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The Human Factor

Graham Greene

3.91 · Rating details · 7,948 ratings · 519 reviews

Maurice Castle is a high-level operative in the British secret service during the Cold War. He is deeply in love with his African wife, who escaped apartheid South Africa with the help of his communist friend. Despite his misgivings, Castle decides to act as a double agent, passing information to the Soviets to help his in-laws in South Africa. In order to evade detection, ...more

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Mass Market Paperback, 265 pages

Published 1979 by Penguin Books (first published 1978)

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Dec 08, 2017 Adam Dalva rated it liked it · review of another edition

More than his superior novels, THE HUMAN FACTOR demonstrates Greene's confounding ability to compel readers to turn pages. Though nothing much was going on and the plot was nearly entirely predictable, I flew through. It shares more with John Le Carre than other Greenes that I've read, save for a few flourishes at the edges (when our lead, Castle, enters a Catholic Church toward the end of the novel it was a bit like McCartney playing the opening of Hey Jude).

What we have: a spycraft novel with ...more

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Mar 05, 2020 Dave Schaafsma rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction-20th-century

The Human Factor is not, in my opinion, one of the great Graham Greene novels, but it is a good one, written when he was in his seventies, drawing (like John le Carré) on his experience working for British counter-intelligence, and as with le Carré, part of his explicit attempt to reflect what it was really like to work for the agency. They wanted, in a sense, to counter the public perception put forth by Ian Fleming with his sensational James Bond enterprise.

Greene was "to write a novel of esp The Human Factor is not, in my opinion, one of the great Graham Greene novels, but it is a good one, written when he was in his seventies, drawing (like John le Carré) on his experience working for British counter-intelligence, and as with le Carré, part of his explicit attempt to reflect what it was really like to work for the agency. They wanted, in a sense, to counter the public perception put forth by Ian Fleming with his sensational James Bond enterprise.

Greene was "to write a novel of espionage free from the conventional violence, which has not, in spite of James Bond, been a feature of the British Secret Service,” he said, “the Service to be seen unromantically as a way of life, men going daily to their office to earn their pensions." There are in this book several gentle jabs made by characters about Bond. And it gets at something darker, too, something that corrodes the souls of those working there, the living in secrecy, the lack of trust, the the constant surveillance.

I am not sure at this point who might still be reading one of Greene’s later novels, but I should nevertheless still say this is a spoiler, though even the dust jacket alludes to it: The big secret of this story, which begins with Bond and trout jokes and a lame watch dog named Buller, is that Maurice Castle, the central character and well into his sixties, has become a Soviet double agent, somewhat like Greene’s former boss, Kim Philby, who also became a Soviet double agent. So after a pretty slow and relatively light (for Greene) first half of the book, we do get to intrigue—as it would with Greene—though that intrigue leads to greater isolation and misery for almost all concerned. If you thought you wanted to be a secret agent, think again, in other words.

“One can't reason away regret—it's a bit like falling in love, falling into regret.”

Greene isn’t fundamentally a political writer, though some of his writing includes embedded political critiques, such as The Quiet American and its commentary on American involvement in Vietnam; primarily he’s about the soul and if the politics in the books lead to anything, its their damaging effects on individuals. In this one Castle is married to Sarah, a black South African; the double agent work he does is to (he thinks) help bring down Apartheid. Greene’s book helps to expose the West’s hypocritical stance of that regime against Apartheid, who were then not sure it wanted black South Africa, or especially Communists such as Mandela, to rule.

“Heroism began where politics stopped.”

My rating of four stars here obscures how much better I think books like The Power and The Glory and The End of the Affair are from him. Maybe given that comparison this is really a three star book, but compared to most books, this is a four star book, and I finally liked it and Castle and his love for Sarah and her son Sam. I like the way Greene works in Castle’s reading of War and Peace and Robinson Crusoe into it. ...more

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Aug 08, 2011 Teresa rated it really liked it

It took me about 80 pages to realize I was right to continue to read this. If I wasn't already familiar with Greene, I probably would've put it down at some point before those 80 pages, thinking this book was not my thing. But it deserves patience, as Greene is setting you up (necessary for the story) and by the time you're set up, you're hooked.

