The novel “Tender is the Night. Francis Scott Fitzgerald - Tender is the Night

Night is tender
F. S. Fitzgerald

Night is tender

1925 Rosemary Hoyt, a young but already famous Hollywood actress after her success in the film “Daddy’s Daughter,” comes to the Cote d’Azur with her mother. , not the season, only one of the many hotels is open. On a deserted beach there are two groups of Americans: “white-skinned” and “dark-skinned,” as Rosemary called them to herself. The girl is much prettier than the “dark-skinned” ones - tanned, beautiful, relaxed, they are at the same time impeccably tactful; she willingly accepts the invitation to join them and immediately falls a little childishly in love with Dick Diver, the soul of this company. Dick and his wife Nicole are local residents and have a house in the village of Tarm; Abe and Mary North and Tommy Barban are their guests. Rosemary is fascinated by the ability of these people to live cheerfully and beautifully - they constantly arrange fun and pranks; a kind, powerful force emanates from Dick Diver, forcing people to obey him with unreasoning adoration... Dick is irresistibly charming, he wins hearts with extraordinary attentiveness, captivating courtesy of treatment, and so directly and easily that victory is won before the conquered have time to understand anything. Seventeen-year-old Rosemary sobs on her mother’s breast in the evening: I’m in love with him, and he has such a wonderful wife! However, Rosemary is in love with Nicole too - with the whole company: she has never met such people before. And when the Divers invite her to go with them to Paris to see off the Norths - Abe (he is a composer) returns to America, and Mary heads to Munich to study singing - she readily agrees.

In Paris, during one of the dizzying escalades, Rosemary says to herself: “Well, here I am, wasting my life.” While shopping with Nicole, she becomes familiar with how a very rich woman spends money. Rosemary falls even more in love with Dick, and he barely has the strength to maintain the image of an adult, twice his age, serious man - he is by no means indifferent to the charms of this “girl in bloom”; Half-child, Rosemary does not understand what kind of avalanche she has caused. Meanwhile, Abe North goes on a drinking binge and, instead of leaving for America, in one of the bars he provokes a conflict between American and Parisian blacks among themselves and with the police; Dick gets to sort out this conflict; the showdown ends with the corpse of a black man in Rosemary's room. Dick arranged it so that the reputation of “Daddy’s Girl” remained untarnished - the case was hushed up, there were no reporters, but the Divers left Paris in a hurry. When Rosemary looks into the door of their room, she hears an inhuman howl and sees Nicole's face distorted by madness: she is staring at a blanket smeared with blood. It was then that she realized what Mrs. McKisco had not had time to tell. And Dick, returning with Nicole to the Cote d'Azur, for the first time in six years of marriage feels that for him this is a path from somewhere, and not somewhere.

In the spring of 1917, Doctor of Medicine Richard Diver, having been demobilized, comes to Zurich to complete his education and receive an academic degree. The war passed him by - even then he was too valuable to be used as cannon fodder; On a scholarship from the State of Connecticut, he studied at Oxford, completed a course in America and interned in Vienna with the great Freud himself. In Zurich, he is working on the book “Psychology for a Psychiatrist” and during sleepless nights he dreams of being kind, being sensitive, being brave and smart - and also being loved, if this does not interfere. At twenty-six, he still retained many youthful illusions - the illusion of eternal strength, and eternal health, and the predominance of good principles in a person - however, these were the illusions of an entire people.

Near Zurich, in the psychiatric hospital of Dr. Domler, his friend and colleague Franz Gregorovius works. For three years now, the daughter of an American millionaire, Nicole Warren, has been in this hospital; she lost her mind, becoming her own father's mistress at the age of sixteen. Her treatment program included correspondence with Diver. In three years, Nicole's health has improved so much that she is about to be discharged. Having met her correspondent, Nicole falls in love with him. Dick is in a difficult position: on the one hand, he knows that this feeling was partly provoked for medicinal purposes; on the other hand, he, who “assembled her personality from pieces” like no one else, understands that if this feeling is taken away from her, then there will be emptiness in her soul. And besides, Nicole is very beautiful, and he is not only a doctor, but also a man. Contrary to reason and the advice of Franz and Domler, Dick marries Nicole. He is aware that relapses of the disease are inevitable - he is ready for this. He sees a much bigger problem in Nicole’s wealth - after all, he is not marrying her money (as Nicole’s sister Baby thinks), but rather in spite of it - but this does not stop him either. They love each other, and, despite everything, they are happy.

