格雷厄姆•格林（Graham Greene，1904—1991）

21次諾貝爾文學奬提名的傳奇大師。67年寫作生涯，創作超過25部小說，被評為20世紀大師級作傢。1950年，初次獲得諾貝爾奬提名。1976年，獲美國推理作傢協會大師奬。1981年，獲耶路撒冷文學奬。1986年，由英女王伊麗莎白二世授予功績勛章。

格林一生遊曆於墨西哥、西非、南非、越南、古巴、中東等戰亂之地，甚至任職於英國軍情六處，從事間諜工作，並以此為背景創作小說，關注人靈魂深處的掙紮與救贖、內心的道德和精神鬥爭，被譽為20世紀人類意識和焦慮的卓越記錄者。

至今，每年格林生日期間，在格林齣生地——英國赫特福德郡，都會舉辦為期四天的格雷厄姆•格林國際藝術節，全球的格林粉絲齊聚這裏參加紀念格林的活動。

"Murder didn't mean much to Raven. It was just a new job." Thus begins This Gun for Hire, a novel originally published in 1936, the story of a professional killer and the first example of Graham Greene's fascination with the criminal mind and the villain-as-hero. The setting is Greenland in its darkest and seediest English aspect. The characters-- Raven, the repellent assassin; Anne, the woman who comes closest to knowing him; Mather, her detective fiancé; the ambiguous "agents," Cholmondeley and Davis, and the powerful man they work for-- all are etched precisely in portraits that are at once vivid and grim. The action, a suspenseful drama of murder, pursuit, threat, and entrapment, is riveting from first page to last. More than an "entertainment," and more than a detective thriller, This Gun for Hire is a harrowing exploration of the twisted and tortured psyche of the hardened criminal. [Taken from the front flap]