Spy fiction

The best spies remain in the shadows, but the best spy novels draw out their secrets. For classic spy fiction turn to masters of the genre, including John le Carré and his final novel Silverview, The Ipcress File author Len Deighton, and Eric Ambler, author of The Mask of Dimitrios. For modern thrillers, try James Patterson, Frank Gardner’s Outbreak and Terry Hayes’ I Am Pilgrim, and if you’re after historical fiction, Robert Harris has to be top of the list.