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The Great Impersonation is a mystery novel written by E. Phillips Oppenheim and published in 1920. German Leopold von Ragastein meets his doppelganger, Englishman Everard Dominey, in Africa, and plans to murder him and steal his identity in order to spy on English high society just prior to World War I. However, doubts of the returned Dominey's true identity begin to arise in this tale of romance, political intrigue, and a (literally) haunting past. The story begins in German East Africa, where Englishman Everard Dominey awakens to his doppelganger host, German Leopold von Ragastein. They spend the night drinking and sharing their dark pasts. The next day, Leopold and Dr. Schmidt hatch a plan to make Everard disappear in the wilderness, thereby allowing Leopold to steal his identity and fulfill his special commission for the German government. In London, Everard seems very different from his peers, but is so familiar with his own past that he is accepted back. Unfortunately, his wife, Lady Rosamund Dominey, is still insane, and still thinks that Everard killed Roger Unthank, who disappeared just before Everard left and has not been seen since. Princess Stephanie Eiderstrom recognizes Everard as Leopold immediately, and threatens to reveal him if he does not meet with her later. Everard speaks with Mr. Seaman and reveals that Leopold killed a Hungarian prince, the husband of his lover the Princess Eiderstrom, which is why he was banished to Africa. He sends Seaman to the princess and lets her know that they cannot be together until he is done being Everard. Seaman, in turn, informs him that his true mission in England is to keep an eye on Ambassador Terniloff. Princess Eiderstrom informs Terniloff of Leopold's true identity. The Prince means to ensure that Leopold is a spy for peace, not warfare, and he assures the Prince that the former is true.
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First published January 1, 1920
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About the author
E. Phillips Oppenheim
628 books80 followersEdward Phillips Oppenheim was an English novelist, primarily known for his suspense fiction.
He was born in Leicester, the son of a leather merchant, and after attending Wyggeston Grammar School he worked in his father's business for almost 20 years, beginning there at a young age. He continued working in the business, even though he was a successful novelist, until he was 40 at which point he sold the business.
He wrote his first book 'Expiation' in 1887 and in 1898 he published 'The Mysterious Mr Sabin', which he described as "The first of my long series of stories dealing with that shadowy and mysterious world of diplomacy." Thereafter he became a prolific writer and by 1900 he had had 14 novels published.
While on a business trip to the United States in 1890 he met and married Elise Clara Hopkins of Boston and, on return to England, they lived in Evington, Leicestershire until the First World War,and had one daughter. His wife remained faithful to him throughout his life despite his frequent and highly publicised affairs, which often took place abroad and aboard his luxury yacht.
During World War I Oppenheim worked for the Ministry of Information while continuing to write his suspenseful novels.
He featured on the cover of 'Time' magazine on 12 September 1927 and he was the self-styled 'Prince of Storytellers', a title used by Robert standish for his biography of the author.
His literary success enabled him to buy a villa in France and a yacht, spending his winters in France where he regularly entertained more than 250 people at his lavish parties and where he was a well-known figure in high society.
He later purchased a house, Le Vanquiédor in St. Peter Port, in Guernsey. He lost access to the house during the Second World War when Germany occupied the Channel Islands but later regained it.
He wrote 116 novels, mainly of the suspense and international intrigue type, but including romances, comedies, and parables of everyday life, and 39 volumes of short stories, all of which earned him vast sums of money. He also wrote five novels under the pseudonymn Anthony Partridge and a volume of autobiography, 'The Pool of Memory' in 1939.
He is generally regarded as the earliest writer of spy fiction as we know it today, and invented the 'Rogue Male' school of adventure thrillers that was later exploited by John Buchan and Geoffrey Household.
Undoubtedly his most renowned work was 'The Great Impersonation' (1920), which was filmed three times, the last time as a strong piece of wartime propaganda in 1942. In that novel the plot hinges around two very similar looking gentlemen, one from Britain and the other from Germany, in the early part of the 20th century. Overall more than 30 of his works were made into films.
Perhaps his most enduring creation is the character of General Besserley, the protagonist of 'General Besserley's Puzzle Box' and 'General Besserley's New Puzzle Box'.
Much of his work possesses a unique escapist charm, featuring protagonists who delight in Epicurean meals, surroundings of intense luxury, and the relaxed pursuit of criminal practice, on either side of the law.
Gerry Wolstenholme
He was born in Leicester, the son of a leather merchant, and after attending Wyggeston Grammar School he worked in his father's business for almost 20 years, beginning there at a young age. He continued working in the business, even though he was a successful novelist, until he was 40 at which point he sold the business.
