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Marazan
A story of flying, drug smuggling and murder in the 1920s. Pilot Philip Stenning crashes his aircraft while flying from London to Devon. He is rescued by escaped prisoner Denis Compton, who claims he was sent to prison for embezzlement after being framed by his half-brother, Italian baron Rodrigo Mattani. Owing Compton his life, Stenning agrees to investigate Mattani's illegal activities.
217 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1926
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245 people want to read
About the author
Nevil Shute
99 books1,319 followersNevil Shute Norway was a popular British novelist and a successful aeronautical engineer.
He used Nevil Shute as his pen name, and his full name in his engineering career, in order to protect his engineering career from any potential negative publicity in connection with his novels.
He lived in Australia for the ten years before his death.
He used Nevil Shute as his pen name, and his full name in his engineering career, in order to protect his engineering career from any potential negative publicity in connection with his novels.
He lived in Australia for the ten years before his death.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 77 reviews
August 6, 2018
It may take me a while, but I do plan to eventually read and/or reread in some cases, as many Nevil Shute novels as I can in the next few years. It completely boggles my mind that this book was his first published novel, the year was 1926, when Mr. Shute was 27 years old, and by the time I first found his novels in my school’s library, he would have been close to the age I am now.
Time warps are amazing and fascinating, yet when it comes to great authors and their novels it is also marvelous for us as readers. Nevil Shute was born to write wonderful stories and the novels he wrote are timeless. Yes, there are some obvious clues as to vintage and there are some references that for us today would be labelled politically incorrect. One example is calling females who went to pubs to hang out with the guys and have a good time, “Flossies”. I can imagine that if a woman were called that by a man in a bar nowadays he might expect to feel a bottle broken over some part of his anatomy. If not that, he might get arrested for “hate language” or something similar. In the context of this novel, I chuckled to myself – and kept on reading!
Nevil Shute’s writing is so well done that it made me feel an expert in things I knew nothing about: such as flying a two-seater aircraft and figuring out the best way to handle a crisis. Also – sailing. I have been in boats but never a sailboat. By the time I’d accompanied Philip Stenning on his friends’ sailboat, I was convinced I could spend a week on the ocean all by myself just fine! The author uses all the proper terminology in such a way that I knew exactly what he meant . . . with only one or two taps on words so my eReader dictionary could help me out.
In this novel, Philip Stenning’s life is saved by a man on the run. Denis Compton broke out of prison for a specific purpose and for a limited time. Philip feels compelled to help him – partly because he really likes the man, and mostly because he felt he owed him that much.
”. . . I realized that I owed my life to this fellow Compton. I don’t imagine that my life is worth much or that I’ve ever done much good with it; at the same time – it’s all one has.”
This leads to an adventure that almost out-classed his experiences as a fighter pilot in the First World War. At one point, he is busy laying out red herrings for his friend. One of the people he interacts with in order to accomplish this starts blowing a big huge story out of small material that gets bigger with the retelling. Philip is philosophical: ”To every man, I suppose, there comes the chance of fame of one kind or another, and one would be a fool not to make the most of it.
The superb storytelling and the characters themselves had me glued to this novel. When I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about it. It’s hard to believe that this is the publishing debut for Nevil Shute. However, I suppose we can expect no less from this legend of the literary world.
Time warps are amazing and fascinating, yet when it comes to great authors and their novels it is also marvelous for us as readers. Nevil Shute was born to write wonderful stories and the novels he wrote are timeless. Yes, there are some obvious clues as to vintage and there are some references that for us today would be labelled politically incorrect. One example is calling females who went to pubs to hang out with the guys and have a good time, “Flossies”. I can imagine that if a woman were called that by a man in a bar nowadays he might expect to feel a bottle broken over some part of his anatomy. If not that, he might get arrested for “hate language” or something similar. In the context of this novel, I chuckled to myself – and kept on reading!
Nevil Shute’s writing is so well done that it made me feel an expert in things I knew nothing about: such as flying a two-seater aircraft and figuring out the best way to handle a crisis. Also – sailing. I have been in boats but never a sailboat. By the time I’d accompanied Philip Stenning on his friends’ sailboat, I was convinced I could spend a week on the ocean all by myself just fine! The author uses all the proper terminology in such a way that I knew exactly what he meant . . . with only one or two taps on words so my eReader dictionary could help me out.
In this novel, Philip Stenning’s life is saved by a man on the run. Denis Compton broke out of prison for a specific purpose and for a limited time. Philip feels compelled to help him – partly because he really likes the man, and mostly because he felt he owed him that much.
