Reading/Time No. 1 | February 2023 - The Book/s I Read, The Watches I Wore, Etc.

As I mentioned in my previous post, I figured I'd read a little more this year. It's a pastime that I used to partake of more in my younger years, when it seemed that I had more free time. Even once the kids came along, I still managed to get some reading done in bed before lights out. 

In recent years, though, I've fallen into the trap set by the little black rectangle, checking emails, Instagram and other non-urgent online crap before lights out.

So, I felt it might be time to get a little more mature with my nightly routine and get back to reading. 

Also, I wanted to tackle espionage fiction in particular, as it's always been a favourite genre of mine, and there are a slew of titles that I'd like to read. And, as a way of perhaps doing a little more blogging, I figured I'd write a little something about these books. I should mention that I won't concentrate too much on their plots. I'll most likely be talking more about the writing, pace and readability (in my humble op) of the books. I'm no critic, mind you, so it's more than likely just gonna read as an opinion piece.

 

So, time to get started.

                                                  - What I read in February - 

                                  In my previous post, I mentioned that I had read The Trinity Six, by Charles Cumming.  That was a nicely written book, with a plot that reminded me of something that John le Carré might have written in his later years. It should be noted that le Carré didn't solely write espionage. Very often, his main plot would have to do with the nefarious dealings of big business or government, with a main character not being part of the secret intelligence world. 

 

Next book that I read was a novella by a favourite modern spy author of mine, Mick Herron. He's been writing for twenty years, and his first couple of books were mysteries, but he hit his stride in 2010 with the release of Slow Horses, about a forgotten and neglected division of MI5 where agents who have messed up are sent to perform menial and unimportant administrative tasks, in the hopes that they'll become so bored and unfulfilled in this dead-end department that they'll hand in their resignations. 

 

They are stationed in a series of shabby offices in a building called Slough House, and the intelligence operatives at MI5 HQ in Regent's Park refer to these has-beens as the slow horses. 

Leading this rag-tag team is one Mr Jackson Lamb, complete with a steady supply of cigarettes, Scotch and insulting one-liners directed at his team, or 'Joes', as they are referred to in spy slang. He has a paunch, which strains the (probable) polyester fabric of his food-stained shirts, an unfiltered potty-mouth, and an unrestrained lack of decorum which sees him break wind in any given situation. 

James Bond he ain't.

What he is, however, is a wonderfully drawn character with a sharp mind, a former Cold Warrior who was stationed in Berlin when The Wall was still intact, and was captured by The Stasi at some point before coming back to Britain a different man. The details of this have only been hinted at in the three books I've read so far. 

Lamb seems to be playing two moves ahead of everyone else, including Diana Taverner, acting Head of MI5 and his former boss. 

The Slough House series has since been turned into two seasons of a mini-series for AppleTV. I won't say any more about it, except to say that they have been excellent, with a wonderful cast and great cinematography.

 

Getting back to the novella that I read, The Catch concerns John Bachelor, a not-very-successful former operative of MI5 who has been cut down to part-time status and farmed out to looking after retired assets in their twilight years. He basically just has to check up on them every few weeks or so, to ensure that their fridge has enough food in it and that they are living out their final years without selling whatever secrets they may still possess to the other side. 

Bachelor gets called in by HQ and is tasked with finding one of his charges, whom he hasn't checked up on in some time, like he is supposed to. It appears the old boy has gone AWOL and who knows who he could be talking to? 

It's a short book, but the characters, some of whom appear in other Slough House books in the series, are well-drawn, and John Bachelor, despite his numerous shortcomings, is a three-dimensional and sympathetic character. 

Wristwatch-wise, I wore the recently-arrived Longines Spirit. This model is 37mm in diameter and therefore sits nicely on my small wrist. This smaller size gives the impression that the watch might have been made in the 1950s or '60s, which is kind of the vibe I was going for. I came to the realisation about a year or two ago that I prefer certain styles of watches to be a certain size. That's a blog post on its own, for sure, and I'll get around to writing it at some point. This watch's size makes for a nicely understated piece, one that stays out of sight until needed.

