In part this is due to the exotic locations that form the background of the drama, as in the successful literary spy franchises as James Bond and Jason Bourne. Indeed, this been the case from the earliest days of the Imperial adventure fantasies of John Buchan and ‘Sapper’ to the ‘gentleman spy’ stories of Somerset Maughan and Ian Fleming.Even in the inter-war years, when spy novels, such as those of written by Eric Ambler and Graham Greene, took on a darker tone, frightened protagonists found themselves pursued by violent forces against a swirling backdrop of European locations, many negotiating the totalitarian ideological struggles that defined the period – chiefly Fascist Italy and Nazis Germany.
The emergence of the Cold War and a global ideological struggle between liberal democracy and Soviet-style Communism afforded writers like Len Deighton and John le Carré to set their novels in almost any country in the world. It was a trend that was to survive into the modern post-911 age with the War on Terror.
Most importantly for the novelists themselves, setting helps to enhance the drama of the narrative. By planting characters in ‘foreign’ or unfamiliar environments novelists can highlight the isolation or vulnerable nature of their characters who have to perform a dangerous task often with minimum support in usually hostile environments.
Moreover, setting could also be used as a foil for the profession of spying itself. Exotic and dazzling locations could heighten the sense of excitement and adventure, as in the work of Fleming and Buchan. However, in those of Deighton and Ambler, the glittering, exotic draw of far-flung destinations come to symbolise the mythical, illusory promise of excitement and adventure that the profession of spying offers and the grim, seedy reality that exists just beyond the smoke and mirrors.
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In partnership with author Sarah Baxter, we launched the Inntravel Book Club. After all, travel and literature make a perfect pair; both are gateways to understanding the world.