This ensemble novel takes place around a large house located in Dorset. It is owned by a couple, yet several of their friends and children also live there. There is an open marriage and various other "free" sexual relationships. We are constantly informed that these occurred in the 1960s/70s, but in the small town where I grew up, I never heard of such things. As a result, I can never fully believe in them 100%. Additionally, there is the apparent suicide of a civil servant known to several of the men. This incident involves black magic, making the whole thing even more difficult for me to believe.

That being said, after I managed to suspend my disbelief (about halfway through), I did find enjoyment in this novel. However, it was nowhere near as much as my favorite Murdoch novels. It shifted too rapidly from earnest self-analysis to melodrama, which at times disrupted the flow and made it a bit less engaging than it could have been. Overall, it had its moments but also had some flaws that prevented it from being a truly outstanding read.

My first encounter with Iris Murdoch's work was truly an interesting one. I found myself quite liking it.

The divide between being nice and being good is indeed a significant and rather rough one. The central character in the story endeavors to be good, which leads to his suffering. Meanwhile, his friends and the hosts of the country home weekends he is invited to are content with simply being nice. They may be shallower, but they seem to have a great deal of fun.

This is a thought-provoking book that makes one reflect on various aspects of human nature and behavior. However, I did have one issue with it. Given that I am reading it in 2011 and not in 1968 or whenever it was first published, perhaps it is a bit unfair of me. But the women in the book are defined solely through the male characters. By the time I finished the book, I still didn't really know who they were or what they wanted for themselves, other than to be with their men. They seemed to be constantly thinking about the males in every scene.

The men, on the other hand, seem to be having a great time. There is plenty of sex, crypts, rituals, and women even appear naked in their beds. And to the best of my recollection, not one of them cooked a single meal. It makes one wonder about the gender dynamics and the portrayal of characters in this particular work of literature.

I truly adored this book.

As I reached the end, I had to deliberately pace my reading to fully savor and enjoy every moment of it. And I have no doubt that I will read it again in the future.

This book contains a profound sense of thoughtfulness, while at the same time presenting an exacting provocation. It was this unique combination that made me love the experience of reading and thinking.

When a writer is able to offer a reader so much food for thought, it is indeed a precious gift.

The ideas and concepts presented in this book have stayed with me long after I finished reading, and I find myself constantly reflecting on them.

It has opened my eyes to new perspectives and ways of thinking, and for that, I am truly grateful.

I would highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good read that challenges their mind and makes them think.

It is a literary masterpiece that will surely be cherished by readers for years to come.

He had begun to glimpse the distance which separates the nice from the good, and the vision of this gap had terrified his soul.

* * * * *

Iris Murdoch (1968) is pre-visioning with alarming accuracy what has become known as the chattering classes. She wasn't aiming to be satirical, yet she comes close here. Octavian and Kate Gray often escape London for their Dorset 'cottage'. If they weren't so nice and ruthless in pursuing their own not-so-commendable satisfactions, it would be called a well-off 'hippy commune'. Besides other occasional London escapees, it houses several grace-and-favour residents. There's a perpetually anxious widow, a blue-stocking divorcée, a 'Holocaust Survivor', and Octavian's shambling older brother. The survivor exploits his suffering as an excuse to be a parasite in a smaller cottage. The Grays have an adolescent daughter back from a Swiss Finishing School. In the Murdochian way, they do little but introspect about their relationships or lack thereof. Neuroticism runs wild as none tell the truth. The Grays lie in bed, congratulating themselves on their superiority. When home truths emerge, she feels let down. This is a common criticism of Murdoch's novels.

Something shocking happened in Octavian Gray's office. A lesser employee shot himself, and the newspapers smell a scandal. Mr Gray is useless and calls in two colleagues. Richard Biranne is the most sensible. John Duccane, a priggish Scot, is ethically confused. He's given the job of an unofficial inquiry. Enter Mr and Mrs McGrath, amiable rogues. They make mincemeat of Duccane and he doubts his virtue. Duccane salvages a shred of honour with an act of heroism, only to find his manservant has run off with Mrs McGrath.

