As I attempt to work my way through some more of Geoffrey Household‘s works, I came upon this, his first published novel for adults and the book that preceded his most famous novel, Rogue Male. His only previous publishing experience before this had been a novel for youth, The Terror of Villadonga—one in fact that I may have to read to my kids!
This story follows a man named Manuel who, at one point in his international career, joins the army in Mexico and becomes partially responsible for bombing a train which carried a load of gold. He hides the gold in the desert but then becomes a fugitive who must return to Europe, always with the hope however of returning to the desert to reclaim his hoard. The book also contains a number of other characters and a slew of political discussions that were pertinent in the 1930s, and ultimately the gold is reclaimed but not quite in the way that Manuel had hoped.
All in all, I definitely did not enjoy this book as much as the other Geoffrey Household books I’ve read in the past. It’s well-written, but thematically it’s not to my own personal tastes. Three reasons pop into my mind now as I think about it.
First, this book was more sporadic in its locations and characters than his other novels, which are generally focused on one key character meandering throughout a single locale. If I’m in the mood for this style of writing, where the book follows one character for a while and then another, then I’d prefer James Michener over Household. The phrase “Keep in your lane” comes to mind, though that might not be altogether fair.
Second, the plot seemed more about the drama concerning the people and relationships involved in this extended train-robbery caper than it was about the hunt itself. While I might have enjoyed such a style from another author (like Lionel Davidson), I found it kind of annoying here. I felt the impulse to tell Household, “Get on with it already!” though again, that may not be fair.
Third, I wasn’t too enthralled with the political focus of this book, though honestly, I wasn’t at first aware of how in-the-moment the book really was (after all, it was published in 1937!). Don’t get me wrong, I love politics, but I’ve little interest in the South American politics of the 1930s. That’s just not my area of expertise or interest, so when the main characters argued over the benefits of one system against another, I just didn’t care. The niche for these types of discussions was obviously during the time of publication, during which time the world watched empires grow in strength and Communism slowly spread around the world. Of course, we can see similar empires trying to grow their powers today and Communism continues its spread, just differently than before. I believe we can and should learn from history, but you’d have to dig pretty deep into these discussions to find practicable life lessons that can help shape your political views in today’s geopolitical climate.
As a political piece, this book was irrelevant (to me). As a drama, it was uninteresting. And as an action novel, it was incredibly slow-paced (compared to his other, more engaging books). All told, I was unimpressed with this book, though it certainly hasn’t turned me off to reading more Geoffrey Household in the future!
©2022 E.T.
Read More from Geoffrey Household:
- The Third Hour (1937)
- Rogue Male (1939)
- A Rough Shoot (1951)
- Fellow Passenger (1955)
- The Brides of Solomon and Other Stories (1958)
- Watcher in the Shadows (1960)
- Olura (1965)
- Hostage: London (1977)
- The Last Two Hours of Georges Rivac (1978)