A survey of contemporary British fiction. Focussing primarily on the distinctive achievement and personality of each writer, the author also discusses the contribution of British fiction to such genres as women’s writing, the political novel, spy and crime fiction. Such questions as the rise of mass market publishing and the emergence of an international readership in assessing the role of the modern author as we approach the twenty-first century are also addressed. It also defines subject area as those written in English and first published in the United Kingdom. This book also contains an assessment of such post-war figures as Graham Greene, Anthony Powell and Iris Murdoch. An examination of the diverse strands and personalities of the modern British novel, ranging from John Le Carre and Anthony Burgess to Salman Rushdie and Angela Carter is also featured.