Nemirni mir

The work is thematically closely related to his previous novel Days of Misery and Hunger (1937) and represents a continuation of the story about the fate of a Herzegovinian peasant in a turbulent period. The plot takes place after the end of World War I. Softa follows the characters who survived the horrors of war and famine, and now seek a better life in Slavonia.

The novel is realistic, in places naturalistic, depicting their new troubles – hard work on someone else's land, social disarray, family dramas, alcoholism and deep inner unrest. Despite the external "peace", the characters carry the traumas of war, poverty and disappointment, which creates an atmosphere of constant tension and existential anxiety.

Critics have pointed out that Uneasy Peace shows the maturation of Softa's talent – ​​the novel is psychologically deeper than the previous one, with a stronger modern overtone and closeness to Hamsun's imagination of hunger and inner evil. Softa is no longer just a painter of the Herzegovinian village, but also a modern storyteller who explores the human psyche in difficult social circumstances.

The style is sharp, direct and unadorned, with a strong Herzegovinian dialect and an authentic depiction of the Dinaric mentality – tough, proud, but also vulnerable. The novel exudes pessimism and a sense of meaninglessness, typical of socially engaged prose of the late 1930s.

Uneasy Peace is considered one of Softa's best works and an important example of Croatian social-realist prose of the interwar period. Due to the author's death on the Way of the Cross in 1945, his work was neglected after the war. Today, the novel is valued as a powerful testimony to the fate of Herzegovina and the difficult post-war years.

The Matica Hrvatska edition is rare.