This novel is a mastery of dialogue. I can't remember the last time a book told me so much, and did it so well, with dialogue, not just in advancing the ...more

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Apr 28, 2018 James rated it really liked it · review of another edition

The Human Factor (1978) – by Graham Greene is set in the British secret service, but…this is certainly no James Bond 007 story; there is no glamour to be found here; this is all about a bleak troubled life of keeping secrets, a life of internalised silence and deception. But – above all else and as the title would suggest, it’s about the Human Factor, the human element and side to an individual living a life, a domestic life in tandem with the secret life of an agent – it’s about the secrecy and ...more

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Feb 25, 2020 Laura Anne rated it it was amazing

Shelves: men

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I loved reading this - I had the impression that Greene is always about spies, the cold war and agents in foreign lands etc. so I was surprised to find that this is essentially a love story. Not high drama and deep passion, but the kind of love that exists between a couple who care about their life together. Yes our main character Maurice Castle works for the secret service - he along with his colleague, Davis process information from East and South Africa. (Davis is a lonely man, in love with t I loved reading this - I had the impression that Greene is always about spies, the cold war and agents in foreign lands etc. so I was surprised to find that this is essentially a love story. Not high drama and deep passion, but the kind of love that exists between a couple who care about their life together. Yes our main character Maurice Castle works for the secret service - he along with his colleague, Davis process information from East and South Africa. (Davis is a lonely man, in love with their secretary, Cynthia - who is not impressed with his lowly clerk's position).

The story involves various high level characters - in Government, who make decisions based on flimsy or in fact zero evidence about the trustworthiness of their lower colleagues - with disastrous results. The sinister Doctor Percival has access to research work at Porton Down - which pertains to methods of chemical warfare. He suggests to Sir John Hargreaves - C, head of the Foreign Office, that the "leak" could be eliminated with Aflatoxin - a highly toxic substance that will look as if the person has died from liver failure.

And so Greene's plot - a story to uncover the double agent working for MI6 reflects on British social history - referring to the Reform Act of 1832 - when for the first time Parliament accepted the right of the 'commoner' to have a say in politics. If I remember - it was individuals with property or business with a value of over 10,000 pounds - men, not women, who for the first time - represented the people in British Government. Greene uses this piece of history to emphasize that very little has changed - the landed class - the toffs in the House of Lords still hold sway in post WWII UK.

Colonel Daintry, however, represents the new order. He is the 'broom', brought in to sniff out the spy. He has no social class but a highly defined sense of moral responsibility. He feels it is his duty to report back to HQ his meeting with Castle, but does so reluctantly having discovered that Castle is someone he likes and respects.

And so the plot thickens - this is no simple spy story, but a deeply reflective work asking us to consider our moral values. Castle is the traitor, but he is a man who holds our deepest sympathy. The ending I felt did not hold out any hope for the future of the couple, who are now separated. Castle is in Moscow; and his wife, Sarah in England. The irony here is that she is a refugee from the apartheid regime in South Africa - which is where they first meet.

This backstory about Castle and Sarah - is if you like a comparison of the enlightened and liberal UK with South Africa - at the height of its repression of black people in the 60s and 70s. Sarah is offered freedom via her relationship with Castle - who arranges for her escape to England. He is responsible for her welfare as initially their connection is based on her working for him as a sub-agent.

At the end of the current story Sarah cannot leave England to join Castle in Moscow because her child Sam does not have a passport, and she has been warned by the FO, that they will not give her this document.

