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Richard Hannay #4
The Three Hostages
Introduced by Christopher Hitchens, this is the fourth of the five Richard Hannay novels. After the war and newly knighted, Hannay is living peacefully in the Cotswolds with his wife Mary and son Peter John. Unfortunately, a day arrives when three separate visitors tell him of three children being held hostage by a secret kidnapper. All three seem to lead back to a man named Dominick Medina, a popular Member of Parliament. Hannay uncovers a dastardly plot involving hypnotism and the black arts, as well as the more earthly crimes of blackmail and profiteering.
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1924
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About the author
John Buchan
1,741 books468 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
John Buchan was a Scottish novelist, historian, and Unionist politician who served as Governor General of Canada, the 15th since Canadian Confederation.
As a youth, Buchan began writing poetry and prose, fiction and non-fiction, publishing his first novel in 1895 and ultimately writing over a hundred books of which the best known is The Thirty-Nine Steps. After attending Glasgow and Oxford universities, he practised as a barrister. In 1901, he served as a private secretary to Lord Milner in southern Africa towards the end of the Boer War. He returned to England in 1903, continued as a barrister and journalist. He left the Bar when he joined Thomas Nelson and Sons publishers in 1907. During the First World War, he was, among other activities, Director of Information in 1917 and later Head of Intelligence at the newly-formed Ministry of Information. He was elected Member of Parliament for the Combined Scottish Universities in 1927.
In 1935, King George V, on the advice of Canadian Prime Minister R. B. Bennett, appointed Buchan to succeed the Earl of Bessborough as Governor General of Canada and two months later raised him to the peerage as 1st Baron Tweedsmuir. He occupied the post until his death in 1940. Buchan promoted Canadian unity and helped strengthen the sovereignty of Canada constitutionally and culturally. He received a state funeral in Canada before his ashes were returned to the United Kingdom.
John Buchan was a Scottish novelist, historian, and Unionist politician who served as Governor General of Canada, the 15th since Canadian Confederation.
As a youth, Buchan began writing poetry and prose, fiction and non-fiction, publishing his first novel in 1895 and ultimately writing over a hundred books of which the best known is The Thirty-Nine Steps. After attending Glasgow and Oxford universities, he practised as a barrister. In 1901, he served as a private secretary to Lord Milner in southern Africa towards the end of the Boer War. He returned to England in 1903, continued as a barrister and journalist. He left the Bar when he joined Thomas Nelson and Sons publishers in 1907. During the First World War, he was, among other activities, Director of Information in 1917 and later Head of Intelligence at the newly-formed Ministry of Information. He was elected Member of Parliament for the Combined Scottish Universities in 1927.
In 1935, King George V, on the advice of Canadian Prime Minister R. B. Bennett, appointed Buchan to succeed the Earl of Bessborough as Governor General of Canada and two months later raised him to the peerage as 1st Baron Tweedsmuir. He occupied the post until his death in 1940. Buchan promoted Canadian unity and helped strengthen the sovereignty of Canada constitutionally and culturally. He received a state funeral in Canada before his ashes were returned to the United Kingdom.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 133 reviews
March 8, 2025
Buchan's #4 featuring Richard Hannay - now Sir Richard, and retired from the army to live in the Cotswolds with his wife Mary and young son Peter John. But the idyllic lifestyle is interrupted when he is asked to assist with the rescue of three hostages by a group of men plotting a political and financial upheaval that would rock the world. But who is the ringleader, and what has it to do with a strange little poem given as a clue?
Set mostly in London with a short sojourn to Norway, it is perhaps the darkest of the Hannay stories so far and certainly more complex in structure and reasoning than the earlier novels. As usual with this series, the book was completely contemporary at the time published (1924). The protagonist blends Eastern mysticism and hypnotism with the more straightforward kidnapping, blackmail and profiteering and, as we come to expect with Richard Hannay some frantic chasing as the deadline approaches.