Fearing for Nicole's health, Dick pretends to be a convinced homebody - for six years of marriage they almost never separated. During a protracted relapse that occurred after the birth of their second child, daughter Topsy, Dick learned to separate the sick Nicole from the healthy Nicole and, accordingly, during such periods feel only like a doctor, leaving aside the fact that he is also a husband.

Before his eyes and with his hands, the personality of “Nicole is healthy” was formed and turned out to be very bright and strong, so much so that more and more often he is irritated by her attacks, from which she does not bother to restrain herself, being already quite capable. He’s not the only one who thinks Nicole is using her illness to maintain power over those around her.

Dick is trying with all his might to maintain some financial independence, but this is becoming more and more difficult for him: it is not easy to resist the flow of things and money that floods him - Nicole also sees this as a lever of her power. They are being driven further and further away from the simple conditions on which their union was once concluded... The duality of Dick's position - husband and doctor - destroys his personality: he cannot always distinguish the distance required by the doctor in relation to the patient from the chill in his heart in relation to his wife , with whom he is one flesh and blood...

Rosemary's appearance made him realize all this. Nevertheless, outwardly the life of the Divers does not change.

Christmas 1926 Divers meet in the Swiss Alps; Franz Gregorovius visits them. He invites Dick to jointly buy a clinic so that Dick, the author of many recognized works on psychiatry, would spend several months a year there, which would give him material for new books, and he would take over the clinical work. And of course, “why can a European turn to an American if not for money?” start-up capital is required to purchase a clinic. Dick agrees, allowing himself to be convinced by Baby, who mainly manages the Warrens’ money and considers this enterprise profitable, that staying at the clinic in a new capacity will benefit Nicole’s health. “There I wouldn’t have to worry about her at all,” says Baby.

This did not happen. A year and a half of monotonous, measured life on Lake Zug, where there is nowhere to escape from each other, provokes a severe relapse: having staged a scene of causeless jealousy, Nicole, with an insane laugh, almost derails the car in which not only she and Dick were sitting, but also the children. Unable to live from attack to attack any longer, Dick, entrusting Nicole to the care of Franz and the nurse, leaves to take a break from her, from himself... supposedly to Berlin for a congress of psychiatrists. There he receives a telegram about his father's death and goes to America for the funeral. On the way back, Dick stops by in Rome with the secret thought of seeing Rosemary, who is filming her next film there. Their meeting took place; what once began in Paris has found its completion, but Rosemary’s love cannot save him - he no longer has the strength for a new love. “I'm like the Black Death. Now I only bring misfortune to people,” Dick says bitterly.

After parting with Rosemary, he becomes monstrously drunk; He is rescued from the police station, terribly beaten, by Baby, who ends up in Rome - she is almost pleased that Dick is no longer blameless towards their family.

Dick drinks more and more, and more and more often his charm, ability to understand everything and forgive everything betrays him. He was almost unaffected by the readiness with which Franz accepted his decision to quit the case and leave the clinic - Franz himself already wanted to offer him this, because the reputation of the clinic was not benefited by the constant smell of alcohol emanating from Dr. Diver.

What is new for Nicole is that now she cannot shift her problems onto him; she has to learn to take responsibility for herself. And when this happened, Dick disgusted her, like a living reminder of the years of darkness. They become strangers to each other.

The divers return to Tarm, where they meet Tommy Barban - he fought in several wars, changed; and the new Nicole looks at him with new eyes, knowing that he has always loved her. Rosemary also finds herself on the Cote d'Azur. Influenced by memories of his first meeting with her five years ago, Dick tries to organize something similar to past escapades, and Nicole, with cruel clarity, enhanced by jealousy, sees how he has aged and changed. Everything around has also changed - this place has become a fashionable resort, the beach, which Dick once cleared with a rake every morning, is filled with people like the “pale-faces” of that time, Mary North (now Countess Minghetti) does not want to recognize the Divers... Dick leaves this beach like a deposed king, who lost his kingdom.

Nicole, celebrating her final healing, becomes Tommy Barban's mistress and then marries him, while Dick returns to America. He practices in small towns, never staying anywhere for long, and letters from him come less and less often.