”. . . I realized that I owed my life to this fellow Compton. I don’t imagine that my life is worth much or that I’ve ever done much good with it; at the same time – it’s all one has.”
This leads to an adventure that almost out-classed his experiences as a fighter pilot in the First World War. At one point, he is busy laying out red herrings for his friend. One of the people he interacts with in order to accomplish this starts blowing a big huge story out of small material that gets bigger with the retelling. Philip is philosophical: ”To every man, I suppose, there comes the chance of fame of one kind or another, and one would be a fool not to make the most of it.
The superb storytelling and the characters themselves had me glued to this novel. When I wasn’t reading it, I was thinking about it. It’s hard to believe that this is the publishing debut for Nevil Shute. However, I suppose we can expect no less from this legend of the literary world.
January 23, 2023
This is Nevil Shute’s first published novel. Its setting is southwestern England. An airplane crashes after engine trouble. Philip Stenning, the plane’s pilot, is a commercial aviator. Aided at the crash by an escaped convict, he decides to help this man who has just saved his life. The unraveling of the convict’s story, is what Marazan is about. It is concerned with the breaking up of a .
Marazan Sound is a place that actually does exist. It’s in the Isles of Scilly, off the coast of Cornwall, 40-58km distant from Land’s End. Important events in the drama that plays out, occur here. London, Italy and France are the setting. Timewise, it is ten years after the First World War.
This tale includes elements seen in Shute’s later books---planes, boats, trains, history, a love thread and central characters guided by strong morals. We view Italy at the rise of fascism. We are in Florence. The ways of its inhabitants are well drawn.
Shute struggled with the writing of this book. He rewrote it, altering it three times. I think this shows. Parts don’t tie together properly, one specific example being the love thread. Here we are promised more than we actually get. The love does not come alive; the reader does not feel the throb, the pulse of love. There are many themes. Stenning’s early experience with a girl addicted to drugs is touched upon several times but still not properly developed. The ending is abrupt. The final scene is exciting but has Stenning made out as a saint, too noble and good. Well, these are, of course, merely my opinions.
I have enjoyed reading this book, but for me it still has problems, even after repeated rewrites.
The audiobook is narrated by Jeremy Clyde. He gives a very good narration. You hear every word clearly Listening to an audiobook that is well produced is much appreciated. There is no strain whatsoever to the listening. Four stars for the audio narration.
*****************
*A Town Like Alice 4 stars
*The Chequer Board 4 stars
*No Highway 4 stars
*The Far Country 4 stars
*Landfall 4 stars
*Most Secret 4 stars
*Beyond The Black Stump 4 stars
*Slide Rule: The Autobiography of an Engineer 3 stars
*Marazan 3 stars
*Pied Piper 3 stars
*Ruined City 3 stars
*Trustee from the Toolroom 3 stars
*The Rainbow and the Rose 3 stars
*Requiem for a Wren 2 stars
*So Distained 2 stars
*Pastoral 1 star
*Round the Bend TBR
*An Old Captivity TBR
*What Happened to the Corbetts maybe
*On the Beach maybe
Marazan Sound is a place that actually does exist. It’s in the Isles of Scilly, off the coast of Cornwall, 40-58km distant from Land’s End. Important events in the drama that plays out, occur here. London, Italy and France are the setting. Timewise, it is ten years after the First World War.
This tale includes elements seen in Shute’s later books---planes, boats, trains, history, a love thread and central characters guided by strong morals. We view Italy at the rise of fascism. We are in Florence. The ways of its inhabitants are well drawn.
Shute struggled with the writing of this book. He rewrote it, altering it three times. I think this shows. Parts don’t tie together properly, one specific example being the love thread. Here we are promised more than we actually get. The love does not come alive; the reader does not feel the throb, the pulse of love. There are many themes. Stenning’s early experience with a girl addicted to drugs is touched upon several times but still not properly developed. The ending is abrupt. The final scene is exciting but has Stenning made out as a saint, too noble and good. Well, these are, of course, merely my opinions.
I have enjoyed reading this book, but for me it still has problems, even after repeated rewrites.
The audiobook is narrated by Jeremy Clyde. He gives a very good narration. You hear every word clearly Listening to an audiobook that is well produced is much appreciated. There is no strain whatsoever to the listening. Four stars for the audio narration.
