This is interesting because I first read this in June 2012 (no 19) and hated it! 6 years later I thought it was pretty good; not that easy to read, but the interaction between the 2 Catholic figures (Pinky and Rose) and Ida, the non religious and very buxom and working class woman who works out what is going on, is very good.
None of the central figures has any great intellect, but Greene can drift either bits of catholic liturgy (in Latin) or English working class commons sense and sense of fair play (Ida) into their dialogue.
I agree with the reviewer at 19 that the depiction of the Brighton underworld characters was maybe not that good, but the central interactions are those above, and maybe I missed this first time round. Pinky’s and Rose’s doomed relationship is a great bit of writing in itself.
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