Steve Cavanagh Popular Books
Steve Cavanagh Biography & Facts
The Honourable Schoolboy (1977) is a spy novel by British writer John le Carré. George Smiley must reconstruct an intelligence service in order to run a successful offensive espionage operation to save the service from being dismantled by the government. In 1977, the book won the Gold Dagger award for the best crime novel of the year and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. The Honourable Schoolboy is the second novel in the omnibus titled either Smiley Versus Karla or The Quest for Karla. Chronology This is the sixth le Carré spy novel featuring George Smiley. Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, The Honourable Schoolboy and Smiley's People were later published as an omnibus edition titled Smiley Versus Karla in 1982. Plot In 1974 George Smiley, the chief of the British secret intelligence service referred to as The Circus, is repairing the damage done to their operations by double agent Bill Haydon and looking for opportunities to target Karla, the Moscow Centre spymaster. The Circus is operating in a minimal way with most of its overseas facilities closed, its agents withdrawn and its operations under close political supervision. Smiley and analysts Connie Sachs and Doc di Salis look into investigations suppressed by Haydon and find that a historic investigation of a money laundering operation in Laos by Sam Collins could indicate a Moscow intelligence operation. Through code and contacts already in Southeast Asia, Smiley dispatches Jerry Westerby, a newspaper reporter in Tuscany and occasional Circus operative, to Hong Kong under the guise of a sports journalist. Westerby traces the Soviet money to Drake Ko, a local businessman with links to both the criminal underworld and the British establishment. London establishes that Drake has a brother, Nelson, who is a high-ranking Chinese official and who has been spying on the Chinese for the Soviets. Westerby, following up leads provided by Smiley in London, interviews Drake's English mistress Lizzie Worthington; undercover, Smiley had interviewed both her parents and the husband she had walked out on. Westerby discovers that Drake has been attempting to set up an illicit air route into China. Charlie Marshall and Tiny Ricardo (both pilots and smugglers) were approached by Drake to carry opium into China and return with a package. The flights were never completed, and Smiley surmises that the package was Nelson, who wished to defect from China. The money supplied by Moscow to Drake was intended for Nelson, to be accessed after he left China. Sam Collins, who had previously employed Lizzie in Laos as a minor field agent, is brought back into the Circus. Peter Guillam, Smiley's right-hand man, is suspicious of Collins, especially when he discovers Collins has been having extended meetings with Saul Enderby of the Foreign Office and Oliver Lacon, the permanent Cabinet secretary currently overseeing the Circus for the government. It is Enderby and Lacon who are supplying Smiley with the permissions and funds to run Westerby in Asia. Nelson would be a prime intelligence source on both Soviet and Chinese capabilities, but political maneuverings between London and Washington hamper the investigation. It is finally agreed that the Circus will run the operation to capture Nelson and interrogate him afterwards, with all information shared with the United States. However, the Circus is given a limited time to carry out the operation and if Nelson is not captured by the time limit set, Drake Ko will be arrested and handed over to the US to face drug-related charges. Smiley instructs Westerby to become more proactive in his investigations, referred to as "shaking the tree," to force Drake into moving forward more quickly with his plans to extract Nelson. Frost, the banker from whom Westerby had acquired Ko's identity, is brutally murdered; Westerby and his Hong Kong colleague Luke are shown the mutilated body. Westerby travels on his own in and out of war-torn Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand searching for Ricardo, who he eventually finds. Ricardo says he had been told Westerby was dead; Westerby ignores this and convinces Ricardo that he knows enough about Drake's attempts to bring opium into China to, under his sports writer's cover, blackmail Drake with Ricardo's help. Ricardo agrees but then tries to kill him with a car bomb as Westerby leaves his compound. On his return to Hong Kong, Westerby finds Luke murdered in his apartment; Drake's right-hand man, Tiu, has confused the two Westerners and murdered the wrong journalist. Westerby becomes increasingly stressed, guilty over Luke's death, and begins to romantically obsess over Lizzie. Collins is instructed to blackmail Lizzie into bugging and informing on Drake. The Circus now has enough information to predict Drake's plan, which replicates his own escape