Set in Britain in early 1944, it tells the story of the 220th Fighter Group of the US Eighth Air Force in the lead up to the Allied invasion of Europe.

The central storyline revolves around a love affair between a new pilot, Captain James Farebrother, and an English girl, Victoria Cooper.

The New York Times review suggested that the novel successfully evoked wartime Britain, and featured Deighton's trademark technical and operational details of the P-51 Mustang fighter which the Group flies.

It described the aerial scenes as few and brief but powerfully capturing the terror and excitement of bomber escort missions over Germany.

Mcleish also stating that "for the general reader, Goodbye Mickey Mouse" is not Deighton's most appealing novel, "though it would repay the effort required to read it.