Reading in June 2016

In June, I read six books, all of them crime fiction.

• The Honourable Schoolboy by John le Carré
• The Seven Dials Mystery by Agatha Christie
• Some Buried Caesar by Rex Stout
• A Perfect Spy by John le Carré
• Murder Among Friends by Elizabeth Ferrars
• An American Spy by Olen Steinhauer

There is no way I could pick a favorite book this month. I read three books that I regarded as excellent books: A Perfect Spy, Some Buried Caesar, and An American Spy. The authors of those books, John le Carré, Rex Stout, and Olen Steinhauer respectively, are among my favorite authors. The other three books were also very enjoyable reads. I rarely consider a book I have read to be a clunker, but sometimes there are books that just are not my thing. Not this month. A wonderful month of reading.

I continue to read mostly spy fiction. The Honourable Schoolboy by le Carré is one of the Smiley novels. A Perfect Spy and The American Spy are both obviously spy novels, and The Seven Dials Mystery is a lighter version of the espionage fiction genre.

An American Spy is the third book in a trilogy by Olen Steinhauer, and I waited nearly two years to finish this series. Milo Weaver works for the CIA, in the Department of Tourism. "Tourists" are described as undercover agents with no identity and no home. Milo is not the James Bond type, although there are plenty of thrilling escapades and violence. But we see the other side of this spy's life, the family he wishes he could spend more time with. I did enjoy picking up on Milo Weaver's adventures again. The first book in the trilogy is The Tourist, the second is The Nearest Exit.