1925 Rosemary Hoyt, a young but already famous Hollywood actress after her success in the film “Daddy’s Daughter,” comes to the Cote d’Azur with her mother. Summer is not the season, only one of the many hotels is open. On a deserted beach there are two groups of Americans: “white-skinned” and “dark-skinned,” as Rosemary called them to herself. The girl is much prettier than the “dark-skinned” ones - tanned, beautiful, relaxed, they are at the same time impeccably tactful; she willingly accepts the invitation to join them and immediately falls a little childishly in love with Dick Diver, the soul of this company. Dick and his wife Nicole are local residents and have a house in the village of Tarm; Abe and Mary North and Tommy Barban are their guests. Rosemary is fascinated by the ability of these people to live cheerfully and beautifully - they constantly arrange fun and pranks; a kind, powerful force emanates from Dick Diver, forcing people to obey him with unreasoning adoration... Dick is irresistibly charming, he wins hearts with extraordinary attentiveness, captivating courtesy of treatment, and so directly and easily that victory is won before the conquered have time to understand anything. Seventeen-year-old Rosemary sobs on her mother’s breast in the evening: I’m in love with him, and he has such a wonderful wife! However, Rosemary is in love with Nicole too - with the whole company: she has never met such people before. And when the Divers invite her to go with them to Paris to see off the Norths - Abe (he is a composer) returns to America, and Mary heads to Munich to study singing - she readily agrees.

In Paris, during one of the dizzying escalades, Rosemary says to herself: “Well, here I am, wasting my life.” While shopping with Nicole, she becomes familiar with how a very rich woman spends money. Rosemary falls even more in love with Dick, and he barely has the strength to maintain the image of an adult, twice his age, serious man - he is by no means indifferent to the charms of this “girl in bloom”; Half-child, Rosemary does not understand what kind of avalanche she has caused. Meanwhile, Abe North goes on a drinking binge and, instead of leaving for America, in one of the bars he provokes a conflict between American and Parisian blacks among themselves and with the police; Dick gets to sort out this conflict; the showdown ends with the corpse of a black man in Rosemary's room. Dick arranged it so that the reputation of “Daddy’s Girl” remained untarnished - the case was hushed up, there were no reporters, but the Divers left Paris in a hurry. When Rosemary looks into the door of their room, she hears an inhuman howl and sees Nicole's face distorted by madness: she is staring at a blanket smeared with blood. It was then that she realized what Mrs. McKisco had not had time to tell. And Dick, returning with Nicole to the Cote d'Azur, for the first time in six years of marriage feels that for him this is a path from somewhere, and not somewhere.

In the spring of 1917, Doctor of Medicine Richard Diver, having been demobilized, comes to Zurich to complete his education and receive an academic degree. The war passed him by - even then he was too valuable to be used as cannon fodder; On a scholarship from the State of Connecticut, he studied at Oxford, completed a course in America and interned in Vienna with the great Freud himself. In Zurich, he is working on the book “Psychology for a Psychiatrist” and during sleepless nights he dreams of being kind, being sensitive, being brave and smart - and also being loved, if this does not interfere. At twenty-six, he still retained many youthful illusions - the illusion of eternal strength, and eternal health, and the predominance of good principles in a person - however, these were the illusions of an entire people.

Near Zurich, in the psychiatric hospital of Dr. Domler, his friend and colleague Franz Gregorovius works. For three years now, the daughter of an American millionaire, Nicole Warren, has been in this hospital; she lost her mind, becoming her own father's mistress at the age of sixteen. Her treatment program included correspondence with Diver. In three years, Nicole's health has improved so much that she is about to be discharged. Having met her correspondent, Nicole falls in love with him. Dick is in a difficult position: on the one hand, he knows that this feeling was partly provoked for medicinal purposes; on the other hand, he, who “assembled her personality from pieces” like no one else, understands that if this feeling is taken away from her, then there will be emptiness in her soul. And besides, Nicole is very beautiful, and he is not only a doctor, but also a man. Contrary to reason and the advice of Franz and Domler, Dick marries Nicole. He is aware that relapses of the disease are inevitable - he is ready for this. He sees a much bigger problem in Nicole’s wealth - after all, he is not marrying her money (as Nicole’s sister Baby thinks), but rather in spite of it - but this does not stop him either. They love each other, and, despite everything, they are happy.

Fearing for Nicole's health, Dick pretends to be a convinced homebody - for six years of marriage they almost never separated. During a protracted relapse that occurred after the birth of their second child, daughter Topsy, Dick learned to separate the sick Nicole from the healthy Nicole and, accordingly, during such periods feel only like a doctor, leaving aside the fact that he is also a husband.

