Product Description

Childers' lone masterpiece, "The Riddle of the Sands", considered the first modern spy thriller, is recognizable as the brilliant forerunner of the realism of Graham Greene and John le Carre. Its unique flavor comes from its fine characterization, richly authentic background of inshore sailing and vivid evocation of the late 1890s - an atmosphere of mutual suspicion and intrigue that was soon to lead to war.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #10463 in Books
• Published on: 1995-01-26
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

Synopsis
Childers' lone masterpiece, "The Riddle of the Sands", considered the first modern spy thriller, is recognizable as the brilliant forerunner of the realism of Graham Greene and John le Carre. Its unique flavor comes from its fine characterization, richly authentic background of inshore sailing and vivid evocation of the late 1890s - an atmosphere of mutual suspicion and intrigue that was soon to lead to war.

About the Author
Erskine Childers was born in Ireland in 1870 of Anglo-Irish parents. Educated at Cambridge, he worked at the House of Commons before volunteering at the outbreak of the South African War. In 1910 Childers resigned his post in the Commons to work for the Irish cause and later did reconnaissance work during WWI. After the war he settled in Ireland and joined the Republican Army at the establishment of the Free State. He was amongst those arrested and shot in the civil war that followed.

Customer Reviews

Riddle: where's the spy story?
It has a nice picture on the front. And it has a few nice sea scenes in it (a lot of rain, mist and wind on the North Sea). I am from Holland and I know someone from Spiekeroog (one of the islands in the book) so it was nice to sea (an honest slip...)it in print.

Oh yes, I almost forgot: what about the spy story? Well, you've got to read about 3 quarters of the book (all about the sea and the sand and the clouds and rain and mist and also some German sea-folk) before the narrative picks it up. It then starts to unfold very slowly - more like a side issue. And then it is suddenly resolved over half a page. And then there's a final bit of sailing and the sea.

What about "the growing German menace that existed just before WWI", that several reviewers commented on, and Childers "depicts so exquisitely"? Frankly, the gentle rhythm of the waves lulled me into a (false?) sense of security.

Riddle Of The Sands
This is just a beautifully crafted book. Although its espionage is old fashioned (no e-mails or computer codes here) the descriptive writing that Childers uses to depict the growing German menace that existed just before WWI is quite exquisite. The story is told at a pace that on occcasions you can stop and feel the Friesan salt spray on your face whilst never wanting to linger too long in case you miss something. I read this as a teenager and again as I turned 30. Having just read it again it has lost none of its charm. A great story of espionage and intrigue that is extremely well told. And not a dry Martini in sight....

A beautiful book
This is a beautiful book, I loved every second, have read it cover to cover many times. The story brilliantly captures the nervousness of the period leading up to the Great War. The atmosphere is amazing, you can almost see the cold windswept dunes of the German coast. The tension builds fast to the climax and the ambiguous ending just leaves you wishing that there was more.