The Ipcress File

A high-ranking scientist has been kidnapped, and a secret
British intelligence agency has just recruited Deighton's iconic unnamed
protagonist--later christened Harry Palmer--to find out why. His search begins in
a grimy Soho club and brings him to the other side of the world. When he ends
up amongst the Soviets in Beirut, what seemed a straightforward mission turns
into something far more sinister.

With its sardonic, cool, working-class hero, Len Deighton's
sensational debut and first bestseller The IPCRESS File broke the mold
of thriller writing and became the defining novel of 1960s London.