Possibly one of the best books I have ever read. ...more

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Apr 13, 2013 Marc rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: english-literature

I read this a very long time ago, but I still remember I found that - together with The Quiet American - this is one of the best novels Greene ever wrote. What struck me was the balanced and deeply human characterization of the protagonists, as a contrast to the inhumanity of the secret service (yes, again this is a spy novel). In addition, Greene offers a beautiful mixture of all kinds of his favorite themes: conscience, guilt, patriotism, loyalty, humanity and, of course, love. Perhaps because ...more

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Mar 25, 2019 Jack rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Graham Greene's very last spy novel: A downbeat, talky, yet compelling Cold War story about the quest to track down an undercover double-agent in MI6, the British foreign intelligence service. Set against the backdrop of Soviet and Cuban penetration of Africa during the 1970s, Greene lays out a tale that spotlights the immorality of U.S. and U.K. support for South Africa's apartheid system.

Greene himself stated that he intended this book to be free of the "conventional violence" found in most ...more

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Nov 24, 2010 mark monday rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mind-the-gap, world-of-insects, blood-and-danger

a novel of spies and of pawns and of the interchangeability of those roles. the tale is deceptively simple and straightforward; the mixed loyalties of the protagonist and the portrait of his relationship with his african wife are sweetly affecting and pleasingly non-dramatic....but all of this is, in a way, a cover for the bleakly mordant commentary on betrayal that lies at the novel's heart. reading Human Factor made me understand how the works of le carre will always be superior to the works o ...more

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Mar 18, 2018 Nigeyb rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

"A man in love walks through the world like an anarchist, carrying a time bomb"

What a read. Talk about bleak. I really loved it though. An extraordinary achievement. Both tense and exciting, but also an exploration of the dark arts of espionage, human psychology, and individual relationships. All the characters are credible, fully fleshed out, and fallible.

The issues Graham Greene raises in The Human Factor (1978) are quite complex and perhaps, ultimately, it's most about individual vulnerabilit ...more

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Sep 20, 2016 Smiley rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: spy-fiction, favorites

Surprisingly this espionage fiction set presumably amid the Cold War has proved itself as one of Mr Greene's enjoyable works, it was my misunderstanding with insufficient motive and information that kept me stay put for years till a few months ago when I decided to resume reading his "The Confidential Agent" as well as "Our Man in Havana" in which his writing style, tragedy episodes, sense of humor, etc. have since served me as some essential backgrounds before premature decidedly plunging in to Surprisingly this espionage fiction set presumably amid the Cold War has proved itself as one of Mr Greene's enjoyable works, it was my misunderstanding with insufficient motive and information that kept me stay put for years till a few months ago when I decided to resume reading his "The Confidential Agent" as well as "Our Man in Havana" in which his writing style, tragedy episodes, sense of humor, etc. have since served me as some essential backgrounds before premature decidedly plunging in to enjoy reading him. One of the reasons is that in the 'Forward' the author said, "My ambition after the war was to write a novel of espionage free from the conventional violence, which has not, in spite of James Bond, been a feature of the British Secret Service. I wanted to present the Service unromantically as a way of life, men going daily to their office to earn their pensions, the background much like that of any other profession -- whether the bank clerk or the business director -- an undangerous routine, and within each character the more important private life." (p. 7); therefore, some might be disappointed in the protagonist, Muarice Castle, whose action is not thrillingly hero-like as compared to James Bond by Ian Fleming or Jason Bourne by Robert Ludlum.