 

The Catch was a short book, which I had finished by mid-February, so I was now ready for a book that I had bought about two years ago and had yet to read. I took a week's break and then started on All The Old Knives, written by Olen Steinhauer.

AMERICANO COCKTAIL - Bond's first drink*

Into a highball glass, add a decent amount of ice. Then pour in;

1 ounce (30ml) of Campari

1 ounce (30ml) of Sweet Vermouth (Cinzano Rosso, Martini Rosso, etc. Basically, red vermouth)

Top up with Soda Water of choice. Mineral water works just as nicely. 

Add a slice of orange. 

*Weaker, but cooler than a Negroni (IMHO), this is the first drink that we see Bond order in 1953's Casino Royale by Ian Fleming. You can bump up the measurements to 45ml each if 30ml doesn't provided enough kick. 

This is a great drink for a warm Summer afternoon. 

The Longines Spirit is also seen in the frame up above. All The Old Knives concerns two CIA operatives, who were once in a brief relationship, who reunite to discuss an old mission that went wrong. 

Henry Pelham is still with the CIA and he has arranged to have lunch with his former flame Celia Harrison (nee Favreau), who was stationed in Vienna at the time of a hijacking which ended in disaster. 

Pelham has been assigned to investigate whether or not a mole inside the Agency may have caused the failure of the hostage rescue mission, which resulted in the deaths of over 200 passengers and crew on board the plane. 

The story is told in 1st person present-tense, which I normally steer clear of, but Steinhauer's such an adept storyteller that I can forgive this aspect of the writing and was soon swept up by it. The chapters flit back and forth between Pelham's version of events and Celia Harrison's recollection of them and each chapter gives the reader little tidbits here and there without being led by the hand.

It's a nicely plotted book and for me personally, a second read of it would reveal more to me, as I think I was slightly distracted by my foot troubles while reading it. 

In saying that, it was a worthwhile read. Not a true spy story in the strictest sense, but very well written. 

And yes, this is another spy book that has ended up on screen recently, via Amazon Prime. I'll have to catch up with it someday.

 

This here is a circa 1963 Tudor Oyster, which I hadn't worn much in recent years because the seconds hand kept binding against the minute hand, resulting in the watch stopping while on the wrist. This is not actually something that you want a wristwatch to do. Kind'a defeats the purpose of a wristwatch.

The seconds hand would need to be re-positioned on the central post or it might've required some slight 're-forming' so that it would sit a little higher and, therefore, sweep over the minute hand without brushing against it. 

The watchmaker that I work with had a look at it and got it sorted out quickly. I wore it the next day and it performed like a champion. It was good to have it back on my wrist. 

My wife found this watch in a Thrift store about 20 years ago. She paid fifty bucks for it. It wasn't running, the crystal was all scratched up, the winding crown wouldn't screw down into the case the way it was supposed to. 

I then spent another $350.oo getting it serviced and fixed up. I could have sold it for four times that figure, at least, but this was the first (and only, to date) watch that my wife has ever bought me, so this aspect alone makes it a keeper. 

 

At an opposite end of the spectrum is the 2007 Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean. This watch doesn't see as much time on the wrist as it used to, most likely due to its 42mm diameter which, while it sits okay on my wrist, is probably just a tad larger than I'd prefer it to be. 

My tastes have shifted in recent years. I've been collecting watches long enough now to know what works on my wrist, what doesn't, and what my evolving preferences are. I can tell that I'm reaching that point where I know exactly what kind of watch I like, in terms of both style/type and sizing. Took me long enough!

Having said all that, whenever I do put this watch on, I fall in love with it all over again. 

Okay, that's maybe this post done and dusted. I might get started on the next one soon, which will cover the month of March.

I hope you've all been well and thanks for reading!