Rating: 4/5
Review:
Still very good
The Ipcress File has
aged remarkably well. It was first published in 1962 but I’d not
read it before (although I thought I had!) and I was pleasantly
surprised at the quality of the writing, the excellent sense of
place, especially in London, and the laconic but quite realistic
tone.
The Ipcress File a
spy novel which is often bracketed with Ian Fleming and John le Carré
and which seems to me to be something of a bridge between them, both
chronologically and in style and content. Much more down-to-earth
and realistic than Fleming (who had been producing Bond novels for
almost a decade by then) but not as grimly downbeat as The Spy Who
came In From The Cold which followed it three years later, it’s a
very good read. The plot just about holds water, although I did get
a little lost at times. It also depends too much on lengthy
explanations at the end, but I didn’t mind too much because the
prose is great and the unnamed narrator’s laconic style is just
right; it’s believable and witty without being crammed with
implausibly smart wisecracks and comebacks and I found it a pleasure
to read.
“Classic” modern
novels don’t always live up to their billing when read half a
century later, but I think The Ipcress File stands up well. I
enjoyed it and can recommend it warmly.
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