He wrote his first book 'Expiation' in 1887 and in 1898 he published 'The Mysterious Mr Sabin', which he described as "The first of my long series of stories dealing with that shadowy and mysterious world of diplomacy." Thereafter he became a prolific writer and by 1900 he had had 14 novels published.
While on a business trip to the United States in 1890 he met and married Elise Clara Hopkins of Boston and, on return to England, they lived in Evington, Leicestershire until the First World War,and had one daughter. His wife remained faithful to him throughout his life despite his frequent and highly publicised affairs, which often took place abroad and aboard his luxury yacht.
During World War I Oppenheim worked for the Ministry of Information while continuing to write his suspenseful novels.
He featured on the cover of 'Time' magazine on 12 September 1927 and he was the self-styled 'Prince of Storytellers', a title used by Robert standish for his biography of the author.
His literary success enabled him to buy a villa in France and a yacht, spending his winters in France where he regularly entertained more than 250 people at his lavish parties and where he was a well-known figure in high society.
He later purchased a house, Le Vanquiédor in St. Peter Port, in Guernsey. He lost access to the house during the Second World War when Germany occupied the Channel Islands but later regained it.
He wrote 116 novels, mainly of the suspense and international intrigue type, but including romances, comedies, and parables of everyday life, and 39 volumes of short stories, all of which earned him vast sums of money. He also wrote five novels under the pseudonymn Anthony Partridge and a volume of autobiography, 'The Pool of Memory' in 1939.
He is generally regarded as the earliest writer of spy fiction as we know it today, and invented the 'Rogue Male' school of adventure thrillers that was later exploited by John Buchan and Geoffrey Household.
Undoubtedly his most renowned work was 'The Great Impersonation' (1920), which was filmed three times, the last time as a strong piece of wartime propaganda in 1942. In that novel the plot hinges around two very similar looking gentlemen, one from Britain and the other from Germany, in the early part of the 20th century. Overall more than 30 of his works were made into films.
Perhaps his most enduring creation is the character of General Besserley, the protagonist of 'General Besserley's Puzzle Box' and 'General Besserley's New Puzzle Box'.
Much of his work possesses a unique escapist charm, featuring protagonists who delight in Epicurean meals, surroundings of intense luxury, and the relaxed pursuit of criminal practice, on either side of the law.
Gerry Wolstenholme
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May 6, 2022Highly entertaining Edwardian pulp nonsense. English wastrel baronet encounters German exiled nobleman in Africa (immense racism in this bit). German decides to kill Englishman and take his place as a spy because obviously they look identical, went to school together, and know each other's language perfectly. But the Englishman overhears! The Englishman then turns up in London, except he's the German posing as the Englishman, unless he's the Englishman posing as the German posing as the Englishman! WHICH IS IT?
Complications are added by the Englishman's discarded wife and discarded mistress *and* the German's lost love, all of them determined to get our frankly overworked protagonist, and also there's an unsolved murder and at least three Secret Spies knocking about and it's enormous fun (except, as noted, the opening racism, general xenophobia, strongly pro-massive-Euro-war views, mild misogyny, and sodding weird obsession with one of the women looking like a child because that's apparently hot. Which is to say, pretty standard Edwardian pulp.)
Complications are added by the Englishman's discarded wife and discarded mistress *and* the German's lost love, all of them determined to get our frankly overworked protagonist, and also there's an unsolved murder and at least three Secret Spies knocking about and it's enormous fun (except, as noted, the opening racism, general xenophobia, strongly pro-massive-Euro-war views, mild misogyny, and sodding weird obsession with one of the women looking like a child because that's apparently hot. Which is to say, pretty standard Edwardian pulp.)
June 17, 2013
EPO was a bon vivant, worldling and womanizer who wrote about 60 thriller-espionagers in the early 20thC. His characters are rich, glamorous -- both the good and the bad. Quirky readers like myself have even collected his oft dated but delightfully woozy adventures. (I have about 15). Some are not terrif, yet all have snappy dialogue and atmospheric situs. Cocktail reading, for sure, in a tottery oceanfront house perched on a cliff--.
Dissipated Brit in Africa, Everard Dominey, meets his double, a German baron, Leopold von Ragenstein, who decides to kill Dominey and impersonate him for McGuffin reasons in London. Secret agents sneak around embassies as WW1 begins. A very Pop item, it was filmed 3xs. Sample intermezzo :
"I believe you are in love with your wife," she sighed.
"I believe I am," he muttered.
Und: "Other married people have lived together and hated each other. Why shouldn't we?" she said with a smile.
"We cannot decide anything in a hurry," he murmured.
Waves of Oppenheim passion collide with fear, and, ah yes, those longings, but what about the corpse, the Kaiser and purloined papers? Bonk-bonk fun for the escapist abode near the thundering sea. Plus plenty of booze.
