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Title: The Saint Plays with Fire

Subtitle: The Saint, Book 19

Author: Leslie Charteris

Narrator: John Telfer

Format: Unabridged

Length: 8 hrs and 42 mins

Language: English

Release date: 12-16-14

Publisher: Audible Studios

Ratings: 5 of 5 out of 7 votes

Genres: Mysteries & Thrillers, Suspense

Publisher's Summary:

The Saint is back - fifty audiobooks are now available starring the debonair classic crime hero.

Simon Templar is the Saint - daring, dazzling, and just a little disreputable. On the side of the law, but standing outside it, he dispenses his own brand of justice one criminal at a time.

When the Saint and Patricia spot a country house on fire they rush to help, but are too late to rescue one man trapped inside. The dead man's door was locked, and Simon concludes there's a murder to be answered for, despite the coroner ruling otherwise. He launches his own investigation - getting engaged along the way - and soon gets caught up with generals, financiers, and an assassination plot designed to start a war.

First published on the verge of war in 1938, The Saint Plays with Fire is a striking condemnation of nationalism and the prejudices that both Charteris and the Saint despised.

Leslie Charteris was born in Singapore and moved to England in 1919. He left Cambridge University early when his first novel was accepted for publication. He wrote novels about the Saint throughout his life, becoming one of the 20th century's most prolific and popular authors.

Members Reviews:

Simon and Patricia feel the winds of war

This is the 19th in the long running series featuring the Saint, aka Simon Templar. Charteris began writing this series about the daring adventurer and his companions in the late 1920's. This adventure, a full length novel rather than a novella or short story as is more typical for this series, is set in 1938. Europe is being shaken by the rise of Fascists in Hitler in Germany and Mussolini in Italy are familiar figures to the modern day reader, but in the period leading up to what would come to be called WWII there were many in other countries who agreed with the Fascist political agenda, and who were working quite diligently to bring about Fascist control of those governments. In 1938 it was by no means certain that other countries, France, Great Britain, or other countries would not willingly elect a Fascist government.

As Simon and Patricia Holm were driving home late one evening listening to a broadcast of a Fascist organization and discussing the threat they saw this group representing, they saw an ominous rosy glow in the distance, a country estate was on fire. When Simon and Patricia drove up the inhabitants of the house were assembling on the lawn watching in horror as the flames were engulfing the house. One person was missing from the group though, and Simon bravely entered the burning building to rescue him. He was unable to reach the man but what he saw in the building convinced him that the fire had not been an accident. Further events lead Simon to the conclusion that the fire and the Fascist group just might be connected and represent a far greater threat than the mere destruction of a country house or even the death of one man.

This is a very well written story and even though this is very much a story of it's time it has held up well. The one thing that might strike a modern reader as a bit odd is that Simon is a bit too perfect, he is just a bit stronger, quicker, smarter than those around him. He can drive just a bit faster, shoot a bit better, and is just a bit luckier than anyone else. And it goes without saying that he is better looking and better dressed so naturally he has unlimited funds and a beautiful girl friend.