Alps
where they wait until British intelligence insists that only Dima travel to the UK; his family will be allowed to join him later if his information proves correct. Reluctantly, Dima agrees and travels with Luke to catch the charter plane that is supposed to bring them to the UK, only to be killed as the plane explodes after take-off.
Spy fiction
Spy fiction, literature concerning the forms of espionage, was a sub-genre derived from the novel during the nineteenth century, which then evolved into a discrete genre before the First World War , when governments established modern intelligence agencies in the early twentieth century...
by the British novelist John le Carré
John le Carré
David John Moore Cornwell , who writes under the name John le Carré, is an author of espionage novels. During the 1950s and the 1960s, Cornwell worked for MI5 and MI6, and began writing novels under the pseudonym "John le Carré"...
about a Russian money launderer seeking to defect to the UK after a close friend of his had been killed by the new leadership of his own criminal brotherhood
Thief in law
Thief in law is a criminal who is respected, has authority and a high ranking status within the...
.
Plot summary
On a tennis holiday in AntiguaAntigua
Antigua , also known as Waladli, is an island in the West Indies, in the Leeward Islands in the Caribbean region, the main island of the country of Antigua and Barbuda. Antigua means "ancient" in Spanish and was named by Christopher Columbus after an icon in Seville Cathedral, Santa Maria de la...
, British university lecturer Peregrine "Perry" Makepiece and his lawyer girlfriend Gail Perkins meet mysterious Russian business oligarch
Oligarch
Oligarch may refer to:* A member of an oligarchy, a form of government* Business oligarch* Russian oligarch...
Dmitri "Dima" Vladimirovich Krasnov and his family. Dima who describes himself "the world's number one money launderer" deliberately sought contact with Perry hoping that he is a British spy or knows one, because he wants him to pass on information about his criminal activities to British intelligence in exchange for protection for himself and his family. Dima fears for his life, because "The Prince", the new leader of his criminal brotherhood, had a good friend of his and his wife murdered and wants him to come to Bern to sign over control of his money-laundering operations to him.
Back in the UK, Perry contacts a colleague with contacts in the British intelligence community and hands over Dima's notes. Since these implicate a high-ranking decision maker in the UK, British intelligence decides to put government fixer Hector Meredith in charge of a secret semi-official investigation. Hector recruits disgraced intelligence officer Luke Weaver to handle the investigation. Luke, eager to redeem himself, makes all the necessary arrangements. Dima insists that Perry and Gail be present during his first contact with British intelligence in Paris during the 2009 Roland Garros final, so the couple travel to Paris where they again meet with Dima and his family.
After Dima signing the papers handing over his assets to a representative of "The Prince", he meets with Luke and is extracted along with his family to a safehouse in the Swiss Alps
Swiss Alps
The Swiss Alps are the portion of the Alps mountain range that lies within Switzerland. Because of their central position within the entire Alpine range, they are also known as the Central Alps....
where they wait until British intelligence insists that only Dima travel to the UK; his family will be allowed to join him later if his information proves correct. Reluctantly, Dima agrees and travels with Luke to catch the charter plane that is supposed to bring them to the UK, only to be killed as the plane explodes after take-off.
Reception
New York Times reviewer Michiko Kakutani described it as "part vintage John le Carre and part Alfred Hitchcock" calling it the author's most thrilling thriller in years.External links
- John le Carré on His New Novel, Our Kind of Traitor - video interview by Democracy Now!Democracy Now!Democracy Now! and its staff have received several journalism awards, including the Gracie Award from American Women in Radio & Television; the George Polk Award for its 1998 radio documentary Drilling and Killing: Chevron and Nigeria's Oil Dictatorship, on the Chevron Corporation and the deaths of...
- Book review by The Independent's literary editor, Boyd Tonkin
- Book review by The Telegraph's literary editor, James Naughtie
- Book review by The Scotsman's literary editor, Ian Campbell
- Book review by The Guardians's literary editor, Christopher Tayler