Dissipated Brit in Africa, Everard Dominey, meets his double, a German baron, Leopold von Ragenstein, who decides to kill Dominey and impersonate him for McGuffin reasons in London. Secret agents sneak around embassies as WW1 begins. A very Pop item, it was filmed 3xs. Sample intermezzo :
"I believe you are in love with your wife," she sighed.
"I believe I am," he muttered.
Und: "Other married people have lived together and hated each other. Why shouldn't we?" she said with a smile.
"We cannot decide anything in a hurry," he murmured.
Waves of Oppenheim passion collide with fear, and, ah yes, those longings, but what about the corpse, the Kaiser and purloined papers? Bonk-bonk fun for the escapist abode near the thundering sea. Plus plenty of booze.
September 7, 2016
I read about this book somewhere, so thought it was worth trying. Very dated tosh, especially when it comes to the women who fawn over the central character. All right if you read it as an example of the sorts of books people thought were thrilling back in about 1920, but not otherwise.
August 10, 2016
4.5 *
Excellent espionage suspense novel set in the time leading up to WW1.
Two men who look amazingly alike, one German and one English, meet in German East Africa. Which one is it that returns to England as Everard Dominey?? Added to that is the mystery surrounding Dominey's wife and the circumstances which led him to leave England in the first place.
I listened to the LibriVox recording by Tim Weiss which was fine though a tad slow in its pace for my taste.
Excellent espionage suspense novel set in the time leading up to WW1.
Two men who look amazingly alike, one German and one English, meet in German East Africa. Which one is it that returns to England as Everard Dominey?? Added to that is the mystery surrounding Dominey's wife and the circumstances which led him to leave England in the first place.
I listened to the LibriVox recording by Tim Weiss which was fine though a tad slow in its pace for my taste.
August 30, 2012
A most exciting novel a German intends to murder an Englishman with rather similar features to his, assume his identity and spy on the English high society. This tale is full of murder, crime, confused identity, blackmail, war, romance, politics, and theres even a 'ghost'...
All the elements of an exciting adventure!!!
All the elements of an exciting adventure!!!
December 7, 2017
An amazing and breathtaking adventure, so incredibly well written that the reader stays until quite the end without being sure if the impostor is really one... A first book that I read by this Author, E. Phillips Oppenheim completely conquered me as a reader... The plot is interesting, the characters are subtly drawn by their Author and some become so endearing that it is almost sad to end the book!
I really loved it!
Maria Carmo,
Lisbon, 7 December 2017.
I really loved it!
Maria Carmo,
Lisbon, 7 December 2017.
April 20, 2016
This novel,written in 1920,is a winner. The twist in the last chapter is stunning. It is a first rate espionage/spy thriller set in the months before WWI. It is marked contrast to much of today's thriller writing, i.e., a minimum of violence, few four letter words, and no explicit sex scenes, yet it is a compelling read.
E. Phillips Oppenheim became one of the most popular writers of mysteries and spy thrillers, in the UK and the US, producing more than 100 novels between 1887 and 1943. He died in 1946.
I found this book as a result of a recent article in the Wall Street Journal about the American Library going to publish a volume of Oppenheim's work. Among the works mentioned was The Great Impersonation.
I am currently reading Oppenheim's 1941 memoirs in which he describes how, on his first trans-Atlantic trip, he became so disgusted with the books and stories he had published to date, that he threw his copy of his first novel and all of his in-progress writing over the side into the ocean, and considered dropping .his writing career
The memoirs are written in novelistic style and so the pages turn very easily and rapidly.
I am now looking at my next Oppenheim novel. The Boston Athenaeum, of which I am a member, has all of Oppenheim's novels available, so I can happily indulge.
E. Phillips Oppenheim became one of the most popular writers of mysteries and spy thrillers, in the UK and the US, producing more than 100 novels between 1887 and 1943. He died in 1946.
I found this book as a result of a recent article in the Wall Street Journal about the American Library going to publish a volume of Oppenheim's work. Among the works mentioned was The Great Impersonation.
I am currently reading Oppenheim's 1941 memoirs in which he describes how, on his first trans-Atlantic trip, he became so disgusted with the books and stories he had published to date, that he threw his copy of his first novel and all of his in-progress writing over the side into the ocean, and considered dropping .his writing career
The memoirs are written in novelistic style and so the pages turn very easily and rapidly.
I am now looking at my next Oppenheim novel. The Boston Athenaeum, of which I am a member, has all of Oppenheim's novels available, so I can happily indulge.
February 6, 2015
I thought I read this because of a review by Michael Dirda of the Wash. Post on Oppenheim's writings, but I can't find any such review online. Dirda or no, the review warned me this wasn't a literary gem. My interest was in spy novels that preceded Eric Ambler or John Buchan.
