It is brilliantly written and the ending is truly a surprise to the most cynical and hard to please reader. Charlie is scruffy, no tact, who is treated with derision and contempt by colleagues. He refuses to cooperate in his own demise and downfall. Charlie is a survivor. When a high ranking KGB general hints at defection at an embassy party in Moscow, a competition emerges between the Brits and the CIA to secure the defector for debriefing. After 2 novice British agents fail their mission, the director reluctantly sends the cynical unwanted Muffin to Moscow to secure the plans for the defection. A highly entertaining and fast moving story with a surprise ending is the result of this charming 1st in a long and succesful series. After Bill Granger's Deveroux.