from China decades earlier via sea. Westerby ignores orders to return to London and contacts Lizzie to profess his love. Smiley, along with Guillam and Circus and CIA operatives, arrive in Hong Kong to oversee the final stages of the operation. Smiley and Guillam catch Westerby at Lizzie's apartment, where Smiley has come to question Lizzie personally about Drake's plans. Smiley sends Guillam and body-man Fawn with Westerby to force him to board a plane out of Hong Kong, but Westerby assaults them viciously and escapes. He then abducts Lizzie and, through questioning her, realizes Drake's plan. He and Lizzie travel to the island where Drake will meet with Nelson, and Westerby sends Lizzie back, arranging a time and place to meet with her that evening to escape the country. Alone and watchful, Westerby reaches the rendezvous point where Drake intends to meet his brother. Westerby almost kills Tiu, and warns Drake of Smiley's plans in an effort to make a deal which would protect Lizzie from reprisal. But Nelson is already approaching, and Drake cares about nothing but being reunited with his brother. At their appointed meeting place on the beach, CIA forces seize Nelson and Westerby is killed by Fawn. In the aftermath, it is revealed that the British government (Lacon, Collins and Enderby) have made a deal behind the scenes where the CIA will interrogate Nelson alone, freezing out Smiley and the Circus. The success of the operation yields top promotions for Enderby, who becomes Chief, and Collins, who becomes Head of Operations. Smiley and Connie Sachs are retired and most of the older generation of Circus personnel are moved on, even as Smiley is revered within the Circus for getting the agency back in the government's favor. In the aftermath of the debacle, Guillam contemplates the possibility that Smiley allowed the CIA to gain the upper hand so as to have himself removed as head of the Circus. Characters The Circus The Hon. Jerry Westerby — a reporter and retired secret agent George Smiley — (temporary) chief of the Circus Peter Guillam — Circus "cup-bearer" to Smiley Fawn – Hardman Scalphunter and Smiley's bodyguard C.... Discover the Steve Cavanagh popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Steve Cavanagh books.
Best Seller Steve Cavanagh Books of 2024
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The Mercy Chair
M W CravenAre you sitting comfortably? Then I'll begin . . .Washington Poe has a story to tell.And he needs you to listen.You'll hear how it started with the robber birds. Crows. Dozens of t...
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Passenger List
John Dryden'A first class, edgeofyourseat thriller. Fastpaced, flawlessly executed and hugely entertaining, it'll leave you breathless.' Sara LotzA missing plane.A cabin full of suspects.One...
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Alistair MacLean Arctic Chillers 4-Book Collection
Alistair MacleanFour classic tales of adventure in the frozen north, from the master of action and suspense, available for the first time in this ebundle.Discover why Alistair MacLean was the most...
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Watch Him Die
Craig RobertsonNOMINATED FOR THE McILVANNEY PRIZE 2020 FOR SCOTTISH CRIME BOOK OF THE YEAR 'Truly difficult to put down’ Daily Mail 'Highconcept plot keeps the 'tecs and the ...
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The Lonely Sea
Alistair MacleanA collection of riveting tales of the sea including the story that launched his writing career and the account of the epic battle to sink the German battle ship, Bismarck.THE MASTE...
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Severed
Simon KernickAn unputdownable, edgeofyourseat thriller full of twists and turns from Sunday Times bestselling author Simon Kernick the UK's answer to Harlan Coben. Guaranteed to keep you gripp...
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The Final Minute
Simon KernickSimon Kernick, the UK's answer to Harlan Coben, has written a thriller jampacked withaction, tension and twists and turns. A heartstopping read from page one, this is perfect for f...
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Target
Simon KernickSunday Times bestselling author Simon Kernick, the UK's answer to Harlan Coben, brings us this spinetingling, compelling and captivating thriller that you won't be able to put down...
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The Buried
Sharon BoltonAN OLD ENEMY IS LAID TO REST . . . AND A NEW CRIME IS DISCOVEREDFlorence Lovelady, the most senior serving policewoman in Britain, visits convicted serial killer Larry Glassbrook i...
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The Memory Wood
Sam LloydTHE MUSTREAD RICHARD & JUDY BOOK CLUB PICK. Chilling, moving and unputdownable, The Memory Wood is a thriller like no other. 'Beautifully told, with two superbly drawn young pr...