I particularly admired this bookshop scene:
It was an unusual respectable bookshop for this area of Soho, quite unlike the bookshop which faced it across the street and bore the simple sign 'Books' in scarlet letters. The window below the scarlet sign displayed girlie magazines which nobody was ever seen to buy -- they were like a signal in an easy code long broken; they indicated the nature of private wares and interests inside. But the shop of Halliday & Son confronted the scarlet 'Books' with a window full of Penguins and Everyman and second-hand copies of World's Classics. The son was never seen there, only old Mr Halliday himself, bent and white-haired, wearing an air of courtesy like an old suit in which he would probably like to be buried. He wrote all his business letters in long-hand: he was busy on one of them now.
'A fine autumn morning, Mr Castle,' Mr Halliday remarked, as he traced with great care the phrase 'Your obedient servant'.
'There was a touch of frost this morning in the country.'
'A bit early yet,' Mr Halliday said.
'I wonder if you've got a copy of War and Peace? I've never read it. It seems about time for me to begin.'
'Finished Clarissa already, sir?'
'No, but I'm afraid I'm stuck. The thought of all those volumes to come ... I need a change,'
... (pp. 55-56)

I mean whenever we read his seemingly typical narrative and dialogs in style of his own, we simply can't help vaguely recalling something familiar, the text rings a bell as remotely and secretly as we long to know where we've read or heard that before. For instance, the following few lines would illustrate the inevitably mysterious finale in the world of notorious espionage:

She said, 'Maurice, Maurice, please go on hoping,' but in the long unbroken silence which followed she realised that the line to Moscow was dead. (p. 335) ...more

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Mar 04, 2018 Susan rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

When writing this novel, Graham Greene wanted to write an espionage story free from the violence, and unreality, of the spy stories of the time. Indeed, this is not a James Bond adventure, but is espionage set very much in an unromantic and realistic world of desk jobs and paperwork – but with a threatening undercurrent of danger. Notably, Greene once worked with Philby and, although he insisted that Castle was not based on him, there is an attempt to explain why someone would be tempted into be ...more

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Apr 14, 2019 Geevee rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction

I thoroughly enjoyed this; it was subtle and compelling without the spy chases, weapons and car chases.

Castle and Davis work in the African section of MI6 and life is rather pedestrian. And within this rather dead-end office at the "Foreign Office" we see the men's, and other characters, personalities unfold with their worries, doubts, wishes and paranoias coming to the fore in behaviour, thoughts and speech. The Human Factor does have a "love interest", but this is not the James Bond girl, but ...more

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Dec 02, 2010 Lorenzo Berardi rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2011, british, a-my-english-library

When Graham Greene wrote this book he was 74 years old and had published his first novel 49 years earlier. These are two facts that show how extraordinarily long-lived the literary career of this man has been.

But those who may look for decay or incipient senility in "The Human Factor" will be disappointed.
Among the 6 novels of Mr Greene I read so far, this is among the best ones even considering the usual high-quality standards of this author.

"The Human Factor" is a novel of apparent stillness When Graham Greene wrote this book he was 74 years old and had published his first novel 49 years earlier. These are two facts that show how extraordinarily long-lived the literary career of this man has been.

But those who may look for decay or incipient senility in "The Human Factor" will be disappointed.
Among the 6 novels of Mr Greene I read so far, this is among the best ones even considering the usual high-quality standards of this author.

"The Human Factor" is a novel of apparent stillness and the power of memories where not so much seems to happen in the present with the main characters constantly looking backwards. The daily life of middle-aged Mr Castle is spent between his desk in a tiny office in London and a detached house in the sleepy little town of Berkhamstead, where Graham Greene himself was born.

And yet, Mr Maurice Castle is no Bartleby.
He would not prefer to, but he got the habit of his dull office life spending his lunch breaks alone in the nearest pub far and chatting with his only colleague, whom he calls by his surname, Davis. Mr Castle may look like a common commuter trying to read heavy books on the train and then cycling back home being welcomed by his wife, his son and a glass of J&B, but he is and he was something and someone else. The memories of his very different past are not forgotten and soon enough will blow Castle's life to pieces.

What I liked here is that Graham Greene aged well and by all accounts. "The Human Factor" is not your usual spy story, but a book where cliff-hangers are hidden and the tension is subterranean and treacherous. There are masterfully drawn scenes with some of the best dialogues I've ever read and there is even humour every now and then.