Before his eyes and with his hands, the personality of “Nicole is healthy” was formed and turned out to be very bright and strong, so much so that more and more often he is irritated by her attacks, from which she does not bother to restrain herself, being already quite capable. He’s not the only one who thinks Nicole is using her illness to maintain power over those around her.

Dick is trying with all his might to maintain some financial independence, but this is becoming more and more difficult for him: it is not easy to resist the flow of things and money that floods him - Nicole also sees this as a lever of her power. They are being driven further and further away from the simple conditions on which their union was once concluded... The duality of Dick's position - husband and doctor - destroys his personality: he cannot always distinguish the distance required by the doctor in relation to the patient from the chill in his heart in relation to his wife , with whom he is one flesh and blood...

Rosemary's appearance made him realize all this. Nevertheless, outwardly the life of the Divers does not change.

Christmas 1926 Divers meet in the Swiss Alps; Franz Gregorovius visits them. He invites Dick to jointly buy a clinic so that Dick, the author of many recognized works on psychiatry, would spend several months a year there, which would give him material for new books, and he would take over the clinical work. And of course, “why can a European turn to an American if not for money?” start-up capital is required to purchase a clinic. Dick agrees, allowing himself to be convinced by Baby, who mainly manages the Warrens’ money and considers this enterprise profitable, that staying at the clinic in a new capacity will benefit Nicole’s health. “There I wouldn’t have to worry about her at all,” says Baby.

This did not happen. A year and a half of monotonous, measured life on Lake Zug, where there is nowhere to escape from each other, provokes a severe relapse: having staged a scene of causeless jealousy, Nicole, with an insane laugh, almost derails the car in which not only she and Dick were sitting, but also the children. Unable to live from attack to attack any longer, Dick, entrusting Nicole to the care of Franz and the nurse, leaves to take a break from her, from himself... supposedly to Berlin for a congress of psychiatrists. There he receives a telegram about his father's death and goes to America for the funeral. On the way back, Dick stops by in Rome with the secret thought of seeing Rosemary, who is filming her next film there. Their meeting took place; what once began in Paris has found its completion, but Rosemary’s love cannot save him - he no longer has the strength for a new love. “I'm like the Black Death. Now I only bring misfortune to people,” Dick says bitterly.

After parting with Rosemary, he becomes monstrously drunk; He is rescued from the police station, terribly beaten, by Baby, who ends up in Rome - she is almost pleased that Dick is no longer blameless towards their family.

Dick drinks more and more, and more and more often his charm, ability to understand everything and forgive everything betrays him. He was almost unaffected by the readiness with which Franz accepted his decision to quit the case and leave the clinic - Franz himself already wanted to offer him this, because the reputation of the clinic was not benefited by the constant smell of alcohol emanating from Dr. Diver.

What is new for Nicole is that now she cannot shift her problems onto him; she has to learn to take responsibility for herself. And when this happened, Dick disgusted her, like a living reminder of the years of darkness. They become strangers to each other.

The divers return to Tarm, where they meet Tommy Barban - he fought in several wars, changed; and the new Nicole looks at him with new eyes, knowing that he has always loved her. Rosemary also finds herself on the Cote d'Azur. Influenced by memories of his first meeting with her five years ago, Dick tries to organize something similar to past escapades, and Nicole, with cruel clarity, enhanced by jealousy, sees how he has aged and changed. Everything around has also changed - this place has become a fashionable resort, the beach, which Dick once cleared with a rake every morning, is filled with people like the “pale-faces” of that time, Mary North (now Countess Minghetti) does not want to recognize the Divers... Dick leaves this beach like a deposed king, who lost his kingdom.

Nicole, celebrating her final healing, becomes Tommy Barban's mistress and then marries him, while Dick returns to America. He practices in small towns, never staying anywhere for long, and letters from him come less and less often.

Year of publication of the book: 1934

The novel Tender is the Night by Francis Scott Fitzgerald was first published in 1934. Work on it lasted nine years, but ultimately the book became one of the writer’s most popular works. In 1962, a feature film of the same name was made based on the plot of Scott Fitzgerald's work Tender is the Night. And the novel itself can still often be seen among the best books of the last century.

