Coronet Books

13 total works

The Tower of Babel

by Morris West

Published March 1968

Large Print edition

Second Victory

by Morris West

Published December 1958

Winter 1945. The Second World War is over, but it is a time of armistice, not peace. Austria is grieving its defeat and the loss of a generation of men; it is a land without leaders. To men like Major Mark Hanlon, Occupation Commander of the alpine town of Bad Quellenberg, falls the task of destroying the legacy of the Nazis once and for all. When his driver is murdered by an Austrian soldier, Hanlon is determined to bring the man to justice. But investigating the crime proves difficult in a community where nearly everyone has something to hide. Morris West's fast-moving story brilliantly evokes the atmosphere of occupation in a traumatised postwar Europe. Enormously readable, and Morris West contrives to give both pace and suspense. The Times Literary Supplement A successful blending of action and insight. The Scotsman

Daughter of Silence

by Morris West

Published December 1961

At high noon on a hot summer's day, a beautiful young woman shoots the mayor dead. So begins a story of passion and betrayal in a quiet Tuscan village, leading to a sensational trial. The defense team, headed by the brilliant but unhappy Carlo Rienzi, uncovers a sinister conspiracy of silence that threatens to split the community. Can Carlo persuade the judge to grant clemency in what appears to be an open-and-shut case? Can the law intervene in the brutal tradition of vendetta? An international bestseller, Daughter of Silence is a gripping novel with a masterful twist at the end.

The World is Made of Glass

by Morris West

Published 1 July 1983

A cryptic and mysterious case history appears in the autobiography of pioneering Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung: A lady came to my office. She refused to give her name . . . What she had to communicate to me was a confession. Some twenty years ago, she had committed a murder . . . Jung's encounter with the woman had an explosive effect on him, and brought him very close to total breakdown. Morris West recreates this episode in a gripping blend of truth and dramatic speculation. Set in pre-World War I Europe, The World is Made of Glass is a powerful novel of love, sexual obsession, murder and guilt. It has been called Morris West's finest creation of the imagination. An audacious and wonderful novel. The Mail on Sunday 'An enthralling story. The Spectator

The Devil's Advocate

by Morris West

Published July 1965

In an impoverished village in southern Italy, the enigmatic life and mysterious death of Giacomo Nerone has inspired talk of sainthood.

Father Blaise Meredith, a dying English priest, is sent by the Vatican to investigate. As he tries to untangle the web of facts, rumours and outright lies that surround Nerone, The Devil's Advocate reminds us how the power of goodness ultimately prevails over despair.

Summer of the Red Wolf

by Morris West

Published September 1971

Large Print edition

Clowns of God

by Morris West

Published 1 April 1981

Pope Gregory XVII has spent a lifetime quietly serving the Church he loves-until he announces a prophecy so alarming that it threatens to tear the Vatican apart. Terrified, the Vatican cardinals imprison him in a monastery. Is he mad, as they believe, or is it all an elaborate plot? An old friend of the pope sets out on a risky quest to find out. On the way, he discovers the power of love and faith, while terrorists and politicians use every deadly and unholy means to stop him. The Clowns of God spent twenty-two weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, and is the second novel in Morris West's Vatican trilogy. West is a skillful storyteller who knows how to build suspense into every twist of the plot. The Christian Science Monitor An engrossing tale that keeps you reading impatiently all the way through. Goodreads review

The Naked Country

by Morris West

Published 7 October 1974

Lance Dillon is owner of a new cattle station on the southern fringe of Australia's Arnhem Land. When an Aboriginal hunting party targets Dillon's prize bull for a ritual killing, and then spears Dillon in the shoulder, it's clear they want him off their traditional land. Under the merciless rays of the burning sun, the wounded Dillon flees into the bush, with expert tracker Mundaru in hot pursuit. Dillon's city-born wife Mary and handsome local policeman Neil Adams set out to search for her husband. The gruelling journey throws them together, and it is not long before each is secretly hoping that Dillon is never found alive. The Naked Country is a terrifying manhunt set in one of the harshest and most remote regions of the world. West is a great storyteller, a writer who can spin a fine yarn, and keep us guessing until the tale is told. The Age

The Salamander

by Morris West

Published 23 July 1973

A psychological thriller which begins with a routine murder enquiry but leads to further intrigue through the discovery of a card on the corpse imprinted with a salamander. The author has written a number of bestsellers including "The Shoes of the Fisherman" and "The Clowns of God". The author is the chairman of the Council of the National Library in Australia.

Children of the Sun

by Morris West

Published December 1957

Though eight years old, his body is so small, his face so pinched, you would take him for five or six. Antonino is an abandoned child struggling for survival in the dark alleys of Naples. He is one of thousands whose waking hours are spent in petty crime and whose bed is a street grating above a baker's oven.Yet there is hope, in the shape of a young priest, Mario Borrelli. In a journey of self-transformation and love, Father Borrelli befriends the street children and sets up a support network for them: The House of the Urchins. Morris West spent time in the slums of impoverished postwar Naples. His chilling account of the local street urchins in his international bestseller Children of the Sun drew the world's attention to their plight, and offers a timeless insight into child poverty. West's portrayal of Father Borelli has inspired many others to follow in Borelli's footsteps.

McCreary Moves in

by Morris West

Published 7 October 1974

Cassidy

by Morris West

Published 1 February 1987

Even in death, Cassidy is larger than life. Charles Parnell Cassidy is a powerful politician. He's a backroom fixer: generous, but also greedy and cunning. Martin Gregory is his disenchanted protege who, having married Cassidy's daughter and become a success on his own terms, scorns his father-in-law.When the terminally ill Cassidy arrives in London to die, he makes Gregory the executor of his will and sets a complex trap by offering him the keys to a vast empire of wealth and corruption spanning Australia and Southeast Asia. With Cassidy's evil influence ever-present, Gregory tries to unravel the old man's complicated obligations and debts, while struggling to ensure the security of his family.

The Ambassador

by Morris West

Published May 1965

American ambassador Maxwell Gordon Amberley has a reputation as a tough negotiator. Yet when he is sent to Vietnam, the dilemma he faces throws him into self-doubt. He is made arbiter of his nation's fate on the one hand, and of the life and death of the ruling house of Vietnam on the other. Out of every international crisis comes at least one great book. From the explosive, bitter and savage battlefront of Vietnam, Morris West's masterly novel The Ambassador brings to life the early days of the Vietnam War and its backroom political dealings, foreshadowing the repercussions that continue today.