For a brilliant blend of Platonic metaphysics, inventive story-telling, and sharp character analysis with irony, Iris Murdoch has no equal. So, what separates the good from the nice? To continue the quote: "He had seen, far off, what is perhaps the most dreadful thing in the world, the other face of love, its blank face." This dilemma underpinned all of Murdoch's philosophical life. To be nice, we may not be good. To be good, niceness may be irrelevant. A saint may be a fraud or a bore. Nice enough may compromise with good enough, but it's rarely accomplished among Murdoch's characters. Only one or two simpler-minded ones achieve it, or perhaps Murdoch herself, practicing the highest form of virtue, honest and clear-sighted self-realization.

The suicide of an occult-minded civil servant has brought to light a web of deception and blackmail.

His colleague, who has been charged with looking into his death, is part of a typical Murdochian group of obsessives in a country setting, all intricately related and caught in a circle of frustrated sexual attraction.

Few writers have the ability to rely on such clever dialogue to tell a story, and here it ends rather too neatly, with all the couples united, much like in some Jacobean comedy.

It is far-fetched, to be sure, but Murdoch's dexterity is so seductive that it persuades me to believe in the barely credible, such as black magic and that awful literary conceit of precocious children.

Overall, it is a rather lightweight romp, rather than a very deep examination of morality.

This novel truly took me an eternity to read, and yet, I'm not entirely certain why that was the case because, in all honesty, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Iris Murdoch is indeed one of the great novelists hailing from the UK. She was not only a brilliant wordsmith but also a respected professor of philosophy at Oxford. The distinction between being nice and being good lies at the very core of this captivating story.

However, it can also be regarded as the tale of a group of intricately entwined individuals, all connected to one another in the most interesting and ingenious of ways. There are the Grays, Octavian and Kate, who own a charming small estate in the countryside just outside of London. Their children, the winsome Barbara and the precocious young twins, Edward and Harriet, add to the family dynamic. Along with them live several others: Willy, a survivor of the horrors of Dachau; Uncle Theo, Octavian's brother, who returned from India under a mysterious cloud that is only revealed at the very end; Mary and Pierce, a mother and son duo; Paula, who is divorced from Richard Biranne, who works with Octavian; Casie, the efficient housekeeper; and the frequent visitor, John Ducane. Octavian, Richard Biranne, and Ducane all work together as civil servants.

The central narrative is set in motion by the untimely death of Radeechy, who works for Octavian. Apparently, he commits suicide in his office and leaves no suicide note. It does take some time and effort to fully immerse oneself in this story, but I'm extremely glad that I persevered and kept on reading.

One of her best novels,

it features the typical relationship intrigues and a diverse cast of characters. However, in this particular work, there are several thrilling sequences. Notably, the one set in the sea caves is truly captivating. Additionally, it has a solid crime theme that implies she could have achieved great success had she focused solely on this genre.

The novel concludes optimistically, which is more satisfying than some of her other works. From my rather extensive, yet not comprehensive, reading of her novels, this middle period piece appears to be especially incisive, perceptive, and well-structured. It showcases her growth as a writer and her ability to craft engaging stories that keep the reader hooked from beginning to end.

Overall, it is a remarkable addition to her body of work and a must-read for fans of her writing.

God, I truly love Iris Murdoch. This is my eleventh book of hers, and coincidentally, it's also her eleventh book. Yet, I was still completely amazed by how immediately excellent it is.

There is the usual wide cast of characters with their intertwined crises and affairs. Each of them is impeccably drawn and treated as full three-dimensional thinking and feeling beings, in a way that few writers are ever capable of. But soon, a more central thread emerges. John Ducane is investigating a suicide at his office and becomes far too involved in all the wrong ways.

This mystery perhaps has more plot than Murdoch usually has. It opens with a gunshot, traces of black magic and erotic rites, blackmail, and deceit. Exciting stuff indeed! There's also a recurrence of the flying saucer imagery from The Philosopher's Pupil. I'm not sure what's up with that, but the whole thing is a lot of fun. People are falling in and out of love, having accidental revelations, and there's an actual setpiece climax. It's an escape from a flooding sea cave, done in total darkness, a real tense physical life or death moment, as opposed to Murdoch's usual way of ruining your life: existential crisis and/or sexual indiscretion.