Notwithstanding the frantic section towards the end, there is more sedate chapter than the reader would have found in books 1-3, including several at the start where Hannay is resistant to being drawn into the rescue, and several more when he is at a bit of a standstill on solving the problem and goes through a period of just really treading water waiting for something to happen. However this variable pace was more a pro than a con, as variation in pacing allows the story to build to its climax.
There are some old friends to help him along the way -Sandy Arbuthnot and Archie Roylance feature heavily, and of course Hannay's wife Mary who plays a very involved part of resolving the story
Perhaps the most amusing part was when Buchan, though the Dr Greenslade character sums up the writing of an adventure story - self mocking at its finest:
Set mostly in London with a short sojourn to Norway, it is perhaps the darkest of the Hannay stories so far and certainly more complex in structure and reasoning than the earlier novels. As usual with this series, the book was completely contemporary at the time published (1924). The protagonist blends Eastern mysticism and hypnotism with the more straightforward kidnapping, blackmail and profiteering and, as we come to expect with Richard Hannay some frantic chasing as the deadline approaches.
Notwithstanding the frantic section towards the end, there is more sedate chapter than the reader would have found in books 1-3, including several at the start where Hannay is resistant to being drawn into the rescue, and several more when he is at a bit of a standstill on solving the problem and goes through a period of just really treading water waiting for something to happen. However this variable pace was more a pro than a con, as variation in pacing allows the story to build to its climax.
There are some old friends to help him along the way -Sandy Arbuthnot and Archie Roylance feature heavily, and of course Hannay's wife Mary who plays a very involved part of resolving the story
Perhaps the most amusing part was when Buchan, though the Dr Greenslade character sums up the writing of an adventure story - self mocking at its finest:
I want to write a shocker, so I begin by fixing on one or two facts which have no sort of connection… You invent a connection – simple enough if you have any imagination – and you weave all three into a yarn. The reader, who knows nothing about the three at the start, is puzzled and intrigued and, if the story is well arranged, finally satisfied. He is pleased with the ingenuity of the solution, for he doesn’t realise that the author fixed upon the solution first, and then invented a problem to suit it.I found it as readable and enjoyable as the earlier books. 4 stars.
March 22, 2012
The 4th Hannay novel; this one isn't as relentlessly fast paced as its predecessors. There are several chapters with a domesticated post-war Hannay steadfastly refusing to be drawn into a new caper but 'methinks the lady doth protest too much' and he's soon drawn in. It bothers me a bit that Hannay and wife join in only because the third hostage is a little boy like their own son; thy're oddly callous about the plight of the a young man and woman in the hands of what is described as a most dastardly international gang, although to be fair, everyone is eventually rescued. Much of the mid part of the novel is dedicated to Hannay pretending to be the hypnotised puppet of one of Buchan's most fascinating and complex villains yet, but it does make for a rather passive narrative apart from one or two excursions and a lot of off-stage derring-do by Hannay's wife and confederates. The climax in a craggy wilderness is exciting but comes a little late to entirely make up for the long dull stretches, in my opinion. And Buchan's terror of Jews, Bolsheviks and diverse Eastern mysticisms gets a little stale at this point.
May 16, 2019
In The Three Hostages, John Buchan puts into the mouth of one of the characters (Dr. Greenslade) what was very likely his own recipe for creating his adventure stories (or what he termed his ‘shockers’).
“Look here. I want to write a shocker, so I begin by fixing on one or two facts which have no sort of connection… You invent a connection – simple enough if you have any imagination – and you weave all three into a yarn. The reader, who knows nothing about the three at the start, is puzzled and intrigued and, if the story is well arranged, finally satisfied. He is pleased with the ingenuity of the solution, for he doesn’t realise that the author fixed upon the solution first, and then invented a problem to suit it.’