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The Guns of Navarone
Alistair MacleanThe classic World War II thriller from the acclaimed master of action and suspense.The guns of Navarone, huge and catastrophically accurate, embedded atop an impregnable iron fortr...
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Where Eagles Dare
Alistair MacleanThe classic World War II thriller from the acclaimed master of action and suspense.Winter 1943, and US General Carnaby has been captured by the Nazis. He is being held in a fortres...
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Athabasca
Alistair MacleanThe nailbiting tale of sabotage set in the desolate frozen wastes of two icebound oil fields, from the acclaimed master of action and suspense.SABOTAGE!THE VICTIMSTwo of the most i...
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The Payback
Simon KernickA gripping thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat from Sunday Times bestselling author Simon Kernick, the UK's answer to Harlan Coben."Pace, pace pace is what Kernick...
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The Golden Rendezvous
Alistair MacleanA timeless classic of modernday piracy from the acclaimed master of action and suspense.Aboard the SS Campari, all is not well.For Johnny Carter, the Chief Officer, the voyage has ...
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Redemption
Will JordanIntroducing Ryan Drake think Jason Bourne meets Jack Reacher...If you like Lee Child, Vince Flynn and David Baldacci, you will love this riveting and unputdownable thriller from b...
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Sacrifice
Will JordanLet bestselling author Will Jordan take you on a breakneck speed ride with CIA agent Ryan Drake in this compelling and unmissable thriller. Fans of Lee Child, Vince Flynn and David...
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The Night Train
Sharon BoltonReturn to the worlds of The Craftsman and Lacey Flint in this first short story collection from Sharon Bolton, International awardwinning author of The Split. This collection featu...
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33 Women
Isabel Ashdown'With atmosphere and surprises aplenty, this will keep you gripped.' Heat Magazine'Ingenious thriller' Sunday TimesWhen sisters Celine and Pip get a call telling them their reclusi...
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In the Blood
Margaret KirkThe bloated remains of a man are discovered bound to a derelict pier in Orkney and newly promoted DCI Lukas Mahler dispatches a team to investigate. But when the body is identified...
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Dirty Little Lies
John MackenThis compelling and gripping novel by bestselling author John Macken takes the forensic thriller to the next level. Perfect for fans of Kathy Reichs, Karin Slaughter and Patricia C...
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San Andreas
Alistair MacleanAnother magnificent tale of treachery at sea from a storytelling genius.Suddenly, just before dawn, the lights went out aboard the San Andreas. For the British hospital ship sailin...
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Fear is the Key
Alistair MacleanA classic novel of ruthless revenge set in the steel jungle of an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico – and on the sea bed below it.A sunken DC3 lying on the Caribbean floor. Its cargo: ...
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Goodbye California
Alistair MacleanThe classic tale of terrorism, where a criminal fanatic is hellbent on blasting San Francisco into the ocean, from the acclaimed master of action and suspense.'Earthquake country,'...
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Cold Grave
Craig Robertson'Robertson is doing for Glasgow what Rankin did for Edinburgh' Mirror1993. Scotland is in the grip of an icecold winter and the Lake of Menteith is frozen over. A young man and wom...
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A Gift for Dying
M. J. ArlidgeThe totally gripping psychological thriller, from the millioncopy bestselling author of the Helen Grace series. 'The perfect psychological thriller' 5 Reader Review Nothing surpri...
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Partisans
Alistair MacleanIn wartime, people are either friends or enemies. In wartime, friends are friends and enemies die…PARTISANSWhile Tito’s rebel forces resist occupation, the Germans infiltrate and p...
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The Woman on the Bridge
Holly Seddon'Strangers On A Train meets The Pact in this high concept thriller: daring, dramatic and totally original, I loved it.' Gillian McAllisterHow far would you go to save a perfect str...
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The Way to Dusty Death
Alistair MacleanThe classic tale of highoctane adventure set in the world of 1970s Formula One, from the acclaimed master of action and suspense.Johnny Harlow seems to have it all: he's good looki...
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A Demon in My View
Ruth RendellArthur Johnson doesn't look like a murderous psychopath; he is a mildmannered man who has never known how to talk to women. Years of loneliness has warped his mind, turning his des...
