Teaser Tuesday: The Spy Who Came in from the Cold

Like the opposite side of a hurricane, the Wheel of Time has turned ’round to Teaser Tuesday (albeit much less destructive . . . I hope).

Just in case you don’t know, Teaser Tuesday is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by Books and a Beat. Anyone can play along! All you have to do is grab the book you’re currently reading, open to a random page and share a few sentences from that page. But make sure you don’t share any spoilers!*

*I wish I could take credit for this introduction, but I shamelessly stole it from Heather over at bitsnbooks. To help me make amends, you should go check out her blog.

Inspired by that same Heather, I’ve decided to read John Le Carré’s George Smiley mystery/thriller novels. I know I’m a little bit out of reading order, but I’ve begun with The Spy Who Came in from the Cold.

The Goodreads’ Blurb

In the shadow of the newly erected Berlin Wall, Alec Leamas watches as his last agent is shot dead by East German sentries. For Leamas, the head of Berlin Station, the Cold War is over. As he faces the prospect of retirement or worse—a desk job—Control offers him a unique opportunity for revenge. Assuming the guise of an embittered and dissolute ex-agent, Leamas is set up to trap Mundt, the deputy director of the East German Intelligence Service—with himself as the bait. In the background is George Smiley, ready to make the game play out just as Control wants.

Setting a standard that has never been surpassed, The Spy Who Came in from the Cold is a devastating tale of duplicity and espionage

 

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The Truly Random Number Generator sends us to page 110.

"They're taking no chances," Leamas observed to Peters, "what do they think I am?"
"They are not paid to think," Peters replied, and turning to one of them he asked in German:
"Is he coming?"

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In Retrospect: Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children

I picked up this book for two reasons: the cover intrigued me and I heard Tim Burton would be directing the film version. Then, it sat on my shelf while I read other things.

Now, I’m kicking myself for waiting so long. This may be one of the best contemporary YA books I’ve read. Forget the dystopia of the Hunger Games (aka “Future Rome”) or the supernatural romance of Twilight (unconvincing retelling of Romeo & Juliet) – this is the book that should be on every teen’s shelf; and, I’ll admit, adults will find it intriguing as well – at least, I did.

[Possible Spoilers Ahead]

Riggs spins a unique tale of Peculiar Children – a different age might have called them freaks – and their guardians. Kept safe in loops technically existing outside of time, they live a sheltered existence from the world that would (likely) institutionalize or experiment with them, and from the monsters that would hunt them. Bet you thought Tunguska was a natural event, didn’t you?

While finding ways to cope with his grandfather’s death, Jake find himself in Miss Peregrine’s loop and discovers his grandfather’s stories about WWII monsters weren’t just euphemisms for Nazis.

Dealing with grief, family, and choice, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children is a teen must-read and would provide some pleasant escape for older readers, too.

4 stars = I really liked it

What are you reading today?