Indulging in a further in-joke at his own expense, Buchan has Dr. Greenslade glance at the detective novel his friend, Hannay, has been reading and remarks, “I can read most things…but it beats me how you can waste time over such stuff. These shockers are too easy, Dick. You could invent better ones for yourself.’ As it happens, the three facts Greenslade gives as examples turn out to have more relevance than he initially realises and provide part of the key to the ensuing mystery.
What I particularly enjoyed about The Three Hostages is the prominent role given to Hannay’s wife, Mary (whom the reader – and Hannay – first encountered in Mr.Standfast). John Buchan was not known for creating credible or positive female characters but I think Mary is the exception in this book. She comes across as bright, brave and as equally adept at intrigue as her husband, as well as acting as his conscience. It is Mary who encourages Hannay to take up the search for the three hostages when he is initially disinclined to get involved and sustains him with the thought of what is at stake when he becomes discouraged with progress.
In The Three Hostages, Buchan also has some interesting and quite prescient things to say about the power of propaganda, or what we might term today ‘fake news’. At one point, Hannay’s old police chum, Macgillivray, remarks, ‘Dick, have you ever considered what a diabolical weapon [propaganda] can be – using all the channels of modern publicity to poison and warp men’s minds. It is the most dangerous thing on earth. You can use it cleanly…but you can also use it to establish the most damnable lies.’
The Three Hostages also sees the welcome return of other supporting characters from previous Hannay adventures, such as Sandy Arbuthnot and Archie Roylance. Less attractive, certainly to modern day readers, is some of the crude racial stereotyping that Buchan puts into the thoughts of his character, Richard Hannay. There is also use of the ‘n’ word in one particular scene that I found unpalatable.
Despite the reservations just mentioned, The Three Hostages is certainly an entertaining and well-paced mystery. It builds to a dramatic final reckoning between Hannay and the villain on a Scottish mountainside, in which Buchan’s own knowledge of – and fondness for – mountaineering and deer-stalking is put to good use. All in all, the book is a great example of John Buchan’s ability to create an exciting story line.
“Look here. I want to write a shocker, so I begin by fixing on one or two facts which have no sort of connection… You invent a connection – simple enough if you have any imagination – and you weave all three into a yarn. The reader, who knows nothing about the three at the start, is puzzled and intrigued and, if the story is well arranged, finally satisfied. He is pleased with the ingenuity of the solution, for he doesn’t realise that the author fixed upon the solution first, and then invented a problem to suit it.’
Indulging in a further in-joke at his own expense, Buchan has Dr. Greenslade glance at the detective novel his friend, Hannay, has been reading and remarks, “I can read most things…but it beats me how you can waste time over such stuff. These shockers are too easy, Dick. You could invent better ones for yourself.’ As it happens, the three facts Greenslade gives as examples turn out to have more relevance than he initially realises and provide part of the key to the ensuing mystery.
What I particularly enjoyed about The Three Hostages is the prominent role given to Hannay’s wife, Mary (whom the reader – and Hannay – first encountered in Mr.Standfast). John Buchan was not known for creating credible or positive female characters but I think Mary is the exception in this book. She comes across as bright, brave and as equally adept at intrigue as her husband, as well as acting as his conscience. It is Mary who encourages Hannay to take up the search for the three hostages when he is initially disinclined to get involved and sustains him with the thought of what is at stake when he becomes discouraged with progress.
In The Three Hostages, Buchan also has some interesting and quite prescient things to say about the power of propaganda, or what we might term today ‘fake news’. At one point, Hannay’s old police chum, Macgillivray, remarks, ‘Dick, have you ever considered what a diabolical weapon [propaganda] can be – using all the channels of modern publicity to poison and warp men’s minds. It is the most dangerous thing on earth. You can use it cleanly…but you can also use it to establish the most damnable lies.’
The Three Hostages also sees the welcome return of other supporting characters from previous Hannay adventures, such as Sandy Arbuthnot and Archie Roylance. Less attractive, certainly to modern day readers, is some of the crude racial stereotyping that Buchan puts into the thoughts of his character, Richard Hannay. There is also use of the ‘n’ word in one particular scene that I found unpalatable.
