The Confidential Agent

Name: The Confidential Agent
Rating: 3.7 (3713 reviews)

by Graham Greene

First published 1939

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3.7(3,713)

D., an agent of a Republican government fighting a civil war, travels to England to purchase coal before the opposing side can secure the same supply. Torture and personal loss have exhausted him, but the mission may determine whether his government can continue resisting.

Rose Cullen, the daughter of the industrialist controlling the contract, becomes involved after rival agents attack D. Police suspicion, corporate interests and betrayal turn commercial negotiation into a pursuit across England. The unnamed conflict closely reflects the Spanish Civil War and the inability of democratic governments to obtain reliable support abroad.