All the references to Maltesers, whisky brands and some horrible artificial-palmed hotel on the way to Heathrow are carefully chosen with an accurate and sensitive attention to every minor detail which could become a key point in the development of the story.
How Greene fulfilled this technique without indulging in over-descriptions or wordy digressions is the best sign of a great novelist who once again managed to stay very focused on what was going on around him from history to politics to social trends.
...more

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Jul 07, 2018 booklady rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: crime, adventure, classic, political, 2018

Titles always intrigue me. In this case I couldn’t help wondering if The Human Factor might be an ironic reference to ‘disposable’ humanity in the espionage world or the incalculable response of unpredictably emotional humans which (can) cause the best of plans to go awry. Perhaps both?

Published in 1978, The Human Factor was immediately made into a movie the next year. Although I haven’t seen it, I would like to. It is a very hard book to review, to do justice to, without giving away too much. I ...more

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Jul 12, 2020 Luís rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, thriller-crime, n-reino-unido

I was diving into the occult and ruthless world of secret agents, where sometimes are also double ones.
Solitary in the heart of the Organization, the secret agent evolves in troubled water, in an opaque universe, heavy with mistrust and suspicion: the colleague who seems the most harmless and inspires you the most sympathy will not prove he's not the traitor or your worst enemy?
"The human factor" is a real novel of atmosphere but, for me, reading a little tricky due to the bitterness of the su ...more

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Apr 28, 2010 Allie Larkin rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

I read this for a book club discussion, and was completely blown away. The story deals with MI5 and MI6 intelligence officials during the Cold War, and is more of a realistic look at life in secret intelligence than the action-packed spy books and movies we're used to. It's slow in starting, but really takes off halfway through. There is so much subtly building up as the story moves along. Once I saw where it was going, I really appreciated the pacing of the beginning and the way information was ...more

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Apr 30, 2011 David rated it liked it

Shelves: english-lit

Greene was a master of literature but I often found his spy novels were good, but not great. This is moreso because I am not a spy novel fan. Having said this, knowing his background in the British Service, he knows what he is doing.

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Nov 01, 2015 Paul rated it really liked it

Shelves: books-read-2016

Castle is approaching retirement from MI6 where he has been an officer in the Africa section for a number of years following active service in the continent. He is married to a black South African lady who he helped escape from the apartheid regime. He is enjoying his quiet and uneventful life, when him and his assistant, Davis, are interviewed following the discovery of a leak in the service that has been traced back to his department. The investigation concludes that Davis is the source of the ...more

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Apr 27, 2007 shubha rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Love the way Graham Greene talks about human frailties without being preachy or overbearing... His writing tugs at your heart just that wee bit, but leaves you thinking long after you've finished reading... ...more

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Jul 03, 2013 Eleanor rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: literary-fiction, 2020-books

A book as bleak as this one is probably not the best choice to read in the midst of a pandemic, in a city in lockdown.

Very well done, but no more Greene for me until life is a bit more cheerful!

3.5 stars, rounded up to 4.

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Apr 26, 2014 BrokenTune rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: greeneland-adventures, reviewed

Review first posted on BookLikes:
http://brokentune.booklikes.com/post/...

‘It’s possible, of course, just possible,’ C said, ‘that the leak came from abroad and that the evidence has been planted here. They would like to disrupt us, damage morale and hurt us with the Americans. The knowledge that there was a leak, if it became public, could be more damaging than the leak itself.’ ‘That’s what I was thinking,’ Percival said. ‘Questions in Parliament. All the old names thrown up – Vassall, the Port Review first posted on BookLikes:
http://brokentune.booklikes.com/post/...

‘It’s possible, of course, just possible,’ C said, ‘that the leak came from abroad and that the evidence has been planted here. They would like to disrupt us, damage morale and hurt us with the Americans. The knowledge that there was a leak, if it became public, could be more damaging than the leak itself.’ ‘That’s what I was thinking,’ Percival said. ‘Questions in Parliament. All the old names thrown up – Vassall, the Portland affair, Philby. But if they’re after publicity, there’s little we can do.’