Despite the reservations just mentioned, The Three Hostages is certainly an entertaining and well-paced mystery. It builds to a dramatic final reckoning between Hannay and the villain on a Scottish mountainside, in which Buchan’s own knowledge of – and fondness for – mountaineering and deer-stalking is put to good use. All in all, the book is a great example of John Buchan’s ability to create an exciting story line.
February 10, 2016
Imagining Hitchcock's Robert Donat imbuing (Sir) Richard Hannay with his special charm can't redeem much of the datedness of this. And even allowing for the attitudes of the time, the views toward blacks, Jews and swarthy others on offer here are generally rather deplorable. Could get past all of this if it weren't for a plot that is rife with coincidence and chance well beyond what seems plausible, even for a thriller of this nature. There is also quite a lot of hokum about phrenology and hypnotism that seems like a load of priggish nonsense. And to enjoy the climax, one has to have the capacity to visualize landscape with the skill of a geological survey mapmaker. There is some fun to be had here, but Hannay is often the thickest person in the room and he gets help from absolutely everywhere in this adventure. The stiff upper lip-ism of much of this has a kind of pleasant familiarity however and it might be fun to see the 70s BBC adaptation, just to see John Castle as the villainous Medina. Recommended for rabid Anglophiles who think Tom Clancy is too fancy and fast-paced.
June 19, 2019
The Three Hostages is the 4th book in the Richard Hannay adventure / thriller series by John Buchan. It was originally published in 1924. I've read the complete series now and, maybe because it's the freshest in my mind, I think it was the best book in the series.
Hannay is living on his estate in the country in western Britain with his wife Mary and his young son Peter John. He is now trying to move on from his WWI experiences, to enjoy a retirement, but he is brought back to reality when he is advised of three kidnappings. He doesn't think he is appropriate to be involved in finding them but when he finds out that one is a young boy of similar age to Peter John, he changes his mind with encouragement from Mary.
Hannay agrees to assist. He returns to London and gets info; there are two related aspects. The three kidnaps; a young man, a young lady and the young boy. As well the intelligence services with his old friend, MacGillivary in charge, are trying to break up a criminal enterprise of major proportions. The timing of trying to rescue the kidnapped and breaking up the organization is critical as if they are too quick with one the other will be lost.
Hannay begins to investigate and along the way meets old friends from other books, especially Sandy Arbuthnot, who will play a major role in the resolution of the story. Hannay meets Medina, an English politician and attends a dinner along with Arbuthnot. Medina is popular with all except Arbuthnot who is suspicious. After the dinner, Hannay is drugged and an attempt by Medina is made to hypnotize and gain control of Hannay. This fails but Hannay now uses this action to continue investigating further into Medina and his organization.
The story moves along at a nice pace and finds Hannay moving throughout London and even to Norway as he searches for the kidnapped. He keeps MacGillivary somewhat out of the picture but with help from Arbuthnot (who even though keeping himself out of the picture as much as possible, plays a quite important role), Mary, and other old friends, he begins to gather more and more info.
It's a fascinating story, with hypnotism, black arts (somewhat) and a good old adventure. There is considerable tension and sufficient action, especially in the closing chapters, which are excellent. I'm almost glad that I saved this middle book until the end as it was excellent. There is another story, The Courts of the Morning, which features Hannay in a minor role, which I will also read. (4.5 stars)
Hannay is living on his estate in the country in western Britain with his wife Mary and his young son Peter John. He is now trying to move on from his WWI experiences, to enjoy a retirement, but he is brought back to reality when he is advised of three kidnappings. He doesn't think he is appropriate to be involved in finding them but when he finds out that one is a young boy of similar age to Peter John, he changes his mind with encouragement from Mary.
