[2] Robbe-Grillet argued that the novel was constructed along the lines of an "absent" third-person narrator.
In that account of the novel, the narrator, a jealous husband, silently observes the interactions of his wife (referred to only as "A...") and a neighbour, Franck.
The silent narrator, who never names himself (and whose presence is merely inferred, e.g. by the number of place settings at the dinner table or deck chairs on the verandah) is extremely suspicious that A... is having an affair with Franck.
Robbe-Grillet has noted that the setting is deliberately ambiguous and self-contradictory, with elements from a number of world regions.
[5] The novel was considered for television adaptations by the BBC but ultimately discounted.