Tony Last is a gentle English country gentleman who lives at Hetton Abbey, a Gothic mansion he loves, with his wife Brenda and young son John Andrew. Brenda, bored, begins an affair with a social climber, John Beaver, and then Tony's world is shattered by a sudden death. Evelyn Waugh follows him as he leaves for an expedition in the Amazon with an explorer, where he falls into the hands of Mr. Todd, a man who wants someone to read Dickens aloud. The novel is a bleak satire about marriage, class and the fall of old English values.
It suits readers who like dark comedy and the interwar British novel. If you enjoy Waugh's sharp style and wry cruelty, this is among his best, and the ending is famously chilling.
Deep and thought-provoking; a moderate read.
Best for readers like The Deep Diver. Which reader are you?
- Published
- 1934
- Language
- EN
