Stamboul Train

novel by Greene

Also known as: “Orient Express”

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July 14, 2026

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"Stamboul Train," also published as "Orient Express," is a 1932 novel by Graham Greene. The story follows various characters on a train journey from the English Channel to Istanbul. It is considered one of Greene's "entertainments," characterized by spare language, suspenseful plots, and moral complexity. The novel was adapted into a film in 1934. The "Orient-Express" itself was a luxury train service that ran between Paris and Constantinople (now Istanbul) from 1883 to 1977, known for its opulence and attracting notable writers like Greene and Agatha Christie.12

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Graham Greene
First novels and entertainments
…his own with a thriller, Stamboul Train (1932; also published as Orient Express), which plays off various characters against each other as they ride a train from the English Channel to Istanbul. This was the first of a string of novels that he termed “entertainments,” works similar to thrillers in…
Read More
…his own with a thriller, Stamboul Train (1932; also published as Orient Express), which plays off various characters against each other as they ride a train from the English Channel to Istanbul. This was the first of a string of novels that he termed “entertainments,” works similar to thrillers in…
Read More