The novel “Tender is the Night” summary

Fitzgerald's Tender is the Night begins in 1925 on the Côte d'Azur in France. It is there that two women come for a few days - the young Hollywood actress Rosemary and her mother. An eighteen-year-old girl recently starred in the film “Daddy’s Daughter,” which brought her success and great popularity. Both women were not happy about the trip and planned to leave the place in a couple of days.

Since the tourist season had not yet begun, many hotels were not accepting visitors. Rosemary and her mother managed to find a small but quite nice hotel near the beach. As soon as they checked into the room, the girl went to the beach. There she constantly caught the gaze of others. Such a reaction from strangers could not but please the actress, so she happily accepted all the signs of attention.

From the very first minutes of her stay on the beach, Rosemary notices that the people here seem to be divided into two groups - “light-skinned” and “dark-skinned”. The first, probably, like her, recently arrived on the Cote d'Azur. They look confused and hide from the sun under huge umbrellas. The second group of people, on the contrary, behave quite relaxed, laugh, play various games. She decides to lie down to sunbathe and relax between the “light-skinned” and “dark-skinned” people.

Suddenly, an unknown man approached her. He said that his wife recognized Rosemary and wanted to get to know her better. The young actress went to a company of “light-skinned” people, where everyone asked about her work. Later, the girl began to notice that communicating with these people irritated her a little. All of them, as in, imagined themselves to be superior to everyone else present and looked askance at the company of tanned young people. Therefore, as soon as the opportunity presented itself, Rosemary quickly left this society and pretended to be asleep.

By the way, she didn’t have to pretend for long - from fatigue, the sound of the waves and the scorching sun, the girl quickly fell asleep. When she woke up, the beach was almost empty - the last young man was folding his umbrella and collecting his things. It was Mr. Richard Diver, a doctor who specializes in psychotherapy. He lived near the beach with his wife Nicole. They were the ones the “light-skinned” people discussed. Rosemary immediately naively falls in love with the young man. In the evening she will tell her mother that she really liked the married man. He seems to her kind, witty and very cheerful. And this was actually true - Dick Diver was always the life of the party, which is why his comrades often stayed in his and Nicole’s house. If you download the work “Tender is the Night” by Francis Scott, you can read that Abe and Mary North and Tommy Barban have now come to stay with them. Gradually the young actress gets to know all of them. She is fascinated by new friends, their ability to enjoy every moment and sincerely enjoy everything around them.

Rosemary is burdened by this new feeling. She wants to leave this town as quickly as possible, but on the way to the station she meets Nicole Diver and decides to return to the Cote d'Azur. Dick invites the girl to go with them to Paris for a few days to take them to the North station. Abe is a famous composer whose work forces him to return to America, while Mary wants to get a musical education in Munich. Rosemary agrees without hesitation. She likes the way she feels among new acquaintances, so she wants to spend as much time as possible with them.

Before leaving the Riviera, Richard decides to have a farewell dinner. All his acquaintances were invited to it, including the “light-skinned” ones. Nicole was not happy with this arrangement at first - she couldn’t stand those boring people. However, Mr. Diver's charm worked to his advantage - within a few minutes after the start of the meal, people relaxed and began to have casual conversations. Rosemary could not take her eyes off Nicole - she seemed somehow mysterious and incredibly beautiful to the girl. The actress watched the girl’s manner of conversation and her gestures for a long time and with fascination. At the same time, the feeling of falling in love with Richard grew rapidly.

After some time, Nicole left the company, and Richard followed her. Rosemary became bored without them and simply waited for one of the couple to return. Not far from the actress, Tommy Barban and one of the “light-skinned” men, Mr. McKisco, were having a dialogue. The men argued passionately about politics, more specifically about socialism. Suddenly, McKisco's wife suddenly ran out of the Divers' house. Violet was clearly shocked by something, but could not explain what she saw. Her husband tried to get her to talk, but the only thing the woman said was that she witnessed something terrible in Richard and Nicole’s house. Everyone became wary and began to listen to her carefully. Suddenly, Tommy intervened in the conversation and forbade Violet to talk about anything from the Divers' house.

Dick came out to the guests. He realized that something was wrong and tried to distract Mrs. McKisco from the topic. He started talking to her about art, began asking various questions, and after a while everyone forgot about the commotion. Late at night, Rosemary learned that Tommy had challenged Mr. McKisco to a duel because his wife was minding her own business. The duelists met at five o'clock in the morning, but it all ended with both of them missing the shot.