It was a competent book in the Buchan vein of competent but uninspired writing. Where it's not up to snuff with either Buchan or Ambler was in the area of thrills and suspense.
The story concerns two chaps who look alike and went to public school in jolly old England in the first decade of the 20th century. They meet in Africa more than ten years later (around 1913). One is a German hard-edged military type, and the other a formerly wealthy British wastrel. One kills the other with the intention of impersonating him as a spy. Or does he? We really don't know which one survived.
Unfortunately, it's easy to guess--it's a 50-50 proposition off the bat, and if you throw in the reader's expectations of what might make a gripping yarn, you reduce those odds considerably. Or am I too jaded?
At any rate, 90% of the book is conversations between the principal spy and his--not to spoil it, but--German masters, up to and including a meeting with Kaiser Wilhelm, who thanks him for his service. All these conversations generally include, "We'll get to that later," (and they're resumed the next morning), and also the chivalrous suggestion that although you're doing a swell job impersonating old so-and-so, we hope you're not screwing his wife. That might be too much for her delicate health. At any rate, in the climax the hero finds a half-man, half-beast who has been howling outside his wife's window for ten years, (hence her delicate health), and turns the spies over to the Secret Service, thus revealing that he wasn't really who people thought he was but the other guy all along. Not bad, but nothing there for writers of suspense. Nor much for readers, either.
It was a competent book in the Buchan vein of competent but uninspired writing. Where it's not up to snuff with either Buchan or Ambler was in the area of thrills and suspense.
The story concerns two chaps who look alike and went to public school in jolly old England in the first decade of the 20th century. They meet in Africa more than ten years later (around 1913). One is a German hard-edged military type, and the other a formerly wealthy British wastrel. One kills the other with the intention of impersonating him as a spy. Or does he? We really don't know which one survived.
Unfortunately, it's easy to guess--it's a 50-50 proposition off the bat, and if you throw in the reader's expectations of what might make a gripping yarn, you reduce those odds considerably. Or am I too jaded?
At any rate, 90% of the book is conversations between the principal spy and his--not to spoil it, but--German masters, up to and including a meeting with Kaiser Wilhelm, who thanks him for his service. All these conversations generally include, "We'll get to that later," (and they're resumed the next morning), and also the chivalrous suggestion that although you're doing a swell job impersonating old so-and-so, we hope you're not screwing his wife. That might be too much for her delicate health. At any rate, in the climax the hero finds a half-man, half-beast who has been howling outside his wife's window for ten years, (hence her delicate health), and turns the spies over to the Secret Service, thus revealing that he wasn't really who people thought he was but the other guy all along. Not bad, but nothing there for writers of suspense. Nor much for readers, either.
December 10, 2009
Master Piece. Great!!
A must read. I started this book on 7 PM and was so absorbed by it that finished it in the first reading on 1 AM. :)
Just great, the plot events keeps you immersed in the book. I love how the author made such real characters and how he turn the pace of events.
Everyone should read it.
5/5
A must read. I started this book on 7 PM and was so absorbed by it that finished it in the first reading on 1 AM. :)
Just great, the plot events keeps you immersed in the book. I love how the author made such real characters and how he turn the pace of events.
Everyone should read it.
5/5
March 30, 2022
This book had promise. Had.
The story begins in Africa. Two old friends, an Englishman named Edwin Dominey and a German Major-General Baron Leopold Von Ragastein meet in a chance encounter. The two blokes went to university together in England. It has been decades since that time. Their respective countries are at odds with each other as a rising German nation and military look to take on the might of the British Empire. We are on the eve of WWI.
There is intrigue as Von Ragastein, who bears a striking resemblance to the hard-drinking Dominey, cracks up a plot to assume his English counterparts identity and travel back to London. Through Dominey he will learn important secrets of the English government and military and spread disinformation to the Brits regarding the intentions of his fatherland.
Leopold's plan is put into action. With the real Dominey disposed, the new Dominey returns home after more than a decade in Africa. His friends do not recognize him after all this time. The faux Dominey has to work at convincing his friends and family that he is indeed Dominey and that his time in Africa has made him a sober and thoughtful man. Not everyone is convinced, including his mentally ill wife.
There are more complications as Leopold's former lover from Germany is also in England and runs into the new Domine. She is sure he is Leopold. On and on the complex story of spy versus spy, mistaken and double identity goes. Throw in a ghost story in case this outlandish plot is not convoluted enough.
There are surprises along the way, but the novel fails after an interesting start. Through much of the middle section, the author repeatedly puts Dominey is scenes where a former associate, friend or family member runs into him and Dominey has to convince them he is indeed Dominey. The setup is quick, but the follow through lacks substance to take the story beyond this overly played gimmick.
