Paper Chase

The four old spies are long past any James Bond-style exploits; in fact, they never truly had those moments, having spent their days mostly behind desks. These days they meet up at the funerals of former colleagues, after which they typically enjoy an hour or two complaining about the relaxation of standards at Britain’s security services. The latest indignity: the Director has recently sent round a most discourteous directive that the four are under no circumstances to consider writing their memoirs. Well, they are not to be ordered about like some band of errand boys! They served their country with honor, and the country has the right to know it. In fact, the country ought to know it. In fact, if you think about it, publishing their memoirs is not merely a right—to which they are perfectly entitled, no matter what the Director says—it’s more by way of a patriotic duty. Unfortunately, the Director doesn’t see it quite that way. Satire, a dash of espionage, and the affectionately drawn comedic quartet at the center of the novel combine to make Cook's Paper Chase a truly pleasurable read, with the outrageous memoir-in-progress providing genuine laugh-out-loud moments.