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Jacob's Ladder
1921. With frontispiece by F. Vaux Wilson. A best-selling author of novels, short stories, magazine articles, translations, and plays, Oppenheim published over 150 books. He is considered one of the originators of the thriller genre, his novels also range from spy thrillers to romance, but all have an undertone of intrigue. He also wrote under the name of Anthony Partridge. Jacob's Ladder begins: Seated at breakfast on that memorable July morning, Jacob Pratt presented all the appearance of a disconsolate man. His little country sitting-room was as neat and tidy as the capable hands of the inimitable Mrs. Harris could make it. His coffee was hot and his eggs were perfectly boiled. Through the open windows stretched a little vista of the many rows of standard roses which had been the joy of his life. Yet blank misery dwelt in the soul of this erstwhile cheerful little man, and the spirit of degradation hung like a gloomy pall over his thoughts and being. Only the day before he had filed his petition in bankruptcy. See other titles by this author available from Kessinger Publishing.
- GenresClassics
303 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1921
11 people are currently reading
62 people want to read
About the author
E. Phillips Oppenheim
637 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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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
June 14, 2018
An unusual little tale, of a man goes goes from bankruptcy to millionaire. It’s fast-paced and interesting, though in a way very little happens that has much of a bearing on his primary goal: to settle down to a quiet home with the woman he loves. Revenge for some things that happened in his bankrupt days backfires in an unexpected way, and he must deal with the consequences of that.
I did find it interesting to try to place the time frame of the book. It’s published in 1921 and says not a single word of WW1, which had obviously just concluded, and the events in the story cover several years’ time. Makes me wonder how many Englishmen at the time were glad to escape from reality a trifle and not think about what had just happened to them.
Content: swearing
I did find it interesting to try to place the time frame of the book. It’s published in 1921 and says not a single word of WW1, which had obviously just concluded, and the events in the story cover several years’ time. Makes me wonder how many Englishmen at the time were glad to escape from reality a trifle and not think about what had just happened to them.
Content: swearing
October 16, 2018
ENGLISH: This, the third novel by Oppenheim I have read, is quite unusual. It is not a typical mystery novel, with a murder to be solved or something similar. It just follows the career of a normal man turned into a millionaire (the Jacob of the title), whom different sets of crooks try to swindle a part of his money, although most of the time he comes out best, being too shrewd for them. In parallel, there is a story of unrequited love, with a surprising ending, although I must confess that, for me, it was not wholly surprising (:-)
SPANISH: La tercera novela de Oppenheim que he leído es distinta a las demás. No es una novela de misterio típica, con un asesinato que hay que resolver, o algo similar. Sigue la carrera de un hombre normal convertido en millonario (el Jacob del título), a quien tratan de estafar varios grupos de delincuentes, aunque la mayoría de las veces él sale mejor librado, pues es demasiado listo para ellos. En paralelo hay una historia de amor no correspondido, con un final sorprendente, aunque debo confesar que, para mí, ese final no fue tan sorprendente (:-)
SPANISH: La tercera novela de Oppenheim que he leído es distinta a las demás. No es una novela de misterio típica, con un asesinato que hay que resolver, o algo similar. Sigue la carrera de un hombre normal convertido en millonario (el Jacob del título), a quien tratan de estafar varios grupos de delincuentes, aunque la mayoría de las veces él sale mejor librado, pues es demasiado listo para ellos. En paralelo hay una historia de amor no correspondido, con un final sorprendente, aunque debo confesar que, para mí, ese final no fue tan sorprendente (:-)
January 19, 2022
Having discovered E. Phillips Oppenheim last year, and delighting in his book _The Curious Quest_, I determined to search out more by this author. It's not hard to find his work, he was very prolific in the early 1900's.
This one was a lot of fun, the story of a bankrupt man who became a millionaire overnight. In his bankrupt state, a few kind souls treated him with compassion, but most of his acquaintances disdained him. Upon receiving his fortune, Jacob promptly rewarded his faithful friends, while learning to fend off the less genuine people who practically waited in line to beg his favor.