Further, the action of the novel, as in, takes us to Paris. Here Rosemary spends a lot of time with the Divers. Almost every day she goes shopping with Nicole, who buys dresses and jewelry for the young girl. Rosemary is still shocked by the beauty of Mrs. Diver - even what could be called flaws adorn a woman. But at the same time, the actress cannot deny her love for Richard. In Paris they become even closer. And if in the Riviera he managed to restrain himself, now he understands that he is beginning to succumb to the seduction of the young beauty.

They spend the evening together, after which Rosemary asks Richard to go to her hotel room. The man reluctantly agrees. There the girl asks him to spend just one night with her, after which she will immediately leave France forever. But Dick understands the damage this act could cause to his marriage. Besides, he still considers Rosemary just a little girl in love and does not want to ruin her life. The diver says goodbye to the girl and leaves her room.

Abe never managed to go to America - succumbing to temptations, he became addicted to alcohol to such an extent that he started a fight between blacks in a Parisian bar. The situation takes an unexpected turn when, after this event, a murdered black man is found in Rosemary's room. Richard begins to look for a way out of the situation. Thanks to his gift of convincing people, the doctor manages to smooth out the conflict and avoid attracting the press. That same evening, passing by the Divers' room, Rosemary decides to stop by. There she hears Nicole's terrible screams and notices the woman's distorted face. At that moment, the girl understands what exactly she found Violet McKisco that evening on the Cote d'Azur.

Further in Fitzgerald’s book “Tender is the Night” we can read about the history of the relationship between Richard and Nicole. It all started back in 1917, when the young Diver worked as a psychiatrist in one of the Swiss clinics. The doctor showed great promise and even then enjoyed authority among his colleagues. Because of his positive experience in the field of psychiatry, Dick managed to avoid service. Therefore, all the events of the First World War did not affect his life in any way - the Diver could work calmly and make plans for the future. One of his patients was an eighteen-year-old girl named Nicole. Once upon a time, she succumbed to violence from her father and after these events periodically began to fall into depression. The girl's family was very rich, so it was decided to place her in one of the best psychiatric hospitals.

Throughout treatment, Nicole and Dick corresponded. It was a kind of medical move, one of the elements of therapy. The girl’s recovery happened so quickly that after a couple of years they wanted to discharge her and send her home. Then she asked for an audience with her pen pal. After talking with Diver, Nicole immediately falls in love with him. Richard was confused for a long time - his situation was so difficult that he did not see a way out of it. On the one hand, he understood that Nicole was mentally ill, and attacks of hysteria or waves of depression could be repeated for many years. But on the other hand, Dick realized that if he could cope with her illness once, he could cope in the future. In addition, he is also overcome by strong feelings for a young and beautiful girl. After some time, the couple got married. But their life together was complicated by the fact that all of Nicole’s relatives suspect the young doctor of commercialism. The girl's parents think that Richard married their daughter solely for the sake of money.

Over time, the couple has two children. All this time, Richard never left Nicole's side, trying to recognize and prevent her attacks at their initial stage. In moments of his wife's hysteria, he turned on his cold mind and, throwing away pity, became a real professional. After some time, Richard began to suspect that Nicole was not really sick, but was simply pretending to be so in order to get attention. He begins to be irritable to all her tantrums. The appearance of Rosemary further aggravated the already deteriorating relationship in the married couple. Now Dick begins to feel that he was not living his own life.

If you download Fitzgerald’s novel “Tender is the Night,” we learn that the Divers spend the winter of 1926 in the Alps. There they are visited by an old friend of Richard's named Franz. He offers Diver to buy out a clinic in which they could work together. Franz has already thought over all the details of this deal, but he needs money. That's why he came to Dick. Friends managed to convince Nicole's relatives of the benefits of the new clinic, thanks to which they received the necessary amount.

Richard also assumed that Nicole could improve her health in their hospital. But that did not happen. The woman's attacks became so frequent and severe that she became a threat to society. The last point was the Divers' trip with their children in their car. Nicole was then sitting behind the wheel when she suddenly became hysterical. The woman lost control so much that she almost killed all the members of her family.

Richard feels tired of this life. He asks Franz to look after his wife temporarily while he heads to America to bury his father. After attending the funeral, Dick decides to go to Rome. He knows that Rosemary is currently filming some film there and wants to see her. They spend the night together, after which Richard realizes that he is so exhausted by his past relationships that he will not be able to love anyone else.