*****************
*A Town Like Alice 4 stars
*The Chequer Board 4 stars
*No Highway 4 stars
*The Far Country 4 stars
*Landfall 4 stars
*Most Secret 4 stars
*Beyond The Black Stump 4 stars
*Slide Rule: The Autobiography of an Engineer 3 stars
*Marazan 3 stars
*Pied Piper 3 stars
*Ruined City 3 stars
*Trustee from the Toolroom 3 stars
*The Rainbow and the Rose 3 stars
*Requiem for a Wren 2 stars
*So Distained 2 stars
*Pastoral 1 star
*Round the Bend TBR
*An Old Captivity TBR
*What Happened to the Corbetts maybe
*On the Beach maybe
November 16, 2020
Marazan was English author, Nevil Shute's first published work, in 1926. Two other books were discovered later that were written earlier. I enjoyed Marazan very much, it was a bit rough around the edges but it was an entertaining story and as it developed, an excellent action story.
Philip Stenning is a commercial pilot during the time when the airline industry was just in its initial throes, that period between the World Wars. He has just completed a frustrating job, returning to London from Manchester and wants some time off. His boss, Morris, has other ideas and sends him to Portsmouth to pick up an important client. This job will ultimately change Stenning's life drastically. Airplane problems means he has to crash in a field. Trapped in the plane he is rescued by escaped prisoner, Compton. Feeling an obligation to Compton, who says that he was set up by his step brother, Italian Mattani, who is involved in shipping illegal drugs to England.
This introduction begins a fascinating adventure. Stenning tries to lay a false trail to keep the police off Compton, sailing around the southern coast of England, traveling to Italy to gain information on Mattani and ultimately helping Scotland Yard in their efforts. The story is slow paced at the beginning but we get to know about Stenning and gradually more about his past. He goes through a personality change as he finds out more about Mattani and remembers how drugs have fatally affected close friends. The story focuses on Stenning but we also meet other characters who are very interesting; Compton's cousin Joan Stevenson (who plays a relatively minor role but has a strong impact on Stenning with her strength of character and clear vision), Stenning's Italian friend from WWI de Leglia who provides such assistance in Italy, and the two Scotland Yard officials, Sir David Carter and Maj Norman.
It's a great intro to the writing style of probably my favorite author, Nevil Shute. Interesting characters with flaws who get caught up in events that make them strong, fascinating individual. The other enjoyable aspect of this story was those portions dealing with the air industry and also the sailing on the high seas. Shute never gets too technical but he does paint a fascinating picture. As a minor note, I did find it fascinating how Shute seemed to treat the aircraft and boats as living characters, often referring to Stennings' actions with either as we, vice I. Small point but I liked it. Great story, great writer. (3.5 stars)
Philip Stenning is a commercial pilot during the time when the airline industry was just in its initial throes, that period between the World Wars. He has just completed a frustrating job, returning to London from Manchester and wants some time off. His boss, Morris, has other ideas and sends him to Portsmouth to pick up an important client. This job will ultimately change Stenning's life drastically. Airplane problems means he has to crash in a field. Trapped in the plane he is rescued by escaped prisoner, Compton. Feeling an obligation to Compton, who says that he was set up by his step brother, Italian Mattani, who is involved in shipping illegal drugs to England.
This introduction begins a fascinating adventure. Stenning tries to lay a false trail to keep the police off Compton, sailing around the southern coast of England, traveling to Italy to gain information on Mattani and ultimately helping Scotland Yard in their efforts. The story is slow paced at the beginning but we get to know about Stenning and gradually more about his past. He goes through a personality change as he finds out more about Mattani and remembers how drugs have fatally affected close friends. The story focuses on Stenning but we also meet other characters who are very interesting; Compton's cousin Joan Stevenson (who plays a relatively minor role but has a strong impact on Stenning with her strength of character and clear vision), Stenning's Italian friend from WWI de Leglia who provides such assistance in Italy, and the two Scotland Yard officials, Sir David Carter and Maj Norman.
It's a great intro to the writing style of probably my favorite author, Nevil Shute. Interesting characters with flaws who get caught up in events that make them strong, fascinating individual. The other enjoyable aspect of this story was those portions dealing with the air industry and also the sailing on the high seas. Shute never gets too technical but he does paint a fascinating picture. As a minor note, I did find it fascinating how Shute seemed to treat the aircraft and boats as living characters, often referring to Stennings' actions with either as we, vice I. Small point but I liked it. Great story, great writer. (3.5 stars)
June 8, 2020
Not up to Shute's impressive standard, as Marazan is a basic adventure tale of a decommissioned war pilot working for a civilian company, getting involved with escaped prisoners, organised crime and the agencies Government working against them. 4 out of 12.
