Such indolence can, of course, be pleasur-able, and not every novel must possess purpose. Murdoch's novels, indeed, were frequently brought low by her sense of duty to the Idea. It is the case, though, that Banville's finest books -Dr Copernicus, The Book of Evidence, The Untouchable -have come from an engagement with grand historical stories or characters. By contrast, The Sea feels - disappointingly from such a gifted and interesting writer -tired and retried, and other near-anagrams indicating second-handedness.