I read The Human Factor shortly after finishing Ben Macintyre's biography of Kim Philby - A Spy Among Friends. It is impossible to read a biography of Philby and not think of Graham Greene. Just as it is impossible to read The Human Factor and not wonder about the underlying motives that made people not only join the secret service but also made them defect from it and turn into double agents. With respect to Philby in particular, it still is a mystery to me how anyone could have regarded the Soviet Union as a place to aspire to live. Of course, as mentioned in my review of Macintyre's book, I can look at the Soviet Union from a perspective less tainted with either hope or propaganda whereas no-one at the time that The Human Factor was written had the privilege of hindsight.

It is all the more fascinating that Greene should pick up a story of defection and focus on the motivations of the spy and the efforts of counter-espionage to exercise damage control - the game which gives so little consideration to the human factor:

'I wish I were a chess player. Do you play chess, Daintry?’ ‘No, bridge is my game.’ ‘The Russians don’t play bridge, or so I understand.’ ‘Is that important?’ ‘We are playing games, Daintry, games, all of us. It’s important not to take a game too seriously or we may lose it. We have to keep flexible, but it’s important, naturally, to play the same game.’ ‘I’m sorry, sir,’ Daintry said, ‘I don’t understand what you are talking about.’

Greene's tale is full of gritty suspense as a leak is detected and a ruthless man-hunt for the informant takes its toll on the lives of the characters involved.

Daintry said, ‘Come away, Castle. I’ll buy you another owl, Sylvia.’
‘It’s irreplaceable, that one.’
‘A man’s dead,’ Daintry said. ‘He’s irreplaceable too.’

However, in his typical style Greene also pays tribute to human character being a complex and multi-layered beast - he accurately accurately observes that not all spies are committed to the cause, that not all agents completely subscribe to any ideology without deviation. He manages to portray the naivety of people and creates moving moments of conflict and hope and despair.

"People talked of courage as a primary virtue. What of the courage of a known swindler and bankrupt taking his place in the dining-room of the House of Commons? Is courage a justification? Is courage in whatever cause a virtue?" ...more

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Oct 07, 2008 Bettie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Another tale where Greene shows us his own pain.

and...

I won't be touching peanuts ever again! ...more

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Aug 28, 2018 Zoeb rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. 'You know how it is in your own outfit. It's the same in ours. We live in boxes and it's they who choose the box'.

An unforgettable scene from John Le Carre's 'Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy' sums up the sentiment that the above excerpt from Graham Greene's book conveys. The immortal George Smiley is alone with Peter Guillam and is brooding over his only memory of his arch nemesis across the Berlin Wall- the elusive Karla. The memory that surfaces is no action-packed duel between one cloaked dagger an ...more

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Dec 20, 2017 Bob Newman rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: european-literature

Castle is only a pawn

I'm not a fan of spy novels. "Our Man in Havana" and a couple by Le Carré and you're already at the bottom of the list. Still, as a tersely-written thriller read on an interminable airplane flight, THE HUMAN FACTOR stands out. The characters Castle, Davis, Daintry, Percival, Hargreaves, and `Boris' are very well-drawn, their all-too-human motives revealed one by one as are their reactions to events. Sarah, the African wife of double agent Castle, remains something of a stick ...more

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Apr 21, 2017 Rob rated it really liked it · review of another edition

I've read two other Greene novels besides this one, The End of the Affair and The Captain and the Enemy , and I'm still not entirely sure what I'm going to get when I pick up one of his books, but I know I love his writing. This is one of his later novels in an incredible career that began in the 20s and lasted until the late 80s. I always think of him as a classic author, but it seems odd to include anything written in my lifetime, so I tend to fall back on the arbitrary 'fifty year' rul I've read two other Greene novels besides this one, The End of the Affair and The Captain and the Enemy , and I'm still not entirely sure what I'm going to get when I pick up one of his books, but I know I love his writing. This is one of his later novels in an incredible career that began in the 20s and lasted until the late 80s. I always think of him as a classic author, but it seems odd to include anything written in my lifetime, so I tend to fall back on the arbitrary 'fifty year' rule with him.

