Sunday, June 29, 2008

The Valley of Bones - post IV

Things start to go quickly in mainland continental Europe with Hitler marching the Brits out of France.

Jenkins hears that his brother-in-law has been killed but as far as he is concerned he is no closer to the action. If anything his time with the Welsh regiment looks like stumbling as the officer he was closely associated with, Gwatklin, fails after forgetting the passwords.

Age is used against him but Jenkins is sent for at headquarters and as he walks in to talk to the back of the commanding officer the chair spins round and there is the familiar face of Widmerpool. After all these years where Jenkins has watched from the sidelines as the but of the jokes at school rises up he is finally in a position where he feels the full force of the reversal with his fortune now wrapped up firmly with his old school friend’s.

A review will follow soon…