Bright Young Things discussion

Welcome to December's group read of Journey Into Fear. Enjoy!

The protagonist in this book is a quiet, intelligent engineer who works for an armaments company. Graham has just finished a business trip, advising the Turkish Navy, and is traveling home to England with classified information in his memory. Set around the start of World War II, someone shoots at him when he returns to his hotel room in Istanbul.

In the beginning, Graham can't believe someone would want to kill him and just thinks it's a thief. I liked that Graham was an "everyman" instead of a professional spy. The reader has access to Graham's thoughts as he tries to figure out who he can trust traveling home on an Italian freighter. The suspense builds as he tries to work things out. He's just an ordinary guy with no spy training or fancy gadgets. The tension escalates as the book goes on, and the reader wonders if he will panic.

Graham went out to dinner at the Pera Palace at the beginning of the book. It brought back memories of our nonfiction group read a few months ago, Midnight at the Pera Palace: The Birth of Modern Istanbul.

This entertaining book was a good choice for the busy month of December. Although it is 288 pages long, the print is large and there is lots of white space on the pages, so it seems much shorter. Thanks for nominating it, Judy. Edited: Sorry, as Nigeyb pointed out it was Jan who nominated this book.

Eric Ambler's spy novels were an influence on the writing of Graham Greene and John le Carré, and the films of Alfred Hitchcock.

You make it sound very enticing Connie. I'm tempted, if I can tear myself away from Bernie Gunther

Connie wrote: "Thanks for nominating it, Judy."

It was Jan...

Jan C wrote: "On the heels of the Pera Palace, I suggest Journey Into Fear by Eric Ambler. I've read this several times. It is a classic suspense story. "

Nigeyb wrote: "You make it sound very enticing Connie. I'm tempted, if I can tear myself away from Bernie Gunther

Connie wrote: "Thanks for nominating it, Judy."

It was Jan...

Jan C wrote: "On the heels of the..."

You're right, Nigeyb, it was Jan who nominated the book.
I hope you have time to read the book too.

Thanks Connie.

I am finding it hard to concentrate on much more than Philip Kerr's Bernie Gunther at the moment and want to focus on finishing the series (I'm poised to start number 9) having become addicted since reading the first one in mid-October....

http://berniegunther.com/thebooks/

The other week I did try to read another wartime detective novel but had to put it aside.

That said, I am keen to sample some Eric Ambler, so never say never....

You can't go wrong with Ambler but I have to say Journey into Fear is a distant second behind Mask of Dimitrios which is an absolutely fantastic read.

'The Mask of Dimitrios'


Roger that CQM

I think Mask of Demetrius (or is it Coffin for?) has been nominated 3-4 times by both Ivan and myself. Doesn't generally get more than a vote or two. I think Mask is the title of the movie, or is that what it is called in England?

Yes I think Mask is the English title and Coffin the American.

Anything that is published by Penguin Modern Classics instantly becomes more alluring in my mind....




'The Mask of Dimitrios' (aka 'A Coffin for Dimitrios')

Jan C wrote: "I think Mask of Demetrius (or is it Coffin for?) has been nominated 3-4 times by both Ivan and myself. Doesn't generally get more than a vote or two."
This one only got two votes as well, but they were enough to win.
I didn't vote for it, but I did read it. (It doesn't take long.) It isn't a book I would really enthuse about, but it is fairly well written and I liked that the 'hero' is not the all-action type often found in spy novels, so that we are following his thoughts more than his deeds.
There are definite similarities with Hitchcock's "North by North-West" and I can see some with Greene's hapless protagonists, although Greene usually introduces much more of a moral dimension into his stories. Le Carre would make everything much more complicated.

Val wrote: "Le Carre would make everything much more complicated."

I am keen to get back to Le Carre - I haven't read any for ages but I have fond memories and feel sure his books are every bit as good as I remember.

Inspired by this thread I have just started reading 'The Mask of Dimitrios' (aka 'A Coffin for Dimitrios').