Anyway, this is a spy novel of a much more realistic fashion than what we typically see. The protagonist, Maurice Castle, is no James Bond. He's a middle-aged man who works at a desk and looks forward to retirement. He did have, what seems like, a more exciting position in South Africa during apartheid, where he had to flee the country with a black woman who later became his wife. They now live a quiet life with their child in London.

A piece of confidential information, under his small department's jurisdiction, made its way into Communist hands. There are three main suspects, of which Castle is one, and his calm life starts to become much more tense. It's a slow build throughout the novel, and while it certainly isn't action-packed, it was an exciting read. In his autobiography, Greene wrote that he wanted "to write a novel of espionage free from the conventional violence, which has not, in spite of James Bond, been a feature of the British Secret Service", and I would say he pulled it off exceptionally well.

Hate is an automatic response to fear, for fear humiliates.

The relationships in this felt very real to me, and I just loved the dialogue. He got across a lot in a few words, and he was surprisingly funny at times, which I appreciate. There are small moments of humour in even the most tragic of times, and I think a lot of authors can forget that.

I can definitely say I'm a fan, at this point. The only other unread Greene novel on my shelf is The Tenth Man, which I'll likely get to later this year.

Book Blog | Twitter | Instagram ...more

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Mar 11, 2008 Will Jeffrey rated it liked it · review of another edition

Some years ago I read
the Tenth Man, and I enjoyed it for its irony. The plot was remarkable to me because it diverged from the other British Spy novels I have read. Though I admit I've not read too many. It has been my impression the Brit spy novel was always centered around a mole embedded in a British intelligence agency. I happened to read somewhere about what a great spy novelist Graham Green was, and I decided I would give this one a try. The Human Factor does concern a mole, but I decided ...more

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Mar 03, 2020 John rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: graham-greene

A good cat and mouse espionage novel. The suspense is well crafted with paranoia foremost in the protagonists minds. Maurice escapes SA with Sarah and her son. Marries her and continues to work for a spy organization. The organization discovers their is a leak to the Russians. Enter Dr Percival a trout fishing nut and also a bit of an English Dr Mengele. The leak is In Maurice’s section with Davis the suspect due to his habits.

The bit I did not like was how Buller the bulldog was dealt with. In ...more

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Jul 25, 2020 Trevor rated it it was amazing

Shelves: mystery-and-crime, five-star-books, own-copy

One of the best from a master story teller.

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Apr 26, 2020 Manray9 rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: brit-lit

This is not among Greene's best work -- I prefer The Heart of the Matter -- but compared to current fiction, it's a masterpiece. This is a spy novel for grown-ups. ...more

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Mar 15, 2018 Pamela rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: group-rttc, favorites

Castle is working in a desk job in the African section of MI6. He is nearing retirement, but previously he was active in the field and had to escape from Africa with Sarah, who is now his wife. The anxiety from those times has never quite left them, but now they live a quiet life in suburbia with their son Sam, and occasionally meet up with Castle's work colleague, Davis. Then a leak is suspected in their section, and both Castle and Davis are investigated, with tragic and far reaching consequen ...more

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About Graham Greene

Graham Greene

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Henry Graham Greene, OM, CH was an English novelist, short story writer, playwright, screenplay writer, travel writer and critic whose works explore the ambivalent moral and political issues of the modern world. Greene combined serious literary acclaim with wide popularity.

Although Greene objected strongly to being described as a “Catholic novelist” rather than as a “novelist who happened to be Ca ...more