In Rome, Dick became so addicted to alcohol that one day he was taken to the police station after a fight with the locals. But that didn't stop the man. He gets drunk so often that he can no longer fully work in the clinic. Then Franz invites him to leave the business and come to his senses a little. Richard doesn't know what to do next with his life.

At that time, Nicole, looking at how her husband is changing, begins to feel defenseless. She was always sure that Richard would come to the rescue at any moment. Now the woman understands that she needs to cope with her fears on her own. Over time, she manages to bring her attacks under control, after which she began to associate Dick exclusively with times of illness. She decides to leave her husband. Everything is decided when the spouses arrive at their beach on the Cote d'Azur. During this time, a lot has changed there, there are more tourists and less space for solitude. There Nicole meets Tommy, who has loved the woman all these years. Sympathy develops between them, which develops into a romance. Nicole decides to divorce Dick, after which she marries Tommy. The diver moves to America, where he practices in clinics in small towns.

1925 Rosemary Hoyt, a young but already famous Hollywood actress after her success in the film “Daddy’s Daughter,” comes to the Cote d’Azur with her mother. Summer is not the season, only one of the many hotels is open. On a deserted beach there are two groups of Americans: “white-skinned” and “dark-skinned,” as Rosemary called them to herself. The girl is much prettier than the “dark-skinned” ones - tanned, beautiful, relaxed, they are at the same time impeccably tactful; she willingly accepts the invitation to join them and immediately falls a little childishly in love with Dick Diver, the soul of this company. Dick and his wife Nicole are local residents and have a house in the village of Tarm; Abe and Mary North and Tommy Barban are their guests. Rosemary is fascinated by the ability of these people to live cheerfully and beautifully - they constantly arrange fun and pranks; a kind, powerful force emanates from Dick Diver, forcing people to obey him with unreasoning adoration... Dick is irresistibly charming, he wins hearts with extraordinary attentiveness, captivating courtesy of treatment, and so directly and easily that victory is won before the conquered have time to understand anything. Seventeen-year-old Rosemary sobs on her mother’s breast in the evening: I’m in love with him, and he has such a wonderful wife! However, Rosemary is in love with Nicole too - with the whole company: she has never met such people before. And when the Divers invite her to go with them to Paris to see off the Norths - Abe (he is a composer) returns to America, and Mary heads to Munich to study singing - she readily agrees.

In Paris, during one of the dizzying escalades, Rosemary says to herself: “Well, here I am, wasting my life.” While shopping with Nicole, she becomes familiar with how a very rich woman spends money. Rosemary falls even more in love with Dick, and he barely has the strength to maintain the image of an adult, twice his age, serious man - he is by no means indifferent to the charms of this “girl in bloom”; Half-child, Rosemary does not understand what kind of avalanche she has caused. Meanwhile, Abe North goes on a drinking binge and, instead of leaving for America, in one of the bars he provokes a conflict between American and Parisian blacks among themselves and with the police; Dick gets to sort out this conflict; the showdown ends with the corpse of a black man in Rosemary's room. Dick arranged it so that the reputation of “Daddy’s Girl” remained untarnished - the case was hushed up, there were no reporters, but the Divers left Paris in a hurry. When Rosemary looks into the door of their room, she hears an inhuman howl and sees Nicole's face distorted by madness: she is staring at a blanket smeared with blood.

I'm sick of American moneybags who don't even notice that they ruined a person's life. Both father and daughter make me sick equally. Perverts! As I understand it, it wasn’t about violence, she didn’t resist? Of course, the responsibility lies with the one who is older, especially since she is a child. But time has shown that she is no better than her father.

I was very amused by the judgment of the American, who compared the descendants of convicts, who became rich in some unknown way, with dukes. Moreover, there has never been a monarchy or an aristocracy in the states. A lot of things didn’t happen, don’t exist and are unlikely to ever happen. It becomes even funnier when you realize that Europeans treat their moneybags more than condescendingly: the classics ridicule the bourgeoisie, in Russia they treat the bourgeoisie even more mercilessly, forgetting that it was the bourgeoisie (not to be confused with the merchants!) who built science, art and industry in this country (it’s more likely that a bandit who got rich in the 90s would be called a decent person than a tradesman/bourgeois would be approved of). But none of the Europeans would think of calling a millionaire an aristocrat. These Americans have confused everything in the world. This is what it means to be born in a country without its own culture and history.

