Eric Ambler. Journey Into Fear. 1937

The Perfect Thriller

It's been a few years since I last ingested Ambler, but I found this novel to be worthy of a narratological study as well as a highly effective relief from the symptoms of depression.

I was reminded of Kafka novels by the narrator's haplessness and the minutiae of his conversations with other characters.

I was reminded of Dog Soldiers by the dreamlike opening chapters and the abrupt change of scene that follows.

Whatever it is that great conventional fiction achieves in story if not style (it makes you want to keep turning pages) can be found here. It helps that most of the action is confined to a ship with a small number of passengers, most of whom are not what they seem. I discovered that much of the book's dramatic tension was injected by long nervous internal monologues, or conversations. Simply to describe the sequence of events—as intense as they are—would have led to a curiously flat narrative experience, I suspect. What does it mean that the mounting tension and suspense of the plot comes not from the plot but from the character's reflections on it?

On an intellectual level, the criticism of the relationship between big business, war, and the arms industry, was thin but satisfying. But one doesn't normally go to thrillers for political critique.