The Innocent

The Innocent by Ian McEwan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

My feelings about this book changed many times during reading it. 2 1/2 is preferred rating.
Firstly I felt strong interest in the the spy story and complicated relations between British and US intelligence.
Then I got strongly bored with lengthy details of work progress, topography of Berlin etc.
Then my interest grew with introduction of a love affair. It was somehow tempered when elements of cruelty appeared in the story. I related them to other such cases in earlier books of this author - Cement Garden, Comfort of Strangers.
Additionally it looked like author did not know how to continue the story.
He resorted to cruelty again. I found it sometimes amusing, but also disgusting.
Finally the plot takes dramatic turn which I found quite smart, but all this was somehow wasted by the quite lackluster Postscript.

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