Guest 06/06/2018 12:34

I'm sick of American moneybags who don't even notice that they ruined a person's life. Both my father and my daughter make me sick equally. Perverts! As I understand it, it wasn’t about violence, she didn’t resist? Of course, the responsibility lies with the one who is older, especially since she is a child. But time has shown that he is no better than his father.

I was very amused by the judgment of the American, who compared the descendants of convicts, who became rich in some unknown way, with dukes. Moreover, the states have never had a monarchy or an aristocracy. A lot of things didn’t happen, don’t exist and are unlikely to ever happen. It becomes even more average when you realize that Europeans treat their moneybags more than condescendingly: the classics ridicule the bourgeoisie, in Russia they treat the philistines even more mercilessly, forgetting that it was the philistines (not to be confused with the merchants!) who built science, art and industry in this country (It’s more likely that a bandit who got rich in the 90s would be called a decent person). But none of the Europeans would think of calling a millionaire an aristocrat. These Americans have confused everything in the world. This is what it means to be born in a country without its own culture and history.

Guest 06/06/2018 12:28

I’m glad I read this book only now, at 33. I wouldn’t have understood it before. And now all the subtleties of family life are in full view, and there is clearly more understanding in relationships than at 20. As a woman, it seems to me that Nicole’s energy has absorbed Dick. Someone who was used to everything being easy for him, and that’s probably why he didn’t strive to work on himself, to achieve goals, overcoming obstacles. As a person, I feel sorry for his wasted talent. But on the other hand, he returned a full life to his main ward. Finally and irrevocably. It's a pity that at the cost of your life...

Grade 5 out of 5 stars from galina.pustovoit 19.04.2017 01:04

A very subtle psychological novel.

Grade 5 out of 5 stars from pegow51 04.12.2016 23:48

The relationship between husband and wife is always full of secrets. However, when these same persons are a doctor and a patient, then, in addition to love, the matter also takes on a professional character. Who benefits at whose expense? Love or work? Duty or desires? There is only one answer in this book - you need to work endlessly on a happy marriage and always be there. However, this does not guarantee success. A sincerely loving person always leaves with dignity.

Grade 4 out of 5 stars from Lunnaya 08/31/2016 12:35

Grade 4 out of 5 stars from modus_2005 11.01.2016 04:22

I barely finished reading it... the same as “The Great Gatsby” - boring, tedious and drawn-out.

Grade 3 out of 5 stars from Larisa 16.10.2015 11:09

This book leaves an unpleasant aftertaste - against the backdrop of the flair of love, the aroma of flowers and the summer heat, a story unfolds about people who put their desires and needs above all else, not paying attention to their neighbors.

Grade 3 out of 5 stars from svistolka 30.04.2015 12:54

Just a wonderful novel - fragrant.

Grade 5 out of 5 stars from mdkzxc 09.07.2014 14:18

not an unambiguous impression... The book was written easily on the rise, but the ending made me sad. You can’t give your life to another person so thoughtlessly. I don’t even know who dedicated himself more to Nicole Dick or vice versa.

Katerina 12.05.2014 15:37

An interesting book with beautiful descriptive writing. The plot line is straightforward, the author seems to be preparing the reader before each turn. Immediately after it, I read Hemingway’s “A Farewell to Arms” and was pleasantly surprised, the actions take place in the same places. The Swiss Riviera is now like a travel destination for me

Grade 5 out of 5 stars by Friend 04/07/2014 19:40

I’m not a fan of Francis Scott Fitzgerald, but I came across the novel “Tender is the Night,” which I couldn’t help but read. I read it. I really liked a lot, especially the chapters of the second book and the 13th final chapter. Something outraged me, confused me... I was delighted by the beauty of the Riviera. The beach, sea and all sorts of entertainment also pleased me. She did not remain indifferent to the touching and at the same time sad love story of the Divers.
All the characters were written as well as possible, but no one was as charming as Nicole.
I remembered the 1962 film, but the book is incomparably better.
Such stories are good to read in front of the fireplace on a quiet, cozy evening, when a snowstorm is blowing outside the window, and the smell of freshly baked bread comes from the kitchen...

Grade 5 out of 5 stars from Elena 12.02.2014 20:57

I really liked the book, it was interesting to follow the destinies, characters, tragedies of the heroes... There is one “but” - if there is a crisis in life (either as an adult, in a profession, or in a family), then this book is not for you, nothing life-affirming, encouraging can’t be found here, a story without a happy ending.