Two by E. Phillips Oppenheim

E. Phillips Oppenheim
1866-1946

E. Phillips Oppenheim was a prolific English author of best-selling adventures, thrillers, and mysteries written between 1887 and 1943.  While his novels are certainly not fine literature, they are generally well-written, and can be quite entertaining for those who appreciate this combination of time-period and genre.

The Honorable Algernon Knox, Detective

1913/1920

3/5 stars

This quick read is a set of loosely connected short stories featuring a society gentleman, Algernon Knox.  Most of these were published in Hearst's Magazine in 1913, with the complete collection published in book form in 1920.  

Knox is not a detective exactly, but a man who falls into situations of mystery, danger ,and adventure.  After accidently foiling a plot to steal state secrets from his uncle, a Cabinet Minister, Knox begins to appreciate that he has unexpected brains and abilities, and to relish the chance to use them for the good of others and for the protection of Britain.

The abrupt change in Knox from a vapid young fool to a useful tool of His Majesty's Government is unconvincing, but his character is appealing and sympathetic.  The tales are light (though not light-hearted), dated, and often unbelievable, but generally a good deal of fun as Knox outwits opponents much more skilled in diplomacy and espionage.

The Zeppelin's Passenger or Mr. Lessingham Goes Home

1918

4/5 stars

Published toward the end of World War I, this romantic-espionage-drama features Phillipa, a ferociously patriotic woman living in an English coastal town.  Her husband, Sir Henry, at sixteen years her elder, is apparently too old to be accepted for military duty, and she is both ashamed and angry at  his apparent indifference to his life of civilian inactivity.

Into this situation falls (literally, out of a zeppelin) a German spy, calling himself Lessingham.  He brings letters from Phillipa's twin, an inmate of a German prison, and tries to convince her, for the sake of her brother's well-being, to assist him in his mission.  Knowing that her quiet seafront locale can hold no secrets worth more than her brother's life, she abandons her firmly held convictions and agrees -- but at what cost?

This is a melodramatic but entertaining tale, with all three main characters, though under-developed, being likable and sympathetic, with believably human motives.  Oppenheimer, while obviously burning with patriotism, still admits that the German forces have men just as gentlemanly as the British, and has Phillipa express a wish for peace for all.  The romance is very Edwardian, almost cold to a 21st Century view, but is still effective as an important factor.  Overall, while certainly not a literary treasure, it's an enjoyable read, as well as an enlightening insight into the popular culture of the time.