The conclusion is a mess. The author cuts corners and does not bother to justify his answers. It is all flash and little substance. To be fair, this book was published during the age where whodunits popularized by Agatha Christie tales were huge sellers. Christie was not shy about taking liberties with the form, but this one goes a bridge or three too far. Too long. Too complex. Too messy.
The story begins in Africa. Two old friends, an Englishman named Edwin Dominey and a German Major-General Baron Leopold Von Ragastein meet in a chance encounter. The two blokes went to university together in England. It has been decades since that time. Their respective countries are at odds with each other as a rising German nation and military look to take on the might of the British Empire. We are on the eve of WWI.
There is intrigue as Von Ragastein, who bears a striking resemblance to the hard-drinking Dominey, cracks up a plot to assume his English counterparts identity and travel back to London. Through Dominey he will learn important secrets of the English government and military and spread disinformation to the Brits regarding the intentions of his fatherland.
Leopold's plan is put into action. With the real Dominey disposed, the new Dominey returns home after more than a decade in Africa. His friends do not recognize him after all this time. The faux Dominey has to work at convincing his friends and family that he is indeed Dominey and that his time in Africa has made him a sober and thoughtful man. Not everyone is convinced, including his mentally ill wife.
There are more complications as Leopold's former lover from Germany is also in England and runs into the new Domine. She is sure he is Leopold. On and on the complex story of spy versus spy, mistaken and double identity goes. Throw in a ghost story in case this outlandish plot is not convoluted enough.
There are surprises along the way, but the novel fails after an interesting start. Through much of the middle section, the author repeatedly puts Dominey is scenes where a former associate, friend or family member runs into him and Dominey has to convince them he is indeed Dominey. The setup is quick, but the follow through lacks substance to take the story beyond this overly played gimmick.
The conclusion is a mess. The author cuts corners and does not bother to justify his answers. It is all flash and little substance. To be fair, this book was published during the age where whodunits popularized by Agatha Christie tales were huge sellers. Christie was not shy about taking liberties with the form, but this one goes a bridge or three too far. Too long. Too complex. Too messy.
February 16, 2020
There are two mysteries in this novel. though neither is a typical whodunit, it's a more general questions that the reader is supposed to wonder about. The first question is: who exactly is the main character of this book? Because in the first chapter we witness a meeting between Englishman Everard Dominey and German Baron von Ragastein who went to school together and who look so much alike that they could be twins. Then we learn that Ragastein is a German spy and he plans to kill Dominey, take his place and infiltrate British society. In the next chapter, we're back in Britain and Dominey is welcomed there, though many people remark on how much he has changed. So which of the two has returned? Let's put it this way: I had my suspicions where this question was concerned and at the end, I wasn't terribly surprised.
The second question concerns the reasons Dominey left England in the first place: he quarrelled with a man, attacked him and seemingly killed him but his body was never found. Now the man's ghost seems to haunt the woods where it all happened. More events are connected to this tragedy: after coming home covered in the man's blood his wife - being a weak and feeble woman - went mad and now she's taken care of by the dead man mother who hates Dominey with a passion. The question here is: what exactly happened that day, where's the body and how does it all together? Here I also had my suspicions. Not about every detail but about some things and again I wasn't terribly surprised at the reveal.
Which leaves a rather predictable story with characters that are...not exactly deep and complex. Since we're not told if the main character is Dominey or von Ragastein, we don't get too much of his inner thoughts and feelings which would give away whom he is fooling. But as a result I never felt much of a connection to him. The women meanwhile get two pick one or more of the following traits: hot, mad, evil and are all obsessed with Dominey/Ragastein in one way or the other and that's also rather exhausting.
The second question concerns the reasons Dominey left England in the first place: he quarrelled with a man, attacked him and seemingly killed him but his body was never found. Now the man's ghost seems to haunt the woods where it all happened. More events are connected to this tragedy: after coming home covered in the man's blood his wife - being a weak and feeble woman - went mad and now she's taken care of by the dead man mother who hates Dominey with a passion. The question here is: what exactly happened that day, where's the body and how does it all together? Here I also had my suspicions. Not about every detail but about some things and again I wasn't terribly surprised at the reveal.
Which leaves a rather predictable story with characters that are...not exactly deep and complex. Since we're not told if the main character is Dominey or von Ragastein, we don't get too much of his inner thoughts and feelings which would give away whom he is fooling. But as a result I never felt much of a connection to him. The women meanwhile get two pick one or more of the following traits: hot, mad, evil and are all obsessed with Dominey/Ragastein in one way or the other and that's also rather exhausting.