November 1, 2015
This is Nevil Shute's first novel. For me it was just ok. Still a worthwhile read for Shute fans, but I wouldn't recommend starting here if this is your first of his books.
May 30, 2015
Apparently, this is the first book Nevil Shute wrote. In his introduction, he mentions that he had to write it through three times. It seems pretty similar to vintage Shute, which means that it's a GoodRead, well worth one's time. It has many elements one finds in later Shute books, airplanes, small sailing vessels in the English Channel, and romance that progresses as two people slowly develop a friendship while they are working together to address a problem. It's at once calming and deeply engaging.
In this book, we have an airplane pilot who is a bit wild outside his flying, but quite competent within the flying. He has a crash because his plane was turned around too quickly, and the engine blew out on him. An escaped convict from Dartmoor saves his life. As a consequence, he becomes involved in saving the convict. It seems that the convict has an Italian half brother who is smuggling drugs into England, and the convict has escaped to try to stop the smuggling. After all, in England one doesn't do such things as smuggle drugs. The escaped con also has a female cousin who isn't all that much of a looker, but who is a competent, independent young woman. So naturally, while the pilot works to save the convict, by helping to bring the half brother to justice, he also falls for the cousin, because, after all, looks become ever so much more enchanting once wit and intelligence have had their chance to beguile the senses.
This is really a fun story. Perhaps not my favorite of Shute's works, but I've yet to find a dog among them. Why didn't I discover Nevil Shute earlier?
In this book, we have an airplane pilot who is a bit wild outside his flying, but quite competent within the flying. He has a crash because his plane was turned around too quickly, and the engine blew out on him. An escaped convict from Dartmoor saves his life. As a consequence, he becomes involved in saving the convict. It seems that the convict has an Italian half brother who is smuggling drugs into England, and the convict has escaped to try to stop the smuggling. After all, in England one doesn't do such things as smuggle drugs. The escaped con also has a female cousin who isn't all that much of a looker, but who is a competent, independent young woman. So naturally, while the pilot works to save the convict, by helping to bring the half brother to justice, he also falls for the cousin, because, after all, looks become ever so much more enchanting once wit and intelligence have had their chance to beguile the senses.
This is really a fun story. Perhaps not my favorite of Shute's works, but I've yet to find a dog among them. Why didn't I discover Nevil Shute earlier?
November 1, 2022
Free download available at FadedPage
This book was recommended by Chrissie. Another great book written by one the masters of story-telling.
5* A Town Like Alice
2* On the Beach
4* Pied Piper
4* Landfall
4.5* Most secret
4* Marazan
TR The Rainbow and the Rose
TR Trustee from the Toolroom
TR The Chequer Board
TR No Highway
TR Requiem for a Wren
This book was recommended by Chrissie. Another great book written by one the masters of story-telling.
5* A Town Like Alice
2* On the Beach
4* Pied Piper
4* Landfall
4.5* Most secret
4* Marazan
TR The Rainbow and the Rose
TR Trustee from the Toolroom
TR The Chequer Board
TR No Highway
TR Requiem for a Wren
July 31, 2019
Written in 1926 so extremely dated language. Can you imagine your pilot flying with his arm hanging out of the window or shutting the engine off to better hear a story? I thoroughly enjoyed this time warp tale which sadly still resonants with modern times concerning drug dealing and the destruction that causes.
February 22, 2024
MARAZAN by Nevil Shute published 1926
I was pleasantly surprised by this book, Nevil Shute’s debut novel. I’d read it as a teenager and was not so taken with it then. It’s better than I thought. Exciting, with drug smuggling, a daring-do pilot and ‘flossies’ (floozies in today’’s lingo I think); melodramatic (with a Moriati-type, evil foreign, fascist gentleman) and cinematic, in keeping with its day, but not politically correct in today’s ‘brave new world’. It is a pager-turner, especially at the climax. One pauses and smiles to think that in the present day, when we can track just about anything or anyone without all the observing they had to do on the ground for interception of the bad guys.
It is interesting to visualize Nevil Shute Norway in 1924 at age 25 working away on calculations for the great Airship R100 as the No 2 man under the great engineer, Barnes Wallis. At that time Shute was based at Crayford, Kent. In 1926, the whole team moved into their restored air station at Howden, Yorkshire. Barnes Wallis lived in Catford, London and worked in Westminster up until that time.
