Rumour at Nightfall is the third novel by Graham Greene, published in 1931. Like his second novel, The Name of Action , it failed to repeat the success of his first novel, The Man Within ; Greene was to suppress both his second and third novels.
Rumour at Nightfall is the third novel by Graham Greene, published in 1931. Like his second novel, The Name of Action , it failed to repeat the success of his first novel, The Man Within ; Greene was to suppress both his second and third novels.
"O ye that stand upon the brink,
Whom I so near me through the chink
With wonder see: What faces there,
Whose fcet, whose bodies, do ye wear?
I my companions see
In you, another me.
They seeméd others, but are we;
Our second selves those shadows be." [1]
- Thomas Traherne
The First Carlist War is coming to an end. The pretender's most loyal fighter, Caveda refuses to submit and continues to defy the new government, pursued by an army led by Colonel Riego.
English journalist, Francis Chase has been in Spain covering the story for the last two years, travelling with Colonel Riego's outfit on the trail of Caveda. After a skirmish with rebels in which Colonel Riego's son is killed, Francis Chase discovers a mail bag which contains a clue that may lead them to Caveda. The bag contains some personal items of Caveda, including letters, gloves and a photograph of a young woman. Chase separates from the outfit, and heads to the town of San Juan alone to try and locate the woman in the photograph.
He returns to the Inn where he previously stayed, to find to his surprise his friend and colleague Michael Crane. Crane has left the London newspaper, and arrived in Spain some months ago. With Crane's help, they track down the woman in the photograph, Eulelia Monti. Chase meets with Eulelia Monti, who he finds is Caveda's mistress, though is not in love with him. Meanwhile, Crane sees a man leave the building who he believes is Caveda and tracks him to a bar in town.
Following the destruction of San Juan's bridge by Caveda's men, Colonel Riego arrives in town, and executes a local barber, a known Caveda informer. Michael Crane becomes infatuated by Eulelia Monti and betrays Chase, by informing her that Chase cannot be trusted.
Chase is concerned for his friends well being, and advises Crane to leave San Juan on horseback, and to deliver a message to his newspaper. On the ride out of town, Crane meets Eulelia Monti who advises him that Caveda is planning an uprising at the funeral of the barber the next morning. Crane announces his love for Eulelia Monti, and they ride back into San Juan and are married in secret. Chase meets with General Diaz and Colonel Riego and advises that his friend, Crane knows where Caveda is located and can identify him.
Chase begins to feel a kinship with the elusive Caveda, and feels guilt over his involvement in the plan to capture him. He is then surprised when Crane returns to the Inn, and advises he has married Eulelia Monti. Furious with his friend, Chase goes in search of Caveda to warn him of the plan to capture him and how his friend, Crane has betrayed them both.
In his second autobiography, Ways of Escape, Greene wrote:
According to the publishers' reports, William Heinemann (U.K. publisher) sold only 1,200 copies and Doubleday Doran (U.S. publisher) sold only 1,018 copies. [3]
References:
Henry Graham Greene was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading English novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquired a reputation early in his lifetime as a major writer, both of serious Catholic novels, and of thrillers. He was shortlisted, in 1966 and 1967, for the Nobel Prize for Literature. Through 67 years of writing, which included over 25 novels, he explored the conflicting moral and political issues of the modern world. He was awarded the 1968 Shakespeare Prize and the 1981 Jerusalem Prize.
John Boynton Priestley was an English novelist, playwright, screenwriter, broadcaster and social commentator.
Rasipuram Krishnaswami Iyer Narayanaswami was an Indian writer known for his work set in the fictional South Indian town of Malgudi. He was a leading author of early Indian literature in English along with Mulk Raj Anand and Raja Rao.
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The Power and the Glory is a 1940 novel by British author Graham Greene. The title is an allusion to the doxology often recited at the end of the Lord's Prayer: "For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory, forever and ever, amen." It was initially published in the United States under the title The Labyrinthine Ways.
Swami and Friends is the first of a series of novels written by R. K. Narayan (1906–2001), English language novelist from India. The novel, the first book Narayan wrote, is set in British India in a fictional town called Malgudi. The second and third books in the trilogy are The Bachelor of Arts and The English Teacher.
Brighton Rock is a novel by Graham Greene, published in 1938 and later adapted for film in 1947 and 2010. The novel is a murder thriller set in 1930s Brighton. The title refers to a confectionery traditionally sold at seaside resorts with the name of the resort embedded in the centre and elongated down the length, which in the novel is used as a metaphor for the personality of Pinkie, which is the same all the way through. There are links between this novel and Greene's earlier novel A Gun for Sale (1936), because Raven's murder of the gang boss Kite, mentioned in A Gun For Sale, allows Pinkie to take over his gang and thus sets the events of Brighton Rock in motion.
The "Himno de Riego" is a song dating from the Trienio Liberal (1820–1823) of Spain and named in honour of Colonel Rafael del Riego, a figure in the respective uprising, which restored the liberal constitution of 1812. The lyrics were written by Evaristo Fernández de San Miguel, while the music is typically attributed to José Melchor Gomis.
Rafael del Riego y Flórez was a Spanish general and liberal politician, who played a key role in the outbreak of the Liberal Triennium.
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A Gun for Sale is a 1936 novel by Graham Greene about a criminal called Raven, a man dedicated to ugly deeds. When he is paid, with stolen notes, for killing the Minister of War, he becomes a man on the run. Tracking down the agent who double-crossed him, and eluding the police simultaneously, he becomes both the hunter and the hunted. The novel was published and filmed in the United States under the title This Gun for Hire.
Stamboul Train is the second significant novel by Graham Greene. Set on a train journey from Ostend to Istanbul, the book was renamed Orient Express when it was published in the United States. The novel appeared in 1932 and was Greene's first true success. It was taken on by the Book Society and in 1934 adapted as the film Orient Express.
William Heinemann Ltd., with the imprint Heinemann, was a London publisher founded in 1890 by William Heinemann. Their first published book, 1890's The Bondman, was a huge success and launched the company. He was joined in 1893 by Sydney Pawling. Heinemann died in 1920 and Pawling sold the company to Doubleday, having worked with them in the past to publish their works in the United States. Pawling died in 1922 and new management took over. Doubleday sold his interest in 1933.
Under Two Flags is a 1936 American adventure romance film directed by Frank Lloyd and starring Ronald Colman, Claudette Colbert, Victor McLaglen, and Rosalind Russell. The picture was based on the 1867 novel of the same name by the writer Ouida. The film was widely popular with audiences of its time. The supporting cast features Nigel Bruce, John Carradine, and Fritz Leiber.
Graham Greene (1904–1991) was an English novelist regarded by many as one of the greatest writers of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquired a reputation early in his lifetime as a major writer, both of serious Catholic novels, and of thrillers. He was shortlisted, in 1966 and 1967, for the Nobel Prize for Literature. He produced over 25 novels, as well as several plays, autobiographies, and short stories.
Barbara Irene Veronica Comyns Carr, known as Barbara Comyns, was an English writer and artist.
Algernon Islay de Courcy Lyons (1922–1993) was a Welsh photographer, novelist and linguist.
The Name of Action is Graham Greene's second novel, published in 1930. The book was badly received by critics, and suffered poor sales. Greene later repudiated the book and it has remained out of print ever since.