July 30, 2018
Awfully boring for a spy novel! The slow pacing and lack of action was frustrating—I kept waiting for something to happen, but it feels like the book had no real climax. I’ll admit, I did not expect the twist at the end, but it comes so late that it doesn’t really redeem the endless chapters of boredom.
If the book was so boring, why did I read it then? Because I’m producing the book for standardebooks.org! I’ll hopefully have it published on there in the next week or two.
Also fair warning: there’s some racial slurs in the first few chapters while they’re in Africa. I actually didn’t know Brits used the n-word; I thought that was an American slur. The book was written in 1920; I’m curious if their use even raised an eyebrow back then.
If the book was so boring, why did I read it then? Because I’m producing the book for standardebooks.org! I’ll hopefully have it published on there in the next week or two.
Also fair warning: there’s some racial slurs in the first few chapters while they’re in Africa. I actually didn’t know Brits used the n-word; I thought that was an American slur. The book was written in 1920; I’m curious if their use even raised an eyebrow back then.
April 21, 2020
When the disgraced Everard Dominey returns to England after many years away, he has acquired a fortune and is determined to rehabilitate himself. However, soon his former friends are convinced he is really a German spy, Baron von Ragastein, who attended university with them and might be able to play the part of an English gentleman. As war with Germany approaches, it becomes important to figure out exactly who Sir Everard is...
https://perfectretort.blogspot.com/20...
My college library owned copies of every Oppenheimer book, and I read them all when I should have been studying.
https://perfectretort.blogspot.com/20...
My college library owned copies of every Oppenheimer book, and I read them all when I should have been studying.
August 1, 2023
I've read several of Oppenheim's books and I think this is my favorite so far.
I find it interesting that it is set in the year preceding the onset of WWI, but it was written in the year (1920) following that war.
I find it interesting that it is set in the year preceding the onset of WWI, but it was written in the year (1920) following that war.
August 22, 2009
A must for all devotees of thriller fiction -- equal to, and perhaps better than, Buchan's The Thirty-Nine Steps.
December 5, 2017
A slim novel with a great surprise at the end, I would love to see the movie, but couldn't find it.
March 10, 2024
Reading this book for book club and it is not my style of book. I read about 50 pages and just could not focus and keep going.
August 29, 2023
Dankzij mijn “willekeurige woordenzoeker” heb ik een auteur leren kennen, waarvan ik nog nooit had gehoord: de Engelsman Edward Phillips Oppenheim met zijn bestverkochte boek The Great Impersonation uit 1920, in het Nederlands vertaald als “De treffende gelijkenis”, een prisma-pocket uit 1966.
Edward Phillips Oppenheim werd geboren in Londen als zoon van een handelaar in lederwaren. Hij werkte ook in zijn vaders bedrijf, maar voelde zich meer aangetrokken tot het schrijverschap. Al in zijn schooltijd werkte hij mee aan verschillende regionale bladen. Op 21-jarige leeftijd debuteerde hij succesvol met zijn eerste roman, Expiation (1887). Vele boeken zouden in hoog tempo volgen, soms verschenen er meerdere per jaar. Zijn thema’s waren divers, variërend van spionage- en detectiveverhalen tot komische en romantische werken. Zijn bestverkochte boek was The Great Impersonation (1920), dat driemaal werd verfilmd, in 1921, 1935 en 1942. Ook The Amazing Quest of Mr.Ernest Bliss werd tweemaal verfilmd, als stomme film in 1920 en opnieuw in 1936 met Cary Grant in de hoofdrol. Het boek verscheen in het Nederlands onder de titel ‘Rijk en geen geld’.
Oppenheim, die ook gebruikmaakte van het pseudoniem Anthony Partridge, liet de personages in zijn veelal zeer avontuurlijke verhalen optreden in een wereldse, vaak luxueuze of exotische omgeving. Hij wordt wel genoemd als de grondlegger van het spionagethriller-genre in de literatuur, zoals ook het boek dat ik gelezen heb er één is. Zoals gezegd is het verschenen in 1920, maar het speelt zich af kort voor de Eerste Wereldoorlog en het onderwerp is inderdaad de Duitse spionage in Engeland in de aanloop naar de wereldbrand. Zoals de titel aangeeft, speelt de identiteitsverwisseling tussen twee kennissen (vrienden is een te groot woord) die samen opgegroeid zijn in Engeland, maar waarvan één eigenlijk een Duitser is, de centrale rol. Uiteraard brengt dit te verwachten moeilijkheden mee, vooral op het amoureuze vlak, want beide mannen dragen een gecompliceerd liefdesleven met zich mee. Het boek leest vlot en de verrassende afloop zorgt ervoor dat de spanningsboog tot het einde behouden blijft.
