The quarrel was exacerbated by Mauriac's articles attacking the memory of Jean Cocteau because of his homosexuality and the release of the film adaptation of Les amitiés particulières.

In his memoirs, Propos Secrets, he wrote extensively about his youth, his sex life (pederastic mainly and a few affairs with women), his years as a diplomat, and his travels to Greece and Italy.

That's because I am the author of The Keys of St. Peter and The Knights of Malta, the most important books by a contemporary writer on the Catholic Church.

After his death, the city of Capri dedicated a plaque to him which is mounted near Villa Lysis and the inscription of which reads: A Roger Peyrefitte autore de L'esule di Capri per aver esaltato e diffuso il mito, la cultura e la bellezza dell'isola nel mondo.

— "For Roger Peyrefitte, author of L'Exile de Capri, for having exalted and diffused the myth, the culture, and the beauty of this island in the world.

"[5] In a 2012 essay about the importance of public libraries, English actor and writer Stephen Fry mentions that Peyrefitte's novels The Exile of Capri and Special Friendships were "unforgettable, transformative books" for him.