Book
The Fatal Englishman
First published 1996
Sebastian Faulks tells the lives of three gifted Englishmen whose careers ended young. Painter Christopher Wood moves through the modernist world of 1920s Paris before addiction and instability overwhelm him; RAF pilot and writer Richard Hillary survives terrible burns in the Battle of Britain, writes The Last Enemy and fights to return to flying.
The final life is Jeremy Wolfenden, an exceptional Oxford academic who abandons university life for journalism and is sent to Moscow at the height of the Cold War. His sexuality, drinking and contact with intelligence services leave him vulnerable to blackmail and manipulation. Together the three biographies form an oblique portrait of Britain across the middle decades of the twentieth century.
Historical Periods
Genres
Historical people
More from this period
5 more top-rated novels about Interwar Period
Ranked by rating and voting volume; books already shown on this page are omitted.
More from this period
5 more top-rated novels about Battle of Britain
Ranked by rating and voting volume; books already shown on this page are omitted.
More from this period
5 more top-rated novels about Early Cold War Espionage
Ranked by rating and voting volume; books already shown on this page are omitted.
More by the author
Other books by Sebastian Faulks
Discover more
Authors similar to Sebastian Faulks
Recommended from shared genres and periods.
William Boyd
20 books
Jacqueline Winspear
20 books
Ken Follett
16 books