Nevil Shute was a well-educated, logical man of science and it shows in the way he lived his life and the way he operated. He was a man who ‘thought outside the box’. As he toiled by day on the great dirigible, he sat and wrote novels by night as recreation. One can see him sitting over an old Underwood puffing his pipe stuffed with aromatic Balkan Sabrani.
The descriptions of sailing around the Scillies off southwest England in the English Channel and the flying back in the early twenties are excellent. I guess there is no such place as Marazan Sound, at least I could not find it. Shute’s works are cinematic and paced well for adaption into film.
He talks about fascists. In those days he could not have known that they would turn out to be the bad guys as were the communists in Russia and China. He wasn’t to know they were just another bunch of Socialists of a different brand. He shows his old friend as one of the good fascists!
An interesting read for Shutists. He certainly inspired me over the course of my life. Four stars maybe a little on the high side, but I'm biased.
I was pleasantly surprised by this book, Nevil Shute’s debut novel. I’d read it as a teenager and was not so taken with it then. It’s better than I thought. Exciting, with drug smuggling, a daring-do pilot and ‘flossies’ (floozies in today’’s lingo I think); melodramatic (with a Moriati-type, evil foreign, fascist gentleman) and cinematic, in keeping with its day, but not politically correct in today’s ‘brave new world’. It is a pager-turner, especially at the climax. One pauses and smiles to think that in the present day, when we can track just about anything or anyone without all the observing they had to do on the ground for interception of the bad guys.
It is interesting to visualize Nevil Shute Norway in 1924 at age 25 working away on calculations for the great Airship R100 as the No 2 man under the great engineer, Barnes Wallis. At that time Shute was based at Crayford, Kent. In 1926, the whole team moved into their restored air station at Howden, Yorkshire. Barnes Wallis lived in Catford, London and worked in Westminster up until that time.
Nevil Shute was a well-educated, logical man of science and it shows in the way he lived his life and the way he operated. He was a man who ‘thought outside the box’. As he toiled by day on the great dirigible, he sat and wrote novels by night as recreation. One can see him sitting over an old Underwood puffing his pipe stuffed with aromatic Balkan Sabrani.
The descriptions of sailing around the Scillies off southwest England in the English Channel and the flying back in the early twenties are excellent. I guess there is no such place as Marazan Sound, at least I could not find it. Shute’s works are cinematic and paced well for adaption into film.
He talks about fascists. In those days he could not have known that they would turn out to be the bad guys as were the communists in Russia and China. He wasn’t to know they were just another bunch of Socialists of a different brand. He shows his old friend as one of the good fascists!
An interesting read for Shutists. He certainly inspired me over the course of my life. Four stars maybe a little on the high side, but I'm biased.
June 23, 2025
Setting: England (Isles of Scilly, London, West Country) & Italy; late 1920's.
This was the author's first published novel, set in the same between-war era as when published.
The main character, Captain Philip Stenning, is a post-war commercial pilot having flown during World War One. At the start of the novel, he is becoming a bit jaded with his work and is not pleased, having just returned from a stint of flying in the Manchester area, to be tasked with flying to the West Country late that evening to be ready for his next job. Distracted by his tiredness, he manages to crash his plane when the engine fails and would have died if he hadn't been rescued from the wreckage by an escaped convict - who he then feels obliged to help in his attempt to avoid recapture in order to prove his innocence...
Much about boating and aviation in this one - reading it reminded me of the style of the Biggles novels I used to love as a child, with gung ho action and characters who were either goodies or baddies. Certainly political correctness was laughably out of the window, with women being referred to as 'Flossies' and Stenning declining to take a lady friend to dine in central London because 'the restaurants are all full of Dagoes'!! Nevertheless, I quite enjoyed the read as it was somewhat of a trip down memory lane and, despite the sudden ending, I still would have to award it 3 stars - 7/10.
This was the author's first published novel, set in the same between-war era as when published.
The main character, Captain Philip Stenning, is a post-war commercial pilot having flown during World War One. At the start of the novel, he is becoming a bit jaded with his work and is not pleased, having just returned from a stint of flying in the Manchester area, to be tasked with flying to the West Country late that evening to be ready for his next job. Distracted by his tiredness, he manages to crash his plane when the engine fails and would have died if he hadn't been rescued from the wreckage by an escaped convict - who he then feels obliged to help in his attempt to avoid recapture in order to prove his innocence...
Much about boating and aviation in this one - reading it reminded me of the style of the Biggles novels I used to love as a child, with gung ho action and characters who were either goodies or baddies. Certainly political correctness was laughably out of the window, with women being referred to as 'Flossies' and Stenning declining to take a lady friend to dine in central London because 'the restaurants are all full of Dagoes'!! Nevertheless, I quite enjoyed the read as it was somewhat of a trip down memory lane and, despite the sudden ending, I still would have to award it 3 stars - 7/10.
January 1, 2022
A good, adventure novel. Although this is Nevil Shute’s first book, this is not one to start with if you are unfamiliar with his work. It’s not bad in any sense of the word, but very of its time in language and style.
Definitely a product of the 1920s, but the plot is involved and satisfyingly dramatic!
Definitely a product of the 1920s, but the plot is involved and satisfyingly dramatic!
September 4, 2022
Being rescued from certain death by an escaped convict makes for a thrilling story. Pilot Stenning's resolve to continue helping Compton as the risk to his own life grows greater and greater is almost unbelievable. Feeling that he owes his life to Compton, Stenning stops at nothing to help Compton.
I found the rhythm of the story a bit slow, which is a typical Nevil Shute pace. The ending was abrupt and weird, but the climax was tense and exciting. I think I would have liked the story better had Shute developed the characters some more. In this story, I felt the descriptions were lacking.
I found the rhythm of the story a bit slow, which is a typical Nevil Shute pace. The ending was abrupt and weird, but the climax was tense and exciting. I think I would have liked the story better had Shute developed the characters some more. In this story, I felt the descriptions were lacking.
February 5, 2022
An interesting adventure! The last chapter was great! It was Nevil Shute’s first book, published in 1926. Be aware that there are racial epithets in it that are not acceptable in today’s world.
September 1, 2022
This was Shute’s first published book. It wasn’t quite as good as his later books, but it was still very, very good.
I found his main character more emotional (as a young man would be) than were main characters in his later books. It’s not a bad thing, it’s just a difference I noticed.
The book is about a pilot who is rescued by someone, and through owing that person the debt of his life becomes drawn into their story of intrigue and adventure.
I found his main character more emotional (as a young man would be) than were main characters in his later books. It’s not a bad thing, it’s just a difference I noticed.
The book is about a pilot who is rescued by someone, and through owing that person the debt of his life becomes drawn into their story of intrigue and adventure.
May 23, 2019
First published in 1926, Nevil Shute’s writing style is of that era and very engaging. I find all his books a delight to read as he allows the reader into the very heart and mind of his characters. It is an era of limited flight and technology which makes for interesting and entertaining reading. The problems faced in the 1920’s and 30’s are still around today but on a much more sophisticated and harmful way. I chuckled to myself when he referred to Italians as Dagos and women attending bars as Flossie’s. So politically incorrect, but hey those are the things that add and don’t detract from Mr Shute.
This story looks at the problems of drugs and drug running and the way ordinary people can turn for or against this evil. Shutes heroes are not super heroes. They are ordinary people who rise to do good.
This story looks at the problems of drugs and drug running and the way ordinary people can turn for or against this evil. Shutes heroes are not super heroes. They are ordinary people who rise to do good.
March 29, 2025
I read this earlier soon after transplant. That was a bad period, and I thought I must have been a bit harsh with the rating. So read it again.
But it's of no use. This is one of the weakest Shutes I read by far. Apparently it was his first published novel, and it shows. Yet more than the amateurish pacing or the unnecessary jargon-ridden descriptions or the abrupt ending or even the foreshadowing which finally amounted to nothing, I am irritated by the England-first tone. The jingoism is unbearable. If that is something excusable for the time it was written in, the elitism and racism are repulsive. Chinks? Dagos? Lascar? Well!
For the rest, it is typical Shute: a man finds himself in an unfamiliar world, and does something unexpected ala a Samaritan. Here it is a blue collar guy in a white collar world.
And yes, turns out Shute is a a closet fan of fascism.
But it's of no use. This is one of the weakest Shutes I read by far. Apparently it was his first published novel, and it shows. Yet more than the amateurish pacing or the unnecessary jargon-ridden descriptions or the abrupt ending or even the foreshadowing which finally amounted to nothing, I am irritated by the England-first tone. The jingoism is unbearable. If that is something excusable for the time it was written in, the elitism and racism are repulsive. Chinks? Dagos? Lascar? Well!
For the rest, it is typical Shute: a man finds himself in an unfamiliar world, and does something unexpected ala a Samaritan. Here it is a blue collar guy in a white collar world.
And yes, turns out Shute is a a closet fan of fascism.
May 19, 2014
This early novel by Mr. Shute is not as polished as his mature work, but it is still interesting because it shows the origins of the narrative style which distinguishes his later novels. Shute said he completely rewrote Marazan twice before publishing it, but it still is rough in spots. Character development is uneven, there are too much deus ex machina and coincidence for my taste, and the climax and wrap-up leave loose ends that I believe would not have occurred in later Shute works. All that notwithstanding, it's a good story, albeit one that will probably appeal mostly to dedicated Shute fans. If you're reading Shute for the first time, start with one of his better-known novels.
August 18, 2015
This was Shute's first book to be published, so of course it's not nearly his best work, but still a pretty good read. It's a bit rough around the edges and of course quite old fashioned like all his work. Those who like Shute's stories are prepared to tolerate that aspect. First published in 1926, it reflects the social and political attitudes that prevailed in Britain at the time. His characters are not nearly as fully fleshed out as in his later books. The plot is more melodramatic than in most of Shute's work, dealing with drug smuggling and the sort of violence involved in that horrid trade. There is a degree of mystery as the plot begins to unfold but the ending is quite weak.
July 14, 2020
Shute is one of my favorite authors but this one didn't start well for me. At 45% I decided to rate it one star and I wrote this review: "I’m giving up on this one. If I were an experienced captain of a sailing ship and conversant with all sailing terminology perhaps I could deal with all the painful details of his sea trip. If I were intimately acquainted with the geography of England, including her western shores, islands, inlets, lighthouses and other landmarks, as well as every small town between London and the west coast, I might be riveted with his detailed narrative of train trips and travel on foot and at sea. If I could identify with a main character who thinks that drinking vast quantities of whisky is an effective substitute for a decent night’s sleep I might care what happens to him."
The next day I decided to plow through the rest of the book. At the 70% mark, I found a clue that this book was post WWI and began to suspect there might be a story here worth reading. All of Shute's other books I have read were during or after WWII. I finally read the author's note in which he said the novel was his first published book in 1926. After 25 years of obscurity he reedited and republished it.
I learned from this experience how important setting is. In terms of "place" Shute included entirely too much detail and in terms of "time" I missed any clues.
The next day I decided to plow through the rest of the book. At the 70% mark, I found a clue that this book was post WWI and began to suspect there might be a story here worth reading. All of Shute's other books I have read were during or after WWII. I finally read the author's note in which he said the novel was his first published book in 1926. After 25 years of obscurity he reedited and republished it.
I learned from this experience how important setting is. In terms of "place" Shute included entirely too much detail and in terms of "time" I missed any clues.
August 3, 2020
I have been avoiding novels for some years now, and most of those I have tried have been disappointments, but just lately I have had a dose of sloth, and have read a few that really have been not half bad. This is one. Nevil Shute generally is not bad anyway, because he wrote about things that he understood and people that he understood as well as one can expect to understand people. Marazan is somewhat flawed in that I get the impression that the author began to write before he had the plot worked out properly, and he leaves some loose ends. I suspect that was because he took too much trouble to sketch characters and situations that just dropped out of the story. I am not sure he did not do that deliberately because that is the way things happen in real life. Real life is not full of nicely wrapped up threads.
On the other hand, his characters were believable and often complex, and the character of the main protagonist clearly developed during the events. His references to the politics, the aircraft and the aircraft industry of the day were instructive and interesting and so was the action. The events were at least qualitatively based on real life -- I cannot vouch for their detailed origins, but they rang true.
Anyway, I did not count my reading time wasted, which I often have done with far more carefully written stories.
On the other hand, his characters were believable and often complex, and the character of the main protagonist clearly developed during the events. His references to the politics, the aircraft and the aircraft industry of the day were instructive and interesting and so was the action. The events were at least qualitatively based on real life -- I cannot vouch for their detailed origins, but they rang true.
Anyway, I did not count my reading time wasted, which I often have done with far more carefully written stories.
December 25, 2020
No doubt a fairly run-of-the-mill early twentieth-century, English mystery thriller, but stylistically extremely readable -- and fascinating for its representation of flying in the mid-1920s, its deployment of highly specialised sailing terminology, its description of police action against drug-smuggling into southern England, and its presentation of the Italian Fascisti at a time when Hitler and Nazism were still beyond the European horizon. Well worth reading -- although some of the aerial acrobatics do seem almost too good to be true! :-)
April 15, 2023
Shute’s earliest publicized novel - the comparison in writing and themes to his others is distinctly in line.
