Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy book cover by John le Carré

Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy

Book 5 of George Smiley

Get this book

The store links use this book's US print edition, ISBN 9780553227253.

Where Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy sits

Series
Book 5 of George Smiley. See all George Smiley books in order
The book before
The Looking Glass War
Order checked
Last checked: September 25, 2026, against penguinrandomhouse.com

What Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy is about

The setup only, with no spoilers. Each line names the record it rests on.

  • Control, the old chief, has died, and the young men who forced him aside are now in charge of the Circus. (Library of Congress; read November 6, 2026) the young Turks who forced him out now run the Circus
  • George Smiley is not quite ready to retire when a would-be defector claims that a Soviet mole has reached the top of British intelligence. (Library of Congress; read November 6, 2026) a Soviet mole has penetrated the highest level of British Intelligence
  • With only a small, loyal team, Smiley sees that Karla, his rival in Moscow, is behind it, and sets a trap for the traitor. (Library of Congress; read November 6, 2026) Smiley recognizes the hand of Karla--his Moscow Centre nemesis

All checked facts about John le Carré

Topics in this book

A linked topic opens its page on bookslike.app, with every book on the site that shares it.

Topics

  • Cold war
  • George Smiley
  • Intelligence service

Reading ages

  • Adult

Other books in George Smiley

9 books listed so far

  1. Book 1: Call for the Dead
  2. Book 2: A Murder of Quality
  3. Book 3: The Spy Who Came in from the Cold
  4. Book 4: The Looking Glass War
  5. Book 6: The Honourable Schoolboy
  6. Book 7: Smiley's People
  7. Book 8: The Secret Pilgrim
  8. Book 9: A Legacy of Spies

Report a mistake

Common questions

What order should I read a series in?

Start with publication order, the order the books first came out. When a series also has a story order that differs, the series page shows both and says why, so you can choose.

Which book should I start with?

Look for the Start here marker. It sits on the first book of the main list, unless the author's own page recommends a different first book, and the reason is printed beside it. It is not a ranking or a review.

What if an order looks wrong?

Tap Report a problem under the list and say which book looks out of place. No account or email is needed. Each report is checked against the sources, and the page is corrected if the report is right.

Does this site earn money from the links?

It can. If you buy through a store link, this site may earn a small amount. That never changes the list: which books are listed, their order, and the fixed order of the store buttons stay the same.

Where do these facts come from?

One page shows the sources and how the facts are checked.

All 11 questions