Nick Harkaway steps into his father John le Carré’s footsteps with spy thriller ‘Karla’s Choice’

Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — Fictional spymaster George Smiley is back. And so, somewhat surprisingly, is his creator, John le Carré. Four years after the spy writer’s death at the age of 89, comes a new thriller, “Karla’s Choice.” It was written by Nick Harkaway, whose qualifications include seven published novels, a lifetime of reading le Carré — and the fact he is the late author’s son. Harkaway says he was “terrified” about stepping into his father’s world. But he’s relaxed a bit now that the book has been published to largely glowing reviews. And he says that, although writing the book came with elements of grief, it was “still a joyful process.”