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The Innocent
The Innocent | Ian McEwan
12 posts | 18 read | 20 to read
The setting is Berlin. Into this divided city, wrenched between East and West, between past and present; comes twenty-five-year-old Leonard Marnham, assigned to a British-American surveillance team. Though only a pawn in an international plot that is never fully revealed to him, Leonard uses his secret work to escape the bonds of his ordinary life -- and to lose his unwanted innocence. The promise of his new life begins to be fulfilled as Leonard becomes a crucial part of the surveillance team, while simultaneously being initiated into a new world of love and sex by Maria, a beautiful young German woman. It is a promise that turns to horror in the course of one terrible evening -- a night when Leonard Marnham learns just how much of his innocence he's willing to shed.
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CaffeineAndCandy
The Innocent | Ian McEwan
Mehso-so

ᴛʜᴇ ʙᴏᴏᴋ ʙᴇɢɪɴs ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴀ ʏᴏᴜɴɢ ᴍᴀɴ ᴡʜᴏ ɪs ᴡᴏʀᴋɪɴɢ ᴏɴ ᴀ sᴇᴄʀᴇᴛ ɢᴏᴠᴇʀɴᴍᴇɴᴛ ᴘʀᴏᴊᴇᴄᴛ ɪɴ ʙᴇʀʟɪɴ. ʜᴇ ғᴀʟʟs ɪɴ ʟᴏᴠᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ᴛʜɪɴɢs ᴛᴀᴋᴇ ᴀ ɢʀᴜᴇsᴏᴍᴇ ᴀɴᴅ ᴜɴᴇxᴘᴇᴄᴛᴇᴅ ᴛᴜʀɴ ғᴏʀ ʜɪᴍ ᴀɴᴅ ʜɪs ʙᴇʟᴏᴠᴇᴅ. ᴀɴ ɪɴᴛᴇʀᴇsᴛɪɴɢ ᴀɴᴅ sᴜʀᴘʀɪsɪɴɢ ʀᴇᴀᴅ. 🌟🌟🌟 ʙᴏᴏᴋ 6 ғᴏʀ #CrushTheRush ʙᴏᴏᴋ 4 ғᴏʀ #NovelNovember

CaffeineAndCandy @Kelly_the_Bookish_Sidekick ᴛʜᴀɴᴋ ʏᴏᴜ!😊😊 4y
41 likes2 comments
review
Villo
Lettera a Berlino | Ian McEwan
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Pickpick

Nice story, the kind I like, with a lot of references to history and time. #2020

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EadieB
Innocent | Ian McEwan
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Day 12 - #SurpriseEnding #JamminJune
#TheInnocent #IanMcEwan

Read and enjoyed this in May and the ending was a real surprise!

Eggs Sounds exciting!! 4y
EadieB @Eggs It is a good read! 4y
46 likes2 comments
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EadieB
The Innocent | Ian McEwan
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Pickpick

Mid 1950‘s Berlin. 25 year-old Leonard Markham is assigned to a British-American surveillance team. He meets Maria, a beautiful young German woman, who initiates him into a new world of love and sex. It turns to horror in one terrible evening - a night Leonard learns just how much of his innocence he‘s willing to shed. This is definitely my favorite McEwan book. The ending is a surprise you won‘t forget! Not to be missed!

Cuilin Have not read that one. Sounds great. 4y
EadieB @Cuilin Good one for sure! 4y
Cuilin @EadieB I‘ve read many of his books but this one I had not come across. It‘s on Mount TBR. (edited) 4y
46 likes4 stack adds3 comments
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KarenUK
The Innocent | Ian McEwan
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#bookmail 📬I‘m loving the simple design of these Vintage McEwan covers... I think I may start to collect these beauties! I hear this is one of his best..... 🤞📚💕

TheEllieMo Ooh, nice, I‘ve not seen these. I‘m currently in a Waterstones café. I guess I‘ll be heading for the M section on the fiction shelves very soon..... 5y
KarenUK @TheEllieMo They are so pretty! And very jealous! Waterstones is one of the things I miss terribly about the UK.... 5y
MicheleinPhilly That is GORGEOUS. 😍 5y
57 likes1 stack add3 comments
review
Pruzy
The Innocent | Ian McEwan
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Pickpick

The Innocent is about a man who is part of an effort to burrow into east Berlin to tap Russian phone lines. As you might expect from that description, the novel takes place in the mid 1950s. In typical McEwan fashion there is a strong, but fraught, love element involved. While not my favourite McEwan novel, the ending is perfect and is what I am looking for when reading McEwan. If you‘re a fan of On Chesil Beach or Sweet Tooth, read this.

Libby1 I‘ve only read The Children Act and Nutshell so far. It seems I have a whole world yet to explore with McEwan. Which is your favourite? 7y
Pruzy @Libby1 I really enjoyed Sweet Tooth. It‘s the quintessential McEwan novel in my opinion 7y
75 likes4 stack adds2 comments
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Pruzy
The Innocent | Ian McEwan
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Next up is The Innocent by Ian McEwan. A post-WWII spy novel set in Berlin? Sign me up!

75 likes3 stack adds
review
Anna40
The Innocent | Ian McEwan
Mehso-so

The plot leads you down one path and then takes a completely unexpected turn. After that I could not care less about the main characters or their fate. The letter and the reaction to it did not make sense to me. I can see why this book got great reviews and I enjoyed the first half of it too in particular the writing but on the whole it does not work for me.

3 likes1 stack add
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sofiaga
The Innocent | Ian McEwan
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Today's finds.

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Howardsimmons
The Innocent | Ian McEwan
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Pickpick

McEwan has long been one of my favorite writers. I'd put off reading this one because spy stories aren't my usual thing, but The Innocent is full of surprises, including an ending that had me trying not to cry on the train tonight.

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Howardsimmons
The Innocent | Ian McEwan
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I love when a book can make you gasp with surprise.