Tag: Brighton Rock

CC Spin #41 Book Review: Brighton Rock by Graham Greene

Published on by Margaret13 Comments

The latest Classic Club Spin challenged you to read book 11 on your CC Spin #41 list by 24th August. That was Brighton Rock by Graham Greene for me.

Vintage Digital| 2 October 2010| 258 pages| e-book| 4*

Description on Amazon:

A gang war is raging through the dark underworld of Brighton. Seventeen-year-old Pinkie, malign and ruthless, has killed a man. Believing he can escape retribution, he is unprepared for the courageous, life-embracing Ida Arnold. Greene’s gripping thriller exposes a world of loneliness and fear, of life lived on the ‘dangerous edge of things.

In this gripping, terrifying, and unputdownable read, discover Greene’s iconic tale of the razor-wielding Pinkie.

I’ve enjoyed some of Greene’s books, so I’ve been meaning to get round to reading Brighton Rock for some years and I was pleased it came up as my Spin book. It was his ninth book, first published in 1938, and one of his Catholic Novels (the others being The End of the Affair, The Power and the Glory and The Heart of the Matter). In his Introduction J M Coetzee writes that it was his first serious novel, serious in the sense of working with serious ideas. Brighton in the 1930s had two faces, one the attractive seaside resort, and the other a nest of criminal activity in the desolate industrial suburbs.

The opening line sets the scene for a murder – “Hale knew, before he had been in Brighton three hours, that they meant to murder him.’ Later he is found dead, apparently from a heart attack. Ida Arnold, who had met Fred as he tried to evade the gang, had left him alone for a few minutes and when she returned he was nowhere to be seen. She is determined to find out what really had happened to him as the official account of his death doesn’t match up with what she knew. So when the police ignore what she says she carries out her own investigation. She believes in Right and Wrong – to Ida death was the end of everything, she didn’t believe in heaven or hell, and she wants justice for Fred.

To say that Pinkie Brown, the teenage gangleader, is a complex character is an understatement. He is desperately trying to cover up his involvement with Fred. Rose is a young innocent girl who could reveal his guilt although she doesn’t realise it. Pinkie believes that if he marries her she wouldn’t be able to give evidence against him. Both of them are Roman Catholics. Rose believes in Good and Evil and salvation, whereas Pinkie believes in Hell fire and damnation, but is unsure about the existence of Heaven. He becomes increasingly paranoiac, more desperate and violent.

This novel is bleak, full of violence, menace and suspense, not a book I could enjoy. I struggled at first to understand what was going on and who all the characters were. It’s an odd mixture really – a crime is committed and the amount of violence is shocking, but it is also a psychological character study and an in-depth consideration of the questions of life and death. It’s a tough book to read and to review without giving away any spoilers, which is why I haven’t gone into much detail about the plot. Whilst it is not my favourite book by Graham Greene, it is well written with memorable characters and brilliantly described which brings it all vividly and terrifyingly to life.

WWW Wednesday: 23 July 2025

Published on by Margaret8 Comments

WWW Wednesday is run by Taking on a World of Words.

The Three Ws are:

What are you currently reading?
What did you recently finish reading?
What do you think you’ll read next?

Currently I am reading Small Wars by Sadie Jones, a book I’ve had for years ( I bought it in 2011!). It’s historical fiction set mainly in Cyprus in the late 1950s where Major Hal Treherne and his wife Clara and their baby daughters are stationed during the ‘enosis’ (union with Greece) uprising. It’s tense, gripping and I’m now about halfway into the book and thinking I’ll have to stop reading my other book to concentrate on finishing this one.

That other book I’m currently reading is a NetGalley review copy of The Death of Shame by Ambrose Parry. This is also historical fiction, set in 1854 in Edinburgh, a mix of fact and fiction incorporating the social scene, historical and medical facts. It’s the 5th book in the Raven and Fisher Mystery series. Dr Will Raven is no longer working with Dr Simpson but is setting up his own medical practice with the financial assistance of Sarah Fisher. They are investigating the disappearance of Sarah’s young niece, the suicide of Will’s father in law and the blackmailing of Dr Simpson.

