The Night Manager by John le Carrè

A spy story. Jonathan Pine, a loner who grew up in orphanages and foster homes, leaves the Army and becomes a chef and hotelier. He gets attached to a woman but only after he had already betrayed her. Because of his actions she dies. When he meets the weapons dealer who did it, he volunteers to become a spy in the household. As the crucial element in his employers plans, he becomes the victim of corruption and betrayal at the highest level. In the end the crook goes free, but the spy and his woman escapes through the loyalty of his handler.