The Feathered Serpent
by Edgar Wallace
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Reporter Peter Derwin suspects the card mysteriously left in the handbag of actress Ella Creed is a publicity stunt. But Joe Farmer, the boxing promoter, has received one too. Then, after leaving the house of millionaire philanthropist and African explorer Gregory Beale, Daphne Olroyd is followed: she is at her employers' offices when Leicester Crewe opens the front door. A dead man falls into the hall. In his hand is the card of The Feathered Serpent.Tags
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Edgar Wallace has a fertile imagination when it comes to exploring the depravity of the human species. Like most of his books that I've read so far, this tale is a bit convoluted but still rather gripping. I actually had less trouble than normal keeping track of all the various characters, but I've learned that it pays to take notes whilst reading Wallace. Fortunately, with a kindle doing so is a breeze.
So, we have ace reporter, Peter Dewin. He is following the trail of some crimes or potential crimes marked by the leaving of a card with a drawing of a feathered serpent on it. Some folks are getting these cards, and although they deny any understanding of the figure, they are none-the-less terrorized by having received said cards. One show more is Ella Creed, a famous actress. Another Leicester Crewe, a stock trader. Then there's Joe Farmer, who is a boxing promoter and someone who used to run a pub. Finally, we have Paula Staines, a woman who does very fine black and white drawings. What could be the connection, if any, between them, and why are they getting the feathered serpent cards? Are they warnings of some kind.
Well, to learn more about feathered serpents, Dewin tracks down Gregory Beale, who is an archeologist/philanthropist, lately returned from a decade in Central America, or so he intimates anyway. Apparently, feathered serpents feature strongly in the mythology of the Maya and Aztec cultures. Beale has just hired Daphne Olroyd to be his private secretary. She had previously worked for Leicester Crewe. Dewin had met Ms. Olroyd at a restaurant and had almost immediately fallen in love with her. So, how does that all work out?
Oh yeah, there is a mysterious William Lane, who was alleged to have been released from prison recently, but who apparently was killed by a car in an accident outside a house he and two of his companions were in the process of burgling. But, one of the former companions thinks he has seen Lane. Is it a ghost, or did Lane not die, despite there being a death certificate attesting that he had? How does that work?
And so forth. It's an entertaining yarn with which to while away these dreary days of waiting for spring through endless dank days of drizzle. show less
So, we have ace reporter, Peter Dewin. He is following the trail of some crimes or potential crimes marked by the leaving of a card with a drawing of a feathered serpent on it. Some folks are getting these cards, and although they deny any understanding of the figure, they are none-the-less terrorized by having received said cards. One show more is Ella Creed, a famous actress. Another Leicester Crewe, a stock trader. Then there's Joe Farmer, who is a boxing promoter and someone who used to run a pub. Finally, we have Paula Staines, a woman who does very fine black and white drawings. What could be the connection, if any, between them, and why are they getting the feathered serpent cards? Are they warnings of some kind.
Well, to learn more about feathered serpents, Dewin tracks down Gregory Beale, who is an archeologist/philanthropist, lately returned from a decade in Central America, or so he intimates anyway. Apparently, feathered serpents feature strongly in the mythology of the Maya and Aztec cultures. Beale has just hired Daphne Olroyd to be his private secretary. She had previously worked for Leicester Crewe. Dewin had met Ms. Olroyd at a restaurant and had almost immediately fallen in love with her. So, how does that all work out?
Oh yeah, there is a mysterious William Lane, who was alleged to have been released from prison recently, but who apparently was killed by a car in an accident outside a house he and two of his companions were in the process of burgling. But, one of the former companions thinks he has seen Lane. Is it a ghost, or did Lane not die, despite there being a death certificate attesting that he had? How does that work?
And so forth. It's an entertaining yarn with which to while away these dreary days of waiting for spring through endless dank days of drizzle. show less
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527+ Works 10,138 Members
Among the most prolific of all authors of adventure fiction was the redoubtable Edgar Wallace. Born in London, Wallace received his early education at St. Peter's School and the Board School. Wallace served in the Royal West Kent Regiment in England and later as part of the Medical Staff Corps stationed in South Africa. During World War I, Wallace show more acted as a special interrogator for the War Office. As was the case with a number of successful popular authors, Wallace experienced a rich and diverse life before turning to professional writing. From 1886 to the 1930s, he worked in a printing shop, a shoe shop, and a rubber factory, and served as a merchant sailor and milk deliverer. Beginning in 1899, Wallace became a journalist and wrote variously for the London Daily Mail and the Rand Daily News, among others; he also worked with the racing periodicals, having founded two of them---Bibury's Weekly and R. E. Walton's Weekly. Like Sax Rohmer, Wallace earned a fortune from his writings, yet, because of a lack of business sense and a tendency to overspend, he died in debt. A prodigious writer of fiction, Wallace published, over the course of his professional life, some 173 books and wrote 17 plays. Many of his adventure narratives featured elements of crime or mystery, but they all thrived on action. Although Wallace's handling of plot was superb and he was respected for his ability to blend suspense with humor, he was less successful with his characters, who tended to be two-dimensional and stereotyped. One of his early crime adventures, The Four Just Men (1906), introduced what was to become a trademark for Wallace---lurid sensationalism coupled with dramatic violence. Wallace published in a wide range of genres, including poetry, short fiction, autobiography, and epic political history. Regrettably, much of what he wrote has lapsed into obscurity today. As sometimes is the problem with popular fiction, perhaps it was too hurriedly written---too intimately connected with its contemporary audience---to stand the ultimate test of time. But Wallace's work was highly influential, especially in the American pulp magazine markets of the Great Depression, and stands today, despite its many flaws, as some of the most effective literary adventures ever written. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Some Editions
Series
Belongs to Publisher Series
Doubleday Crime Club (1928.25)
Goldmann Taschen Krimi (248)
Work Relationships
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Has the adaptation
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- The Feathered Serpent
- Original title
- The Feathered Serpent
- Alternate titles*
- Gucumaz; Gucumatz der Allmächtige
- Original publication date
- 1927
- Related movies
- The Feathered Serpent (1932 | IMDb); The Feathered Serpent (1934 | IMDb); The Feathered Serpent (1976 | IMDb)
- Dedication
- To Daphne du Maurier
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
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Statistics
- Members
- 147
- Popularity
- 222,177
- Reviews
- 1
- Rating
- (3.25)
- Languages
- 15 — Bulgarian, Czech, Dutch, English, German, Hebrew, Italian, Polish, Portuguese (Brazil), Portuguese (Portugal), Russian, Serbian, Croatian, Slovenian, Spanish
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 17
- ASINs
- 17