Because he was so affable and unassuming, he seemed an easy target. Unscrupulous businessmen designed schemes to get his money, and so many times it seemed Jacob was falling into a trap. But in the end he managed to outsmart his opponents every time, always in a very witty and satisfying way.
The sole empty spot in Jacob's life was that the woman of his dreams scorned him. He did not get his woman in the end, though I was expecting this tidy conclusion all along. The author conceived of a better solution, and I won't spoil the surprise.
This was a lighthearted, fun read and I am so glad I discovered Oppenheim!
This one was a lot of fun, the story of a bankrupt man who became a millionaire overnight. In his bankrupt state, a few kind souls treated him with compassion, but most of his acquaintances disdained him. Upon receiving his fortune, Jacob promptly rewarded his faithful friends, while learning to fend off the less genuine people who practically waited in line to beg his favor.
Because he was so affable and unassuming, he seemed an easy target. Unscrupulous businessmen designed schemes to get his money, and so many times it seemed Jacob was falling into a trap. But in the end he managed to outsmart his opponents every time, always in a very witty and satisfying way.
The sole empty spot in Jacob's life was that the woman of his dreams scorned him. He did not get his woman in the end, though I was expecting this tidy conclusion all along. The author conceived of a better solution, and I won't spoil the surprise.
This was a lighthearted, fun read and I am so glad I discovered Oppenheim!
February 18, 2015
Jacob had an opportunity to climb the ladder but hoisted himself on his own petard at least once. He was helped by friends kinder and wiser than he. Maybe it should have been called jacob's step stool and rescue. It felt more like a jumble of wild tales put together than a cohesive novel of one man's life.
August 27, 2013
I have mixed feelings about this one. The characters are very well-drawn especially the main character and his friend. Jacob's revenge is sweet but has unexpected consequences for him and others. It would definitely make me think twice about "getting even"!
January 31, 2026
A very unusual E. Phillips Oppenheim from his cloak-and-dagger mysteries, ‘Jacob’s Ladder’ (1921) is a revenge story of a millionaire. His revenge takes the form of philanthropy, not violence. Still, he does make enemies, and part of their revenge is violent and/or machiavellian traps to part his millions from his hands into their own. There's a mandatory little romance, too, that blossoms unexpectedly, as if a hibiscus you had been nursing burst into flower one morning. Except the flower wasn't a hibiscus, it was a rose.
A pretty story and pleasant characters, but it isn't like an Oppenheim at all.
A pretty story and pleasant characters, but it isn't like an Oppenheim at all.
February 4, 2019
This is an adventure novel, plain and simple. Jacob Pratt, once an object of derision, becomes very wealthy and seeks to have fun with his money in a host of ways. He is a sure-footed dancer, dexterous tennis player, adroit businessman, and tactful interlocuter. In spite of this, there is something missing. And as in the case of all adventure novels, he searches for his holy grail, his portion in his life. It's a short but blissful read. The character development for all the characters involved was adequate for a book of this length. I will probably give it a second read one day.
April 8, 2018
The first of his books I've read and definitely of its time - 1921. The title is clearly a biblical reference but I'm not sure how the plot relates to it. There is a weak romantic plot which continues throughout the book and is resolved on the last page. The restof the book is a series of barely related mini-plots of the same nature. The style of the dialogue is exageratedly courteous - perhaps at the time something seen as desirable upper middle class behaviour.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 29, 2019
Entertaining enough (almost) but repetitive. The various schemes to swindle Jacob out of his millions were quite obvious from the beginning, none more so than the only one he fails to see through. Bit of plot flaw, that. Semi-satisfying love story though.
December 8, 2017
Intriguing mystery, romance. Well narrated by Richard Kilmer. Liked the growth of main character (maturing) and the humor, a regular feature of the authors’ books. Recommended.
May 8, 2019
Jacob is clever, lucky, very rich, and desperately in love with the most bad natured, mean spirited, selfish woman around. Then there's the evil aristocracy! No end to their willingness to do what has to be done for their own gain.
January 25, 2026
An entertaining story.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews