The Good Soldier

John Dowell, the narrator of this novel, is attempting to recount the saddest story he has ever heard. Interrupted incessantly by his own haphazard ramblings and casual musings, he reflects on the time he and his now-deceased wife Florence spent in the company of Edward and Leonora Ashburnham as he attempts to unpick the complex nature of the relationship between these two couples. We slowly discover that the wealth, the good intentions and the seeming respectability of these people serve to conceal deep fissures of temptation and corruption in their characters. The Good Soldier is so clearly the work of a master of composition and a remarkably rewarding and unique reading experience.