[1] The End of the Affair is the fourth and final of Greene's "Catholic novels" tetralogy, following Brighton Rock (1938), The Power and the Glory (1940), and The Heart of the Matter (1948).

The novel focuses on Maurice Bendrix, a rising writer during the Second World War in London, and Sarah Miles, the wife of an impotent civil servant.

Through her diary, he learns that, when she thought he was dead after the bombing, she made a promise to God not to see Bendrix again if He allowed him to live again.

After her sudden death from a lung infection brought to a climax by walking on the Common in the rain, several miraculous events occur, advocating for some kind of meaningfulness to Sarah's faith.

Waugh would later write, "Mr Greene has chosen another contemporary form, domestic, romantic drama of the type of Brief Encounter, and has transformed that in his own inimitable way."

[2] Writer Jonathan Franzen said that he considered E. M. Forster and Graham Greene overrated, in particular highlighting The End of the Affair.

The first production included music played by a pianist at the side of the stage, underscoring the text with some period songs sung by the cast.

[6] In 2012, an audio edition performed by Colin Firth and produced by Audible.com was released; the recording was recognized as Audiobook of the Year at the Audies Gala in May 2013.

[10] The book also inspired the 2014 song "End of the Affair" by English singer-songwriter Ben Howard, from his album I Forget Where We Were.