Hannay agrees to assist. He returns to London and gets info; there are two related aspects. The three kidnaps; a young man, a young lady and the young boy. As well the intelligence services with his old friend, MacGillivary in charge, are trying to break up a criminal enterprise of major proportions. The timing of trying to rescue the kidnapped and breaking up the organization is critical as if they are too quick with one the other will be lost.
Hannay begins to investigate and along the way meets old friends from other books, especially Sandy Arbuthnot, who will play a major role in the resolution of the story. Hannay meets Medina, an English politician and attends a dinner along with Arbuthnot. Medina is popular with all except Arbuthnot who is suspicious. After the dinner, Hannay is drugged and an attempt by Medina is made to hypnotize and gain control of Hannay. This fails but Hannay now uses this action to continue investigating further into Medina and his organization.
The story moves along at a nice pace and finds Hannay moving throughout London and even to Norway as he searches for the kidnapped. He keeps MacGillivary somewhat out of the picture but with help from Arbuthnot (who even though keeping himself out of the picture as much as possible, plays a quite important role), Mary, and other old friends, he begins to gather more and more info.
It's a fascinating story, with hypnotism, black arts (somewhat) and a good old adventure. There is considerable tension and sufficient action, especially in the closing chapters, which are excellent. I'm almost glad that I saved this middle book until the end as it was excellent. There is another story, The Courts of the Morning, which features Hannay in a minor role, which I will also read. (4.5 stars)
February 21, 2025
The Three Hostages was published in 1924 and is the fourth of five Richard Hannay novels by the Scottish author John Buchan. Hannay first appeared in The Thirty-Nine Steps which is the novel Buchan is primarily known for. The Three Hostages is set sometime after WWI and involves a plot by a criminal group trying to profit from conditions following the war. Hannay is persuaded to help recover three hostages seized by associates of this gang. The hostages include a young man, a young woman, and a 10-year old boy. At first Hannay is reluctant to join into the investigation but a cohort, Dr. Greenslade, and he puzzle over a cryptic poem sent by the kidnappers which refers to a blind woman spinning, a Norwegian barn, and "the Fields of Eden". Greenslade remembers hearing some of this before and it comes to him that he heard it from a man named Dominick Medina, a gifted and popular society man, poet and politician. As Hannay investigates, it becomes clear that Medina is behind the plot. So will Hannay be able to find the hostages before a deadline set by the abductors?
This was really a pretty good action adventure novel that I enjoyed more than The Thirty-Nine Steps which I read a couple of years ago. I think Buchan was influenced a lot by both Rider Haggard and Conan Doyle. The conclusion of this novel reminded me somewhat of Doyle's The Final Problem where Sherlock Holmes faces Moriarty at Reichenbach Falls. The novel also included elements of mysticism and the use of hypnotism to further the plot line. This was remindful of Sax Rohmer who may have been influenced by Buchan. This one also included a bit of anti-Semitism and racism scattered throughout the novel but that was very prevalent at the time this was written. Not sure if I will try to read more by Buchan but I wouldn't rule it out if something comes my way.
This was really a pretty good action adventure novel that I enjoyed more than The Thirty-Nine Steps which I read a couple of years ago. I think Buchan was influenced a lot by both Rider Haggard and Conan Doyle. The conclusion of this novel reminded me somewhat of Doyle's The Final Problem where Sherlock Holmes faces Moriarty at Reichenbach Falls. The novel also included elements of mysticism and the use of hypnotism to further the plot line. This was remindful of Sax Rohmer who may have been influenced by Buchan. This one also included a bit of anti-Semitism and racism scattered throughout the novel but that was very prevalent at the time this was written. Not sure if I will try to read more by Buchan but I wouldn't rule it out if something comes my way.
March 6, 2023
Third reading because, as I said in my original review below, I can't read just one! The Richard Hannay spy/adventure thrillers books are like popcorn!
