May 2018 – Lee J. Russell, Author

… but not every “le Carré” is a good “le Carré”…

As much as I enjoyed le Carré stories I shared in my first post, I have to say that I have very mixed feelings about “The Night Manager”. It started well and I had high hopes that I was about to be entertained with a masterpiece of observational writing. I have stayed at many hotelsContinue reading “… but not every “le Carré” is a good “le Carré”…”

Are “Ghost in the Shell” and “Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex” the perfect anime?

I’m not an expert on manga and anime, but there is something captivating about both of these stories. They are set in the fictional mid-21st Century Japanese city of Niihama, where a law enforcement agency called ‘Public Security Section 9’ are conducting counter-terrorism operations. So far, so normal, in our modern day world. But thisContinue reading “Are “Ghost in the Shell” and “Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex” the perfect anime?”

The best place to begin? John le Carré…

There was a singular character that sucked me back into Thrillers when I started reading them in earnest last year… George Smiley, created by John le Carré. Smiley is an odd character; to me he didn’t feel directly prominent but there was something about him that stuck in the back of mind, like he wasContinue reading “The best place to begin? John le Carré…”