devinsf's reviews
131 reviews

1946 romance novel from the author of The Poseidon Adventure (his author bio at the time describes him as primarily a sports writer). Set in England during the Blitz, a sheltered American Pilot falls for a casual acquaintance and is forced to choose between her and his fiancé back home. The leads' names are Jerry and Patches, which is basically reason enough to read this.

For a pocket book, the plot covers a lot of physical ground: Our leads vacation in Scottland, then Jerry hops a plane to return to his home in upscale New Jersey for an evening. We do get some solo time with Patches, but her character and motivations — as is often the case with love interests in romance — are left somewhat opaque.

There's some fascinating discussion about what we now call PTSD; seeing these experiences through the 1940s lens was illuminating, particularly with how young adults proceeded into the postwar period with these traumatizing experiences locked away.

LOVED IT. Like watching an entire film in slow motion, du Maurier explodes every little moment into a tiny poetic ballet. Laconic British conversations blossom into baroque dramas as each and every emotional shift is registered or mirrored in scenic shifts. (This prose style won't be for everyone; I can imagine several of my friends hurling this book against a wall by end of the first chapter.) Plot-wise, it's modern gothic and way over-the-top — plenty of dramatic confessions, monologues, and turnabouts to keep you on your toes.

A veteran magazine writer (National Geographic, New Yorker, etc), Preston's prose is punchy and zips right along. Fascinating story, the ending — which digresses into tropical diseases — drags a touch.