The story itself is interesting - airplanes, pilots with plenty of experience and the mechanics explained exceedingly well, a bit of murder, drug smuggling and boats+such water vehicles all supply the suspense in English waters.
page 206 “. . . On the ground I was one among many, but in the air it was different. . . . But just once and again we get our chance - the chance to do with our cunning hands what the whole world of cunning heads cannot achieve.”
A good 3.5 stars
The story itself is interesting - airplanes, pilots with plenty of experience and the mechanics explained exceedingly well, a bit of murder, drug smuggling and boats+such water vehicles all supply the suspense in English waters.
page 206 “. . . On the ground I was one among many, but in the air it was different. . . . But just once and again we get our chance - the chance to do with our cunning hands what the whole world of cunning heads cannot achieve.”
A good 3.5 stars
May 21, 2024
I really enjoyed this. It is not, perhaps, a great novel, but is a lovely period piece from the 1920s and the first published novel by Shute, who went on to become one of the most-read novelists of his day.
In part it's the little - and extraordinary - details that delight: two pilots trading stories, turning off the engine of their passenger plane for a while (to the consternation of the passengers) so as to hear each other better... that kind of thing.
But there's action and light romance, a rough-and-ready hero, and a good dramatic climax - all very satisfying.
In part it's the little - and extraordinary - details that delight: two pilots trading stories, turning off the engine of their passenger plane for a while (to the consternation of the passengers) so as to hear each other better... that kind of thing.
But there's action and light romance, a rough-and-ready hero, and a good dramatic climax - all very satisfying.
June 14, 2025
the edition I'm reading is not the twenties original, but one Mr Shute updated in the early 60's taking out some dated language he says - but be warned there are still plenty of casually racially inappropriate words. Though also a disabled character who plays a real role!
The story itself reminds me of Biggles, but for grown ups! It is a tale of daring do, from a time when a personal debt outweighed the law of the land.
I inherited this book from my Dad, now no longer with us, and I enjoyed enjoying something I knew he had enjoyed.
The story itself reminds me of Biggles, but for grown ups! It is a tale of daring do, from a time when a personal debt outweighed the law of the land.
I inherited this book from my Dad, now no longer with us, and I enjoyed enjoying something I knew he had enjoyed.
February 8, 2022
Nevil Shute's first novel is a fine tale of early aviation in Britain exploring the life of a pilot. Through a series of missteps Captain Stenning finds himself involved in a prison escape, drug smuggling and murder. With Scotland Yard on his track, he is caught at a critical moment. As the story builds the excitement builds and as a reader you want to know what is going to happen next. Shute is a master storyteller and his talent shows in this first novel. Great read.
October 30, 2025
I often find older books to be hard going, sometimes it's the language used or the slowness of the subject matter. Most of the classics I struggle to finish. something about the way Shute writes makes me want to read more of his books. The themes are not my usual genre but they make for an enjoyable change.
The language is modern enough it is easily understood, the story is one that keeps you reading and the book is not so long it becomes a chore.
The language is modern enough it is easily understood, the story is one that keeps you reading and the book is not so long it becomes a chore.
November 5, 2018
I enjoyed Nevil's (3rd,) novel, the the 1st to be published, when he was 27.
About a cocky pilot who becomes embroiled in an international mystery and not surprisingly, finds a romantic interest along the way.
I cant recommend it due to the subtle racism (which hopefully he grew out of as he matured.)
About a cocky pilot who becomes embroiled in an international mystery and not surprisingly, finds a romantic interest along the way.
I cant recommend it due to the subtle racism (which hopefully he grew out of as he matured.)
August 3, 2019
Written with an attitude, a first outing for what will become familiar NS settings, aeroplanes, small boats, and also a try at the strange role women play in these stories. Some of this attitude is now very distasteful, but that's possibly the way things were. Its an ok thriller with some great set pieces, especially the finale.
May 26, 2025
So far this is my least favorite Shute story. I’m sure that when it came out (1926) people couldn’t get enough of it. Shute himself was a pilot and the details of flying a small plane in pursuit of a ‘dope smuggler’ from Italy - a lot of details! - was exciting stuff. I found it to be rather dull and long winded. The story itself was pretty good but it could have been half its length for me.
November 21, 2025
That was a proper jolly jape, real boys own adventure. It was pure school boy fantasy from the mid 20th century. I found the storyline less than believable, but the language alone kept me turning the pages. It certainly lacks the polish and interest of Nevile Shute's later works and I am unlikely to ever read this again, but I'm glad I made the effort. Spiffing good show old chap.
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