Shannon's way by A. J. Cronin

In this novel Cronin  tells again the story of a doctor. It is a tale of love, research, religious views, personal tragedies and betrayel. The writer narrating in  first person  makes us acquainted with Robert Shannon a young Catholic doctor in the after-war England. He works as an university research physician but in the meantime he does his own study on an epidemy in the laboratory of his own workplace. Soon he has to leave his job because he is in conflict with the leading professor who can't stand him and wants Shannon to focus on the lab's priority.  Due to this he has to endure hardships and struggles to find a job. He fells in love with Jean Law, but her parents are against this relationship because he is a Roman Catholic and do not share his view on religion. Shannon sais: "Religion is a private affair. We can't help what creed we're born into. It's quite possibile for two people to be tolerant of each other's belief." But her father denies it saying that "She can never commingle with the waters of Babylon". Cronin's novels shows us a world where personal, family or group interests are the most important. The death of the patient is overlooked. The nurse who caused the death by a stupid mistake keeps his job while Shannon is layed off by a commission just because he did experiments in an unused room thus misusing the taxpayers' money. But there are good people like the marginalized professor Challis who supports him even getting him a doctor job  having at his disposal  a good lab for his research. Some novels of A. J. Cronin  do not have a happy ending, I only disclose for the reader that this book has an  open ending with hope in the future. I enjoyed and liked this novel and give it five stars. Found out the ending reading this book!
Check Shannon's Way at Amazon.

The judas tree by A. J. Cronin

The novel ties you down to finish reading it, but there is  also the urge not reach the end because you sense that it will be a very bad ending. The main figure is never able to tell the truth as it is or to confront it but tries to mend the past wrongdoings by being charitable as money would solve everything. He remains  deeply selfish never really thinking what his role was and that his present good intentions may leed to even worse.
He remains undecided to the end even if he made up his mind, just thinking he might suffer  he changes his intentions. 
The Judas tree is a story of a treason, the main character is David Moray, a doctor who lost his parents in his late childhood and since then he thinks that because of his sufferings he is entitled to better. At the beginning of novel we meet Moray as a successful, rich chemist owner of an enterprise living in his new lavish palace home in Switzerland. Acting as an omen, the treasure of his  garden is a Judas tree. Soon his happy time in Switzerland is overshadowed by the rememberance of his past treason of his youth times. As a young doctor he fell in love with Mary  the daughter of a baker. Mary was  the fiance of  Walter Stoddart, a local rich man's son. But the love between Moray and Mary grew stronger, Mary broke up with the insensitive Walter against the wish of his family and became the fiance of Moray.
Everything looked bright, Moray soon secured a position as a doctor at hospital but he got sick with his lungs and in order to recover due to the chance of a better weather had to embark as a naval doctor on a ship  heading to India.
During his trip he was exchanging letters with Mary and with her brother, his good friend. But soon he grew fond of Doris Holbrook who is travelling with his rich parents involved in medicine business. The parents saw him as a potential  husband for Doris proposing him a good position in the company. He saw this as a good opportunity for richness thinking the misfortunes of his childhood would be repaid.
Dear reader I  stop here narrating, if the description caught your curiosity take up the novel.  Judas Tree at Amazon.

The Spanish Gardener by A. J. Cronin

Harrington Brande an US diplomat is dispatched as a consul in San Jorge, a town in  Spain. He is a rigid, cold, arrogant, extremely pride self-righteous and self-centered person who is unable to comprehend the real needs, yearning of others and is possessed by the outmost envy and jealousy especially if his son shows great affection towards others. He thinks himself as of a person who is entitled to more and who is mistreated, misunderstood by his superiors
This type of personality caused his wife to leave the family, Harrington Brande remaining with his son Nicholas whose health is weak. Towards him shows an almost abnormal paternal love. He sees himself as the only one who can have the love of his son.
Though he loves his son fervently he is not able to comprehend what is best for him. When Nicholas befriends with Jose the young Spanish gardener he is afraid of  losing his son‘s love and treats the gardener badly and with hostility. Harrington is so bedazzled of his own “superior” personality that he is unable to see the real nature behind people. He thinks of  his butler Garcia as of  a loyal servant, ha can’t recognize the charlatan with titles in his  doctor and misunderstands the goodwill of his gardener whom he burdens with hard work out of hatred. Rarely you can read about such a misguided, vengeful character and if you read on you will see that he  is on the road to tragedy, but even so he can not fully grasp  his fate's meaning: sees it as a personal martyrdom.  He is like the turkey bird he reads about at the end,  "by nature a peculiar bird - assertive and self-sufficient - yet because of this inordinate vanity, liable to grave discomfitures ..."
I searched if  "The Spanish Gardener" is available online to read freely, but I have found only "Adventures In Two Worlds" and "Hatters Castle" by A. J. Cronin at Internet Archive site.
The Spanish Gardener at Amazon.
My book's cover is subtitled: "The famous novel from which a famous film was made".
You can watch online The Spanish Gardener at youtube. I need to say the film is different and has another ending.

The Citadel by A. J. Cronin

A good book to read is The Citadel by A.J. Cronin, a moving story!
The novel is based on the author's life experience who was a doctor like the main character of the book the young doctor Mason who start his career in the coal mining parts of South Wales facing ill will, hardships, bad and primitive circumstances or conditions, indifference and narrow mindness of the people and authorities. He finds the love and soul mate of his life in Christine who marries him. He even becomes a research physicist with the aim of  improving the health of coal miners but the bureaucracy brings him to a dead end having to leave research for his private praxis. Soon his succesful praxis faces him with moral dilemmas and moral bankruptcy he realizes that he and his popular doctor colleagues act like charlatans and just want to take the patient's money. The Citadel by A. J. Cronin at Amazon.The Citadel was adapted into a movie in 1938 by King Vidor. You can watch it online at youtube at the given link.