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The Embalmer
Alison BelshamHas the ancient Egyptian cult of immortality resurfaced in Brighton?When a freshlymummified body is discovered at the Brighton Museum of Natural History, Detective Francis Sullivan...
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Circus
Alistair MacleanThe classic tale of espionage set in Cold War Europe, where the world’s greatest circus acrobat must break into an impenetrable fortress, from the acclaimed master of action and su...
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The Truth
Peter James20TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION WITH A NEW INTRODUCTION FROM THE AUTHORA thrilling tale of suspense from the bestselling author of the Roy Grace series.'Britain's answer to Stephen King a...
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Deadline
Simon KernickA captivating and taut thriller that will leave you holding your breath, from Sunday Times bestselling author Simon Kernick, the UK's answer to Harlan Coben.'The next time I see Si...
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Die Alone
Simon KernickHold on tight Sunday Times bestselling author Simon Kernick the UK's answer to Harlan Coben has done it again. This is a noholdsbarred, pulsepounding thriller which will have yo...
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Ice Station Zebra
Alistair MacleanA classic thriller from the bestselling master of action and suspense.The atomic submarine Dolphin has impossible orders: to sail beneath the ice floes of the Arctic Ocean, and som...
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HMS Ulysses
Alistair MacleanThe novel that launched the astonishing career of one of the 20th century’s greatest writers of action and suspense – an acclaimed classic of heroism and the sea in World War II.Co...
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Floodgate
Alistair MacleanThe tense tale of a deadly terrorist plot set in Holland, from the acclaimed master of action and suspense.AMSTERDAM AIRPORT HAS DISAPPEAREDBLACKMAILThe mass of water in its place ...
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The Hit List
Holly SeddonWhat would you do if you found your own name on a hit list? Seddon addresses this terrifying question in an explosive novel. One of the most exciting, brave and clever books I have...
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The Cut
Christopher BrookmyreA BBC Radio 2 Book Club pick'Strikingly original and definitively Brookmyre there's nothing he can't do'Mick Herron'I recommend The Cut SO HIGHLY! A fastpaced thriller, lovely cha...
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Seawitch
Alistair MacleanThe tale of murder and revenge set on a remote oil rig, from the acclaimed master of action and suspense.SEAWITCHThe massive oilrig is the hub of a great empire, the pride of its b...
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Betrayal
Will JordanIf you are looking for an adrenalinfuelled, bloodpumping, breakneck speed thriller then look no further than Will Jordan's third novel featuring British CIA agent Ryan Drake. Compe...
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The Hanged Man
Simon KernickFans of David Baldacci, Stuart MacBride and Peter James will devour this intensely addictive and adrenalinfuelled thriller from Sunday Times bestselling author Simon Kernick the U...
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Kill Me Once
Jon OsborneNathan Stiedowe is seeking perfection and he has been learning from the best. Recreating some of the most sickening murders in history, his objective appears chillingly simple, bu...
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Past Life
Dominic NolanHOW DO YOU SOLVE A CRIME YOU CAN'T REMEMBER?'BEAUTIFULLY WRITTEN' DAILY MAIL'ONE HELL OF A DEBUT' HEAT'A GREAT STORY TOLD WITH REAL POISE' SIMON KERNICK, SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER'GR...
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Alistair MacLean Sea Thrillers 4-Book Collection
Alistair MacleanFour classic tales of adventure at sea, from the master of action and suspense, available for the first time in this ebundle.Discover why Alistair MacLean was the most popular thri...
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The Witness
Simon KernickThis engrossing and unputdownable fastpaced thriller from Sunday Times bestselling author Simon Kernick, the UK's answer to Harlan Coben, is perfect for fans of David Baldacci, Stu...
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The Imposter
Leona DeakinHe doesn't just want your identity. He wants your life...No one sees him coming.A stockmarket trader is pushed from a highrise balcony and falls to his death on the street below. T...
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When I Lost You
Merilyn DaviesFormer Crime Analyst Merilyn Davies brings to life a gritty, heartstopping crime thriller that will have you utterly obsessed.'Assured, fresh, engrossing' MEL SHERRATT'Taut, authen...