A Thief in the Night

📘 About This Book

The third installment in the irresistible adventures of A. J. Raffles, the thief who gives crime a good name For weeks, Bunny Manders has scoured the sporting papers, looking for word of his vanished friend—the cricketer, playboy, and gentleman thief A. J. Raffles. A mysterious message lures Bunny to a darkened side street, where he finds Raffles in filthy clothes, with an unkempt beard. The amateur cracksman has been lying low in the empty townhouse of a vacationing colonel—what better place to take a Rest Cure? He invites Bunny to stay with him, but when the colonel returns unexpectedly, the public school duo is forced to contemplate a crime beyond reason: murder. Pushed to the very brink of disaster, the quick-footed Raffles recovers in style. In these classic stories, England’s most honorable thief and his loyal companion elude criminologists, cops, and ruthless professional villains, stealing whatever they want—and doing it with flair. This ebook features a new introduction by Otto Penzler and has been professionally proofread to ensure accuracy and readability on all devices.

📖 Summary

A Thief in the Night stands as the third installment in the irresistible adventures of A. J. Raffles, the charming gentleman thief who manages to give crime a wonderfully debonair reputation. Penned by E. W. Hornung and spanning 162 pages in its 2014 edition, this classic work of fiction brings readers back into the thrilling, high-stakes world of Victorian-era crime, sportsmanship, and elite social circles. At the opening of this captivating collection of stories, Bunny Manders, the loyal narrator and companion, has spent weeks scouring the sporting papers in a desperate search for word of his vanished friend. Raffles is known to the public as a celebrated cricketer and dashing playboy, but to Bunny and the underworld, he is the legendary amateur cracksman. The mystery is finally broken when a cryptic message lures Bunny to a darkened side street in London. There, he discovers Raffles in a startling state, wearing filthy clothes and sporting an unkempt beard. It turns out that England's most infamous amateur thief has been lying low in the empty townhouse of a vacationing colonel, utilizing the supposedly safe hideout to take an unorthodox rest cure. E. W. Hornung masterfully captures the camaraderie and tension between Raffles and Bunny as they reunite in secret. Raffles casually invites Bunny to stay with him in the commandeered residence, setting the stage for classic capers and unexpected complications. However, the veneer of clever concealment is shattered when the colonel returns home much earlier than anticipated. This sudden and unforeseen development forces the public school duo into a corner, pushing them to contemplate a desperate act far beyond their usual scope of thievery: murder. This terrifying brush with the ultimate crime brings the narrative to the very brink of disaster, testing the limits of their partnership and their nerve. True to form, the quick-footed Raffles manages to navigate the perilous situation and recover in undeniable style, proving once again why he remains a towering figure in early detective and crime fiction. Through these classic tales, readers are treated to a brilliant subversion of the traditional detective story, told from the perspective of the criminal rather than the pursuer. The book explores themes of loyalty, class expectations, adrenaline, and the blurred lines between respectability and criminality in late-nineteenth-century England. Hornung crafts each tale with sharp pacing, clever plotting, and a distinct flavor of Edwardian adventure that continues to captivate modern readers looking for a timeless, entertaining escape into the shady side of high society.

🎯 Key Lessons

⚖️ Pros & Cons

❓ FAQ

💬 💬 Reader Comments (0)