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2nd reading - I'm listening to the Peter Joyce narration which is good. I remember enough about the book to know who the villain is. As Hannay meets him for lunch (without having figured out he's the villain) I was feeling very worried that he will unknowingly spill the beans with details about the clues they've learned about the kidnappings. I thought that was because I'd read the book before. Nope. I see from my review below that I'm just under John Buchan's spell in this very thrilling tale.
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Original Review
What is it about these Richard Hannay books? It takes no time at all and I'm hooked, grabbing every second to read another page.
Unlike previous books, Hannay finds out the villain early on (and we realize it even earlier, leading to a good amount of tension as we worry about his growing friendship with the man). Hannay must play a cat and mouse game as he looks for three kidnapped people, staying close to someone he despises, pretending to be a doglike admirer. That goes very much against Hannay's character.
I am delighted to see his wife playing an intelligent, active role as she did in the previous book, and other good friends from the past are in the story too.
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2nd reading - I'm listening to the Peter Joyce narration which is good. I remember enough about the book to know who the villain is. As Hannay meets him for lunch (without having figured out he's the villain) I was feeling very worried that he will unknowingly spill the beans with details about the clues they've learned about the kidnappings. I thought that was because I'd read the book before. Nope. I see from my review below that I'm just under John Buchan's spell in this very thrilling tale.
================
Original Review
What is it about these Richard Hannay books? It takes no time at all and I'm hooked, grabbing every second to read another page.
Unlike previous books, Hannay finds out the villain early on (and we realize it even earlier, leading to a good amount of tension as we worry about his growing friendship with the man). Hannay must play a cat and mouse game as he looks for three kidnapped people, staying close to someone he despises, pretending to be a doglike admirer. That goes very much against Hannay's character.
I am delighted to see his wife playing an intelligent, active role as she did in the previous book, and other good friends from the past are in the story too.
August 8, 2022
The Three Hostages is the fourth of five Richard Hannay novels by the Scottish author John Buchan, first published in 1924 by Hodder & Stoughton, London.
Hannay had previously appeared in The Thirty Nine Steps (1915), his most famous adventure, in which he battles German spies across the United Kingdom, and in two books about his activities during the First World War, Greenmantle (1916) and Mr Standfast (1919).
Some years after his 39 Steps mission, Richard Hannay encounters a global criminal gang. Battling international kidnappers, agent Richard Hannay takes on a sinister adversary.
Wonderful escapist entertainment.
Hannay had previously appeared in The Thirty Nine Steps (1915), his most famous adventure, in which he battles German spies across the United Kingdom, and in two books about his activities during the First World War, Greenmantle (1916) and Mr Standfast (1919).
Some years after his 39 Steps mission, Richard Hannay encounters a global criminal gang. Battling international kidnappers, agent Richard Hannay takes on a sinister adversary.
Wonderful escapist entertainment.
June 1, 2023
Richard Hannay has retired to the English countryside with his darling wife, Mary, and their son, Peter John. But he gets roped into an adventure once again when he learns that a criminal mastermind has kidnapped three young people, one of them a young boy only 10 years old. The only clue is a mysterious poem with the imagery of a blind woman who spins thread, a curiosity shop run by a man with a dyed beard, and the cryptic phrase "the land of Eden." Richard must unravel the clues and trust his instincts to rescue the poor captives before it is too late.
I loved this mystery so much! The plot keeps moving forward, and just when you think they are discovering something at last, then another clue turns up and they have to start again in a new direction. The twists and turns go all over the place!
This mystery included plenty of action and adventure, but what really intrigued me was the mental warfare going on. The villain of the story turns out to be dabbling in hypnotism, and Richard has to play a dangerous intellectual game to lull the bad guy into a sense of safety and then spy on him to learn his evil plans.
I enjoyed the writing style very much. I like that we get to experience all of Richard's inner thoughts and emotions. The writing is so powerfully descriptive that the reader feels all of Richard's fear and elation as he escapes from danger.