Of course, those elements aren't lacking here either. In fact, there's way more sex in this one than usual, although there's generally a pretty high amount anyway. The blurb gets fancy and calls it 'eros', but really these people are horny. They are ridiculous people who make ridiculous decisions. Multiple plot developments made me break out into a huge grin or start laughing on the train. Maybe the conclusion is a little soapy, but it's hard to be at all mad about that when it's still so funny, thoughtful, and human, just like Murdoch's work always is. It's top tier in all regards.

Beautiful, gorgeous, enchanting - these are just a few of the words that come to mind when I think of love.

Love is a force that can consume us, make us do things we never thought possible, and bring us to heights of joy we never imagined.

It's like a magical spell that casts a glow over everything we see and do.

A love letter to love? Perhaps. But it seems that from the very start, there are just too many characters involved.

So many emotions, so many hopes and dreams, all交织在一起 in a beautiful and chaotic mess.

It's enough to make my head spin a little, but in the best possible way.

Because with love, there is always a sense of excitement, a feeling of anticipation for what's to come.

And even though it can be overwhelming at times, I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world.

Love is truly a beautiful thing, and I'm grateful to have experienced it.

Two stories are truly interwoven into one.

The mysterious death of a civil servant triggers a high-level investigation by the central character, the lawyer Ducane.

There is also a story about Ducane and a diverse group of friends and family who spend their summer at his line manager's communal summer residence in Cornwall.

Their individual reasons for being, their interrelationships, affairs, and affections are closely scrutinized.

Underlying it all, it is a treatise on love, selflessness, and the higher good.

A strong sense of mysticism and magic pervades throughout, as in many of her novels.

The ending is very satisfying regarding almost all those involved.

It keeps the readers engaged from start to finish, with its complex characters and intricate plotlines.

The author skillfully weaves together the two storylines, creating a rich and multi-layered narrative.

The description of the summer residence in Cornwall adds a touch of idyllic charm to the story.

Overall, it is a captivating and thought-provoking read that will leave a lasting impression on the reader.

3 and a half stars
The Nice and the Good was an odd combination of a murder mystery, a romantic comedy, and a rural farce. It was not unlike The Diary of a Provincial Lady of Cold Comfort Farm, both of which left me uninterested and unmoved, making me wonder what all the commotion was about. If it weren't for this readalong with Liz, I suspect I might have felt the same way about Murdoch's books.

Murdoch's books focus on intelligence, philosophy, and the art of writing. They lack heart and soul. The only way I can get through them is to embrace the cognitive aspect and conduct extensive research on them (to quote Matt Damon in The Martian).

The additional research I'm doing for these books has allowed me to delve deeper into IM's themes, interests, and intentions. I've explored some of her philosophical ideas, translated her numerous uses of Latin, French, and German phrases, and googled the various artworks, authors, and poets she has mentioned in her books. These are things I enjoy doing, as long as I don't have to do it for every single book I read!

The Nice and the Good led me directly to the elegiac poet, Sextus Propertius (circa 50 BC - 15 BC). One of our main characters, Willy, is writing a book about Propertius. I now know enough about IM to understand that this is significant. Just reading some of the quotes most famously attributed to Propertius quickly revealed that many of her plot points and character arcs could be connected to these.
Full review here - http://bronasbooks.blogspot.com/2018/...

Most critics believe that this is a formidable novel.

It begins with a mysterious suicide, quickly getting rid of the classic forms of the "thriller" and transforming into a true philosophical entertainment full of cultural references that explore the boundaries between sexual passion, love, and friendship.

What has particularly caught my attention is some criticism that describes this novel as an ingenious rewrite of an episode from the history of Genji (Genji Monogatari), a classic Japanese novel from the 11th century by the author Murasaki Shikibu. In fact, it is known that this Japanese novel fascinated Iris Murdoch so much that...

Read the full review at:

https://librosmagazine.wordpress.com/...

This novel seems to offer a unique blend of mystery and philosophical exploration. The initial suicide sets the stage for a journey that delves deep into the complex emotions and relationships of the characters.

The comparison to the Genji Monogatari adds an interesting layer of cultural and literary depth. It makes one wonder how Murdoch might have reimagined and adapted the themes and storylines from this classic work.

Overall, it appears to be a novel that has the potential to engage readers on multiple levels and leave them with much to思考 and discuss.

Perhaps it is a work that will stand the test of time and become a classic in its own right. Only further reading and exploration will tell.