A review by jlmb
The Slaves of Solitude by Patrick Hamilton

2.0

This was an odd book. I chose it because it was written in the late 1940's & set in 1943 & I enjoy reading novels set during that time period. It seemed extra cool to read something written so soon after the war. I figured I would get fresh insights into the war. Plus, I had read in a review that it was a funny book & who doesn't like to laugh?

First of all, it's not a funny book. It is a melancholy book, a sad book - quite frankly a downer. Oh, there are a few bits of wry black humor scattered throughout, but certainly not enough to offset the darkness of the book.

As far as it being set during the war, it strangely is very remote from the war. One of the characters is an American lieutenant but Miss Roach, the main character, never has a single conversation with him about his role in the war, how he feels about being away from home etc. None of the characters have any jobs -volunteer or paid - related to the war effort at all. It's strange. They all just sit around, filled with torpor and ennui. It's very boring to read about. Maybe that is the author's point? For the reader to feel as bored as his characters?

At the very, very end of the book the story starts to come to life but then - boom - the book ends just as it starts to get interesting. Strange.