Ashenden: Or the British Agent

Categories: Literature & Fiction

W. Somerset Maugham drew on his own work for British intelligence during the First World War to write these linked stories about a writer turned secret agent. Ashenden is sent to Switzerland, Italy, France and Russia on missions that are more often dull, absurd or morally troubling than heroic. He watches traitors, revolutionaries and fellow agents with a cool, ironic eye. Published in 1928, the book influenced later spy writers, including Ian Fleming and John le Carré.

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• Anthony Bourdain: “I loved the stories in "Ashenden: Or the British Agent"”