I gave it a shot, but it was long-winded and boring. Not my cup of tea.

Lawrence Durrell's second novel The Dark Labyrinth was originally published as Cefalu in 1947. It's not clear why he uses the name of the Sicilian village for his fictional locale in Crete. An appended author's note quotes at length the passage from Henry Fanshawe Tozer's Islands of the Aegean (1875) that he says inspired the book. My Dutton paperback copy touts itself as an "early novel by the author of Justine" rather than an independent text of interest.

The main concern of the novel is with a sightseeing party from an English cruise, who are lost after an accident in a subterranean labyrinth in Crete. They enjoy a surprisingly wide diversity of fates. There is a flavor of allegory about the book, and the carefully constructed characters include a poet, a shorthand typist, a painter, an evangelist, a spiritualist-occultist, and a married couple. There is also a side story concerning a gentleman veteran rehabilitating his mental health and doing a bit of espionage.

Once I got the rhythm of the book, it was a speedy read. Durrell does not at all belabor the mythological allusions; there is perhaps just one mention of Ariadne, although the Minotaur is an active presence in the form of an indeterminate menace in the labyrinth itself--one which resolves differently for different characters. The Dark Labyrinth is not a genre novel, yet the later chapters swing rather dramatically among such strange attractors as horror and mystical philosophy, without being subordinated to them.

The Dark Labyrinth is very San Luis Rey, which may reveal too much but by the second page the deed is done, so there. Durrell paints a cast of unfortunate characters to descend into the titular abyss on the island of Crete. Themes of guilt, illness and ennui abound. Postwar disappointment leads our cast to East but not quite Exotic Marigold Hotel.

Despite the powerful Mediterranean atmosphere one could discern that Durrell is still struggling in the wake of Huxley, yet to depart for his own singular quantum ethos of Alexandra. 3.4 stars. ( )

A charming story with a good deal humor makes this book fun to read. Filled with enigmatic characters on a journey to Crete and its labyrinth. ( )

A bit like _A Passage to India_ set in Greece with different travelers having their own take on the unique setting. ( )