Audiobook · read by volunteers
Elusive Isabel
Jacques Futrelle (1875–1912)
Read by J. M. Smallheer, Gesine, Kristin Hughes (1974-2021), Laura Caldwell, Roger Melin, Kalynda, webround, Esther · 26 chapters · 4 h 45
About the book
Isabel Thorne is beautiful, resourceful and impossible to catch. In Washington, D.C., a plot is hatching: secret agents from several Latin countries are working together to challenge the English-speaking world, and Isabel Thorne stands at the centre of a chase through the capital. A mysterious cable, a fleeing woman and a series of narrow escapes keep the story moving, and many people are drawn into the pursuit. The mood stays light throughout, with wit as well as suspense. Jacques Futrelle, known for his detective stories, brings the same inventive plotting to this novel of espionage. It is full of disguises, secret meetings and sudden twists, and it is told with a light, humorous touch. Twenty-six short sections make it an easy book to follow. It is a lively old-fashioned adventure for lovers of spy stories.
Introduction
Jacques Futrelle was born in Georgia in 1875 and worked as a journalist and theatre manager before becoming a full-time writer. He is best known for his stories about Professor Augustus Van Dusen, called the Thinking Machine, an armchair detective who solves seemingly impossible crimes by logic alone. Futrelle died in April 1912, when he went down with the Titanic after helping his wife into a lifeboat.
Elusive Isabel was published in 1909, a few years after the first Van Dusen stories. It is a spy novel set in the American capital, and it reflects the preoccupations of the time, in particular the sense that great powers were competing in secret. Its title character is a woman of wit and daring, and the plot keeps its readers guessing. The book is lighter and more romantic than the detective stories, and it still carries the author’s characteristic gift for puzzles.
This recording has twenty-six sections and lasts nearly five hours. It is read by several LibriVox volunteers. For readers who enjoy the early days of spy fiction, or who know Futrelle only as a detective writer, it offers a pleasant surprise. Its pace is quick, its mood is playful and it makes a fine companion for an evening of old-fashioned intrigue.
Futrelle’s Washington is a city of embassies, drawing rooms and telegraph offices, and the story takes full advantage of the setting. The dialogue is quick, the heroine is memorable and the sense of fun never leaves the book. It is the kind of entertainment that was made to be enjoyed one section at a time.
Public domain
Jacques Futrelle died in 1912: the work is in the public domain in Switzerland, more than 70 years after the author’s death.
The LibriVox volunteers dedicated this recording to the public domain.
Sources : LibriVox page · Files at the Internet Archive · Original text