Edward Phillips Oppenheim werd geboren in Londen als zoon van een handelaar in lederwaren. Hij werkte ook in zijn vaders bedrijf, maar voelde zich meer aangetrokken tot het schrijverschap. Al in zijn schooltijd werkte hij mee aan verschillende regionale bladen. Op 21-jarige leeftijd debuteerde hij succesvol met zijn eerste roman, Expiation (1887). Vele boeken zouden in hoog tempo volgen, soms verschenen er meerdere per jaar. Zijn thema’s waren divers, variërend van spionage- en detectiveverhalen tot komische en romantische werken. Zijn bestverkochte boek was The Great Impersonation (1920), dat driemaal werd verfilmd, in 1921, 1935 en 1942. Ook The Amazing Quest of Mr.Ernest Bliss werd tweemaal verfilmd, als stomme film in 1920 en opnieuw in 1936 met Cary Grant in de hoofdrol. Het boek verscheen in het Nederlands onder de titel ‘Rijk en geen geld’.
Oppenheim, die ook gebruikmaakte van het pseudoniem Anthony Partridge, liet de personages in zijn veelal zeer avontuurlijke verhalen optreden in een wereldse, vaak luxueuze of exotische omgeving. Hij wordt wel genoemd als de grondlegger van het spionagethriller-genre in de literatuur, zoals ook het boek dat ik gelezen heb er één is. Zoals gezegd is het verschenen in 1920, maar het speelt zich af kort voor de Eerste Wereldoorlog en het onderwerp is inderdaad de Duitse spionage in Engeland in de aanloop naar de wereldbrand. Zoals de titel aangeeft, speelt de identiteitsverwisseling tussen twee kennissen (vrienden is een te groot woord) die samen opgegroeid zijn in Engeland, maar waarvan één eigenlijk een Duitser is, de centrale rol. Uiteraard brengt dit te verwachten moeilijkheden mee, vooral op het amoureuze vlak, want beide mannen dragen een gecompliceerd liefdesleven met zich mee. Het boek leest vlot en de verrassende afloop zorgt ervoor dat de spanningsboog tot het einde behouden blijft.
September 18, 2022
Free | Racism and use of the N-word a couple times in the beginning | Because I've read so many British books from the time, I know what the reading public would and would not accept in their protagonist characters. It was therefore impossible to be taken in, and the twist was not a twist. It's hard to judge how I would have felt if I had been surprised, as it was it was relatively enjoyable but felt like it was taking forever to come to the big moment, and it was hard to imagine the Germans just letting the Princess act the way she did.
October 19, 2020
An absolutely wild ride, the main twist was a little easy to guess, but I still had a few surprises at the end. Interesting from both the perspective of being fairly contemporaneous to its world war one content, and also from the sheer pulpiness of the plot.
Edit: On further thought, this is actually a bit deeper and more interesting than I originally wrote. Highly recommend.
Edit: On further thought, this is actually a bit deeper and more interesting than I originally wrote. Highly recommend.
August 11, 2023
Well done, Oppenheim.
(Not to be confused with Oppenheimer whose bio movie has recently been released).
Historical fiction in Britain leading up to WWI.
Traded identities, action, adventure and mystery.
I like trying to figure out the mysteries, and enjoy being fooled by the outcomes.
And he did fool me.
(Not to be confused with Oppenheimer whose bio movie has recently been released).
Historical fiction in Britain leading up to WWI.
Traded identities, action, adventure and mystery.
I like trying to figure out the mysteries, and enjoy being fooled by the outcomes.
And he did fool me.
September 4, 2021
Good prose, good dialog, good characterization, decent world building, ok story, no theme. More like 3.5-stars.
January 27, 2022
This is reputedly the best of Oppenheim's prolific writing career, and it is a gem. The story begins in Africa, where a German soldier and a profligate English gent meet by serendipity. The two men look so much alike, it's uncanny. It becomes convenient for one character to swap places with the other, and all manner of action and intrigue ensues.
The time setting is prior to the onset of WWI, and we are treated to a little historical fiction, contrasting English vs. German sentiment of the time. There's also espionage, a bit of Gothic-style spookiness, and a dash of light romance. Oppenheim covered all the bases in this thriller.
The ending held a big surprise for me, which made a delightful conclusion. Though I didn't enjoy this book quite as much as _The Curious Quest_, it was still a very entertaining read. I am so glad I found this author, I have thoroughly enjoyed the three titles I have read.
The time setting is prior to the onset of WWI, and we are treated to a little historical fiction, contrasting English vs. German sentiment of the time. There's also espionage, a bit of Gothic-style spookiness, and a dash of light romance. Oppenheim covered all the bases in this thriller.
