Reviews

The Light of Day by Eric Ambler

yerfillag's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

rianokelly's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No

3.5

aliwhaley's review against another edition

tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

Crime thriller but quite boring to be honest, I only read it because G got it for Christmas. The events happened and everything made sense, I did think it was somewhat interesting to have the reader hoping that the

heist

goes wrong, and there was tension with hoping not to be caught etc, but I just wasn’t very interested. I will forget this book immediately. I don’t know why Vintage deemed it a classic 

All I can say for it is that it was refreshing to have a spy protagonist who is not very good at his job

fhackland's review against another edition

adventurous lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

spacebornfew's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

colinsk's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious fast-paced

• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

btkeyes's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious tense

4.0

erbdidiotcook's review against another edition

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

marta_fiona's review against another edition

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

paul_cornelius's review against another edition

5.0

Fun and clever book, this. Arthur Simpson is simply one of the most endearing anti-heroic rogues in mid century thrillers. His sardonic and ironic sense of humor makes the read a page turner. And the idea of putting an Englishman with a bit of a proper background in Athens, holding an Egyptian passport, and finding himself involved in a plot to engage in a high profile crime in Istanbul, all couldn't help but produce a combination of exotic intrigue and high comedic possibilities.

The Light of Day is also published as Topkapi in order to take advantage of the 1964 movie based on the book, with Melina Mecouri, Maximilian Schell, Robert Morley, and Peter Ustinov as Arthur. The film lacks the flashbacks and witty humor of the book. Ustinov's Arthur is too much of a bumbler and without the instinctual cleverness to survive Ambler's original Arthur displays. Yet both film and book are of a similar era, the early 1960s. And time with the film is not a waste either.

This is my second Ambler novel, and I see there is at least one more Arthur Simpson novel out there. Well worth chasing down, I think.