[In the following review, the critic declares that Defy the Foul Fiend will fail to gain a wide readership despite its attributes.]

These two novels, [Defy the Foul Fiend, and Brian Guy, by Benjamin Appel] so completely different in temper and style, are in many respects the same story. They each describe a gifted young man who would rather do anything than earn what is described by old-fashioned persons as an honest living; the two heroes are both agreeable wastrels, in short, with no regard for their elders and betters and with an irresistible attraction for charming young ladies—the one for amateur, the other for professional whores. But not to pursue the comparison too far, it should be said hastily that Mr. Collier's novel is urbane, intelligent, and a delight to the ear; and beneath its witty and cruel casualness is a deep foundation of tradition and sober virtue, along with an ability to render the English countryside in terms that make it tender and real. Mr. Appel's novel, on the other hand, is one of the more unfortunate examples of the tough-baby, put-'em-on-the-spot, but-I'll-always-be-true-to-my-little-girl type of modern fiction. There is every reason to expect that Brain Guy, however, will have the same sort of success, although it is not so direct or so sharp, as The Postman Always Rings Twice. While Defy the Foul Fiend, it is to be feared will be read only by that comparatively small group of persons who appreciate excellence, particularly when it is combined with wit. If advice from a reviewer is pertinent at this point, it might be wise to borrow Brain Guy from an obliging friend, and to spend the required sum to make Defy the Foul Fiend one's own.