But when it came to the war in Iraq, le Carre (the pen name of David Cornwell) made no secret of his fierce opposition. He marched in protests, wrote anti-war essays and finished his 19th novel, "Absolute Friends."

It's driven by the premise that British and U.S. leaders conspired and lied about the need to go to war.

From his home in London, le Carre says the character he most identifies with is a disillusioned British spy who says near the end of the novel: "Lying for one's country is a noble profession as long as one knows what the truth is, but alas I don't anymore."

The novel, told mostly in a flashback that spans more than 30 years, deals more with double agents in Cold War Germany than with Iraq.

But le Carre says it would not have been finished had President Bush and British Prime Minister Tony Blair not invaded with little international support.

Le Carre, 72, began the novel three years ago, imagining a new wave of Euro-terrorism, inspired by the violent anti-globalization protests in Seattle and Genoa. But after the Sept. 11 attacks, he thought the novel was "sunk," torpedoed by reality.

Le Carre, who notes he has nine American grandchildren, says he "felt tremendous sympathy for Americans, especially New Yorkers." He "reluctantly supported" the war in Afghanistan to get rid of the Taliban and as a "necessary blood sacrifice."

But as the United States and Britain moved toward a pre-emptive war in Iraq, he was inspired to revive his "nasty little story" about betrayal and conspiracy.

Critics tend to love it or hate it. In Britain, where it was published last month, le Carre calls the reception "comic." He says, "Predictably, the dogs barked. And predictably, the angels sang. The right wing was incensed. Those who were sympathetic with its premise were sympathetic with the book itself."

The book will be published in the United States next week.