Anything that is published by Penguin Modern Classics instantly becomes more alluring in my mind....



'The Mask of Dimitrios' (aka 'A Coffin for Dimitrios')

My first impressions are very positive. There's a rich vein of sly humour that works well within the genre, and the plot conceit of having a writer of detective novels as the protagonist is a great way of contrasting detective novels with real world investigation. The Turkish setting is also reminding me of some of the history of the region we have read about in other fiction and non-fiction books. All in all, and after only two chapters, I'm quietly impressed by 'The Mask of Dimitrios' (aka 'A Coffin for Dimitrios'). I'll keep you posted with progress.

'The Mask of Dimitrios' (aka 'A Coffin for Dimitrios') continues to be a compelling mix of European history & investigation.

Ambler gives an account of the final weeks of the 1919-22 Greco-Turkish war and the sack of Smyrna (soon to be Izmir) as part of Latimer's search for Dimitrios who was, variously, drug dealer, gangster, murderer, & assassin. Dimitrios’ criminal record starts with the murder of Sholem, a moneylender and deunme (a Jew converted to Islam) whose throat was cut.

Thanks BYT for highlighting Eric Ambler's work - and in particular the merits of this book. If it remains as good I'll be reading more of his work.

@ 65% - 'The Mask of Dimitrios' is getting better and better. Primarily focussed on the early 1920s through to the end of 1930s when Turkey was distinctly secular. However the world was still awash with ethnic cleansing, ideological conflict, political assassination, and crime. Prime ministers were assassinated, drugs, women and state secrets were bought and sold, and the fascists and communists took what advantage they could. Amoral entrepreneurs exploited the situation and 'The Mask of Dimitrios' effectively relates the story of one such man.

Looking forward to discovering how this plays out.

A review of 'The Mask of Dimitrios' (1939)…..



Anything that is published by Penguin Modern Classics is instantly alluring in my mind and, given I’d heard positive things about Eric Ambler, I was keen to sample his work. I’d heard that 'The Mask of Dimitrios' (1939) (aka 'A Coffin for Dimitrios') was one of his very best.

Charles Latimer, an English crime novelist, is in Istanbul where he meets Colonel Haki of the Turkish secret police. Haki tells Latimer about Dimitrios Makropolous, a murderer, drug dealer, assassin and general rogue, whose body has just been fished out of the Bosphorus. Fascinated by the story, Latimer decides to retrace Dimitrios's steps across Europe to find out more about him.

The plot conceit of having a writer of detective novels as the protagonist is a great way of contrasting detective novels with real world investigation. The plot machinations of Latimer's investigation make 'The Mask of Dimitrios' a rich source of European history during the early 1920s through to the end of 1930s. Despite WW1 being over, Europe was still awash with ethnic cleansing, ideological conflict, political assassination, and crime. Prime ministers were assassinated, drugs, women and state secrets were bought and sold, and the fascists and communists took what advantage they could. Amoral entrepreneurs like Dimitrios exploited the situation and 'The Mask of Dimitrios' effectively relates his story.

For all the many good things about 'The Mask of Dimitrios’, Charles Latimer is an annoying character: a slow witted and naive prude who really should have foreseen the consequences of much of his decision making. It's hard to imagine that his detective fiction could amount to much. This aspect of the book confused me and undermined my enjoyment. However, putting this qualm to one side, it is an undeniably enjoyable, informative and compelling tale.

4/5

Click here to give my review a like

I finally finished Journey Into Fear. I'd read it before. But I think I was stalled at 85-90% for six months. I think I like to forestall the ending because I don't remember it from the time before. I originally read this in the late '70s when I was trying to distract myself from my college reading as I closed in on my final year.

It was a good distraction.

Nigeyb, you have piqued my interest in getting to Dimitrios. Nice to see that Col. Haki makes a repeat appearance.

An unknown author for me, but your reviews/comments are compelling. Hopefully he will show up in future group reads?