The Slaves of Solitude

Paperback / softback

Main Details

Title The Slaves of Solitude
Authors and Contributors      By (author) Patrick Hamilton
Physical Properties
Format:Paperback / softback
Pages:368
Dimensions(mm): Height 198,Width 164
Category/GenreModern and contemporary fiction (post c 1945)
ISBN/Barcode 9780349141541
ClassificationsDewey:823.912
Audience
General

Publishing Details

Publisher Little, Brown Book Group
Imprint Abacus
Publication Date 12 January 2017
Publication Country United Kingdom

Description

'All his novels are terrific, but this one is my favourite' Sarah Waters Patrick Hamilton's novels were the inspiration for Matthew Bourne's new dance theatre production, The Midnight Bell. Measuring out the wartime days in a small town on the Thames, Miss Roach is not unattractive but no longer quite young. The Rosamund Tea Rooms boarding house, where she lives with half a dozen others, is as grey and lonely as its residents. For Miss Roach, 'slave of her task-master, solitude', a shaft of not altogether welcome light is suddenly beamed upon her, with the appearance of a charismatic and emotional American Lieutenant. With him comes change - tipping the precariously balanced society of the house and presenting Miss Roach herself with a dilemma.

Author Biography

Patrick Hamilton was one of the most gifted and admired writers of his generation. His plays include Rope (1929), on which the Hitchcock thriller was based, and Gas Light (1939). Among his novels are The Midnight Bell, The Siege of Pleasure, The Plains of Cement, Twenty-thousand Streets Under the Sky, Hangover Square, The Slaves of Solitude and The West Pier. He died in 1962. The Sunday Telegraph said: 'His finest work can easily stand comparison with the best of this more celebrated contempories George Orwell and Graham Greene.'

Reviews

I recommend Hamilton at every opportunity, because he was such a wonderful writer and yet is rather under-read today. All his novels are terrific, but this one is my favourite - Sarah Waters