Spoilers for The Greengage Summer by Rumer Godden
There were two issues I had with the book:
- I didn’t believe in Eliot sending a telegram to the children’s uncle. They’re not actually in physical danger, and he must have realised that the uncle would turn up sooner or later. He must also have realised that the telegram might give away his mode of transport. Surely it’s too big a risk to take? I just wasn’t convinced.
- It occurred to me that there might be some bad feeling between Joss and Cecil. Joss shops Eliot to the police, but she does so not knowing that he is a murderer who faces the death sentence if caught (and the book suggests that he will be caught). It’s true the telegram absolves her slightly of responsibility, because Eliot could have got away if he hadn’t sent it – but if Joss had known that Eliot had stopped Paul from attempting to rape her, then killed him – would she have sent the photo? I don’t think so. And Cecil could have told her – but she didn’t. You don’t really get a sense of this having affected their relationship.
