“She had always called me ‘you.’ ‘Is that you?’ on the telephone, ‘Can you? Will you? Do you?’ so that I imagined, like a fool, for a few minutes at a time, there was only one ‘you’ in the world and that was me.”

I love a good love story full of moral ambiguity and gray areas. This book, my first by Greene, had all the makings of a 4 star book through the half-way mark of the tale. Love, lust, deceit, anguish -- that perfect cocktail for an intriguing book. Graham's prowess with his prose added to the enjoyment. However, around the 50% mark, the book veered into an odd philosophical direction. By the end of the book the plot had "jumped the shark" and was downright loopy.

I listened to a newish recording narrated by Colin Firth. Now, Mr. Firth could read the phone book and still have it sound more enticing than several books on the market. His narration was second to none, but it couldn't completely save the bizarre plot direction of this book.

3 stars ( )

considering that this really is a book about an adulterous affair and whether or not god exists, i liked this much more than expected. there were some lovely lines in here and even though i'm predisposed to dislike almost everything about it, i mostly liked it. i didn't care about the people at all, or really care to read their arguments about god, but i still thought he did this well. ( )

I listened to the audiobook narrated by Colin Firth who did an amazing job. I recommend it highly. The author captures the angst of a broken relationship and the uncertainty of our existence. ( )

Simply heartbreaking book of a man, Maurice Bendrix, in love with a married woman, Sarah Miles. She is in love with him as well, but because she wishes to become Catholic, she is told by a priest that she can't divorce Harry to be with him. They carry on an affair during WWII, but when Maurice is hurt during a bombing of his building, Sarah makes a deal with God that if Maurice lives, she will stay away from him. She breaks it off, and Maurice can't handle it. He then goes to a PI, who gives him evidence of an affair. He is angry, and claims he hates Sarah. Devastating news follows.
In this short novel, which is semi-autobiographical, is very sad, and leaves you emotionally drained. ( )

Not my favourite Greene novel. It all seemed a bit wooden and arch, and the none of the characters particularly interesting. Maybe I missed something. ( )