The last book I read was Brighton Rock by Graham Greene. This is set in the dark underworld of Brighton, where a gang war is raging. Seventeen year old gang leader Pinkie Brown, malign and ruthless, has killed a man. What follows is truly terrible, horrifying and full of violence. And yet I felt compelled to read it, fearful about how it would end. I’ll be writing more about it in a later post.

What will I read next? It could be All That Matters by Sir Chris Hoy, his memoir.

In elite sport, the margin between victory and defeat is miniscule, and the pressure is immense. Chris has built a glittering sporting career on understanding these how to feel for them, how to cope with them, how to make them count.

Last year, he faced another life-changing moment. He found out that the ache in his shoulder was in fact a tumour, and that he had Stage 4 cancer.

He will be living with this disease for the rest of his life.

The Classics Club Spin Result

Published on by Margaret11 Comments

The spin number in The Classics Club Spin is number …

Brighton Rock by Graham Greene

The rules of the Spin are that this is the book for me to read by 24 August 2025.

Synopsis from Amazon

Gripping, terrifying, an unputdownable read. Discover Graham Greene’s most iconic novel.

A gang war is raging through the dark underworld of Brighton. Seventeen-year-old Pinkie, malign and ruthless, has killed a man. Believing he can escape retribution, he is unprepared for the courageous, life-embracing Ida Arnold. Greene’s gripping thriller exposes a world of loneliness and fear, of life lived on the ‘dangerous edge of things.’

In this gripping, terrifying, and unputdownable read, discover Greene’s iconic tale of the razor-wielding Pinkie.

This has been on my Spin List for some while now, so it’s about time I read it.

“Why does this bleak, seething and anarchic novel still resonate? Its energy and power is that of the rebellious adolescent, foreshadowing the rise of the cult of youth in the latter part of the 20th century.”—The Guardian

Did you take part in the Classics Spin? What will you be reading?

Library Loot/Teaser Tuesday

Published on by Margaret3 Comments

It’s been a while since I wrote a Library Loot post and as I went to the library today I thought I’d combine it with a Teaser Tuesday post.

I’ve dipped into each book. From top to bottom they are:

Follow Your Heart by Susanna Tamaro, translated from the Italian by Avril Bardoni. I fancied reading something different from my usual type of book – this book won the Premio Donna Citta di Roma in 1994. From the book jacket – ‘it reflects on feelings and passions and how failure to communicate leads to futility, misunderstanding and tragedy – a meditation on existence.’ An old woman writes to her granddaughter:

As I have wandered aimlessly through the empty house these last few months, the misunderstandings and bad temper that marred our years together have vanished. The memories surrounding me now are of you as a child – a vulnerable, bewildered little creature. (page 3)

Brighton Rock by Graham Greene. A book I’ve known of for so many years and never read. I had no idea that it is a detective story! I love the way it begins:

Hale knew, before he had been in Brighton three hours, that they meant to murder him. With his inky fingers and his bitten nails, his manner cynical and nervous, anybody could tell he didn’t belong – belong to the early summer sun, the cool Whitsun wind of the sea, the holiday crowd. (page 1)

I can just see the scene!

White Nights by Anne Cleeves. I’ve been looking out for this book, the second in her Shetland Quartet, ever since I enjoyed reading the first one – Raven Black. Shetland detective Jimmy Perez investigates what seems at first to be a straightforward suicide. This is my teaser:

‘I don’t know my name’, he said flatly. No drama now. ‘I can’t remember it. I don’t know my name and I don’t remember why I’m here.’ (page 16)

Sister by Rosamund Lupton. More crime fiction, a psychological thriller. I’d read about this book on a blog (sorry, can’t remember which one – it may have been more than one blog) and thought it sounded good. Beatrice’s younger sister Tess is missing. She refuses to give up looking for her and  is determined to discover the truth about Tess and what has happened to her.

For a moment, amongst the crowd, I saw you. I’ve since found out it’s common for people separated from someone they love to keep seeing that loved one among strangers; something to do with recognition units in our brain being too heated and too easily triggered. This cruel trick of the mind lasted only a few moments, but was long enough to feel with physical force how much I needed you. (page 26)

I have high hopes of all four books.