Sapper (1888–1937)

Imagine a hybrid between Bertie Wooster and Doc Savage, with a little Lord Peter Wimsey thrown in. That would be Bulldog Drummond, English adventure hero of the 1920s. Although numerous Drummond books were published, this particular volume describes Drummond’s four encounters with his archnemesis, Carl Peterson.


Drummond is a WWI veteran who has all the attributes necessary; large, expert at boxing and judo, a crack shot, and able to stalk and hide in complete silence. He’s upper class, show more with more than adequate financial resources, a faithful valet and a faithful housekeeper, and a coterie of loyal compatriots with similar backgrounds. As befits a villain, Carl Peterson is ruthless, has his own flock of loyal minions, is a master of disguise, and is accompanied by the languid femme fatale Irma. In the first two novels, (Bulldog Drummond and The Black Gang), Peterson is attempting to afflict England with a Communist revolution (Peterson is not himself a Communist but is planning to control things for his personal profit). Drummond, of course, thwarts him, with the considerable advantage as not being hindered by legal technicalities. These two novels are virulently anti-Semitic; this is toned down somewhat for the next two (The Third Round and The Final Count), in which Peterson becomes less of a political agitator and more of a mad scientist, kidnapping first a chemist who has invented an inexpensive process for making diamonds and then another chemist who has devised a lethal war gas.


Drummond is not portrayed as particularly intelligent, especially compared to Peterson; however Peterson displays the stereotypical failing of evil masterminds everywhere in that he never wants to kill Drummond outright but always captures him so he can inflict various heinous tortures before finishing him off. Needless to say, Drummond always escapes. Peterson also has the Fu-Manchu-like habit of using wildlife as guards and assassins; thus Drummond has to confront a gorilla, a cobra, and a pair of giant spiders (and once, a pygmy with a blowgun). The villains never just shoot their victims in the head; they always have to get overly fancy.


Given that these were originally intended as adolescent entertainment there is rather more violence and racism (and rather less sex) than you would find nowadays. Mostly of historical interest. I note Drummond (as “Hugo Drummond”) turns up in one of the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen graphic novels, working for MI5 and assisted by Emma Peel (as Emma Knight) and James Bond (as Jimmy Bond) in an attempt to capture Mina Murray and Allan Quatermain before they can escape with the stolen Black Dossier. show less

This book was an absolute delight to read. Hugh Drummond is such a well written character. He is like a cross between Bertie Wooster and Sherlock Holmes with the added twist of being a veteran of the recently ended World War 1, where he was the captain of his regiment for the previous four years.
The plot pitted our hero (Drummond) against the villain, Le Comte de Guy (aka 'Carl Peterson') and his beautiful daughter Irma, who have masterminded a plan – together with a group of German and show more Russian revolutionaries – to take over Britain.
Drummond gathers together some of his friends – ex-soldiers from his regiment - to take on the villain, along with the lovely Phyllis, whose father is being forced to help Le Comte de Guy/Carl Peterson.
Classic good vs evil with an intelligently written plot and two well rounded characters in the form of Hugh Drummond and Le Comte de Guy/Carl Peterson.
If I had to make one criticism it would be the ‘romance’ between Drummond and Phyllis seems to come out of nowhere, they spend less than a day together and suddenly they’re in love and want to get married. Likewise, the characters of Irma and Phyllis are almost wasted. Irma is mysterious all the way through the book and such questions as ‘what was her motivation for involving herself in the plot?’ And ‘was she really Carl Peterson’s daughter?’ are never answered. Phyllis also seemed to exist mainly to keep the plot moving along. She never popped up unless she needed help or rescuing.
If the characters of Irma and Phyllis had been as well drawn as the two male leads, this would have been a five star read. show less

Definitely dated, and often silly (not to mention occasionally offensive), still, this book has its occasional charms. Not the least of which is giving one an insight as to what the British (and American) book-buying public wanted in the mid-1920s. The blurb on the jacket of the edition I have says the book is an action-packed thriller "set in the 1920s," which is a bit misleading, when you consider when it was written.

I started Bulldog Drummond keenly, anticipating a good old-fashioned British adventure with lashings of `derring do'. My initial interest in the novel stems from the knowledge that my beloved P.G. Wodehouse read it and presumably enjoyed it, as he borrowed part of the plot for Leave it to Psmith. I am also a fan of `similar' works such as John Buchan's `The Thirty-Nine Steps', and G.K. Chesterton's `The Man Who Was Thursday'.

When a reader embarks on a novel with as much good-will as I did, show more one is prepared to overlook minor issues of style, plot and characterisation. In the first chapter, I made `allowances' for the patronising, simpleton dialogue given to Mr and Mrs Denny, Drummond's servants. They at least fare better than the Germans in the novel, who are credited with little more than grunting speech and greedy expressions.

`Sapper' wrote Bulldog Drummond shortly after WWI and it's reasonable to presume that he harboured anti-German sentiments (although many allied soldiers could empathise with their fellow foot soldiers in the opposing trenches).

I was however, unable to continue making excuses after reading a disturbing account of Dummond's wartime nocturnal adventures into no-man's land, where he developed a psychopathic knack for killing. He continues to indulge his murderous habits throughout the peace-time events of the story, although most of the killings are unnecessary.

The story does have some exciting moments, but on the whole it is too thin, and the author's purpose too obvious, for it to be really enjoyed. It might work better on the big screen, where one can justify an hour or two spent enjoying an implausible adventure, but I don't think I'll spend any more reading time with Sapper and his dubious psychopath hero.

In short, when looking for a classic British adventure, try Buchan, Chesterton and company instead. show less