The ending held a big surprise for me, which made a delightful conclusion. Though I didn't enjoy this book quite as much as _The Curious Quest_, it was still a very entertaining read. I am so glad I found this author, I have thoroughly enjoyed the three titles I have read.
June 30, 2019
This was fast-paced for a book written almost 100 years ago. I expected it to drag a little more, as older works sometimes do, but it was suspenseful throughout. It was even romantic, which surprised me. I thought Victorian/Edwardian gentlemen, like the author, were disdainful of "sentiment." My only complaint is that as a modern reader I seem to be less able to suspend disbelief, and I found some of the plot, particularly the parts that dealt with the "insane" Lady Dominey, a little far-fetched. Also, I figured out a great deal of the mystery early on, which made the big revelation not as surprising but still satisfying.
An entertaining read, similar in feel to the Gothic romances that were written in the 70's and 80's by authors like Victoria Holt.
An entertaining read, similar in feel to the Gothic romances that were written in the 70's and 80's by authors like Victoria Holt.
July 17, 2019
Published in 1920, this great novel (short enough to be called a novella, really) chronicles a German officer's daring effort to assume the identity of an English noble and make a place for himself in the upper political strata of pre-WW I England for the benefit of his country in the anticipated war. It's also a romance, and a rumination on international ambitions and morals. On any level, it's a wonderful book. Highly recommended, if you can find it. I came across it in an anthology called Five Spy Novels, published in 1962 by Doubleday. Try your library or a used book dealer; the other four novels are varied in quality, but The Great Impersonation alone is worth the price.
October 24, 2012
Entertaining but kind of forgettable
I quite enjoyed The Great Impersonation... Despite it feeling somewhat dated in language, the story and characters were well developed and I didn't really see the twist at the end. In fact, and I'm sure this won't be a popular position, but I didn't quite buy the end. Dominey had been built up to be such a drunken loser that for him to have the nerve, cunning and ability to completely transform himself and take on the role as a duping Von Ragastein seems a bit impossible to me.
Other than that, it is a fun, easy book to read, if being somewhat, in my opinion, a bit forgettable.
I quite enjoyed The Great Impersonation... Despite it feeling somewhat dated in language, the story and characters were well developed and I didn't really see the twist at the end. In fact, and I'm sure this won't be a popular position, but I didn't quite buy the end. Dominey had been built up to be such a drunken loser that for him to have the nerve, cunning and ability to completely transform himself and take on the role as a duping Von Ragastein seems a bit impossible to me.
Other than that, it is a fun, easy book to read, if being somewhat, in my opinion, a bit forgettable.
November 13, 2016
I'm reading books recommended by this one:
Thrillers: 100 Must-Reads by David Morrell
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7...
It received a glowing review therein. However, what I discovered was a very tedious, repetitious novel. We are told again and again each characters motivations. "Remember, sir, that conversation we had about your motivations? Well, I'll remind you of it now. It went like this..." Lather, rinse, repeat.
The ending is a cheat and creates more questions than it answers. An author cannot have every character declare time and again that X is True, then at the end declare that they were mistaken after all.
Thrillers: 100 Must-Reads by David Morrell
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7...
It received a glowing review therein. However, what I discovered was a very tedious, repetitious novel. We are told again and again each characters motivations. "Remember, sir, that conversation we had about your motivations? Well, I'll remind you of it now. It went like this..." Lather, rinse, repeat.
The ending is a cheat and creates more questions than it answers. An author cannot have every character declare time and again that X is True, then at the end declare that they were mistaken after all.
December 26, 2020
I really enjoyed this one! It's about two lookalikes who meet in German east Africa. One kills the other and begins a new life in England as a German spy.
Lots of twists, part espionage tale, part romance part gothic (sinister lady's maid, insanity, strange cries at night and a boggy wood where no one dares go)
You can't really go wrong with this. It's my first Oppenheim but certainly not my last.
Lots of twists, part espionage tale, part romance part gothic (sinister lady's maid, insanity, strange cries at night and a boggy wood where no one dares go)
You can't really go wrong with this. It's my first Oppenheim but certainly not my last.
October 24, 2011
Wow. This adventure/mystery book was read by my mother when she was a high school student, and she suggested this to me. It is a intriguing story of two men, one who is German and one who is English, who look exactly the same. One is a spy for their country, taking the place of the other in society. Which one?
February 10, 2013
First published in 1920, The Great Impersonation is a classic spy novel. While it often reads like a farce (the author even put this in the mouth of one of the characters, the plot is clever if a bit far-fetched. Nonetheless, an entertaining read that every spy fiction fan should read. Now available for free as a Kindle edition, it was out of print for years.
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