In his twentieth novel, John le Carré returns to Africa with a new tale of mystery and corruption that bears the hallmarks of classic le Carré storytelling. By turns thriller, romance, and exposé of post-colonial politics, The Mission Song chronicles interpreter Bruno Salvador’s journey into the darkness of Western hypocrisy and deceit. Born to a Congolese mother and an Irish–French father and educated in Britain, “Salvo” is the faithful servant eager to play his minor part in brokering a deal that would ostensibly bring peace and prosperity to the resource-rich but ravaged Congo. But Salvo finds himself both hunter and prey when he stumbles into a carefully plotted swindle that will only further devastate his birthplace.