In the last book, I complained that Richard and Mary's romance was too quick. In this book, I similarly complain that their relationship is taken for granted. Instead of getting to see how they learn to trust each other even more through this mystery, they are static characters. They already trust each other and rely on each other and understand the other person. There is no growth in their relationship. Of course in both books, the main focus of the story is not on their relationship; it's all about the espionage and mystery. But still, I would have liked to see more development for them.
I loved this mystery so much! The plot keeps moving forward, and just when you think they are discovering something at last, then another clue turns up and they have to start again in a new direction. The twists and turns go all over the place!
This mystery included plenty of action and adventure, but what really intrigued me was the mental warfare going on. The villain of the story turns out to be dabbling in hypnotism, and Richard has to play a dangerous intellectual game to lull the bad guy into a sense of safety and then spy on him to learn his evil plans.
I enjoyed the writing style very much. I like that we get to experience all of Richard's inner thoughts and emotions. The writing is so powerfully descriptive that the reader feels all of Richard's fear and elation as he escapes from danger.
In the last book, I complained that Richard and Mary's romance was too quick. In this book, I similarly complain that their relationship is taken for granted. Instead of getting to see how they learn to trust each other even more through this mystery, they are static characters. They already trust each other and rely on each other and understand the other person. There is no growth in their relationship. Of course in both books, the main focus of the story is not on their relationship; it's all about the espionage and mystery. But still, I would have liked to see more development for them.
December 6, 2016
This wonderful, fourth in the series, Sir Richard Hannay adventure, sees Hannay, ex-General and under-cover agent in WWI, now 42, dragged from his wife, child, and Cotswold farming existence, back into harness to help the rescue of three young hostages, taken so that the villain can, as well as furthering his craze for crime and stopping his activities being investigated, obtain complete mental control over his acolytes.
Well-written, witty and exciting, it shows again Buchan's great narrative and descriptive skills. In a few phrases he can convince one that one is with Hannay as he tramps through the Cotswold meadows, or stalks his enemy in the Highlands.
Well-written, witty and exciting, it shows again Buchan's great narrative and descriptive skills. In a few phrases he can convince one that one is with Hannay as he tramps through the Cotswold meadows, or stalks his enemy in the Highlands.
August 24, 2010
Entirely preposterous and the views in it are so bizarre and antiquated. Enjoyable twaddle.
March 13, 2018
First of all, the moral lesson of the story is that never ever trust somebody who is too good to be true; extremely good looking, highly intelligent, rich, seems kind and enchanting. He must be planning to take over the world ✌✌✌
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Richard Hannay sudah pingin pensiun dan hidup tenang dgn istrinya Mary dan anaknya yg msh kecil Peter John, tp dia dimintai tolong dgn kasus hilangnya tiga orang yg sama sekali tidak ada hubungan. Setelah berembug kesana kesini dgn Sandy Arbuthnot, dibantu Greenslade, semua praduga menunjuk pada Dominick Medina yg cerdas, muda dan disukai semua orang. Banyak yg dilalui Hannay bersama Medina. Semua petunjuk mengarah padanya tp sulit untuk membuktikan bahwa Medina dalang dibalik semua penculikan itu. Soalnya, Medina menggunakan metode hipnotis.
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Dengan hints disana sini, saya bisa menemukan dua dari tiga tawanan. Ngeri membayangkan membuat orang tunduk dgn hipnotis, mengambil jiwa mereka dan membuat mereka lupa dgn kehidupan yg dijalani sebelumnya.
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Kejahatan yg tidak tampak, subtle, halus justru yg paling menakutkan. My first Hannay tapi ini bukan buku pertamanya. Saya jadi pengen baca kisah Hannay yg lain sebelum Hostages; 39 Steps, Greenmantle, Mr Standfast.
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Aura adventure-nya tampak jelas sekali. Ada unsur politik sedikit tp oke saja. Petualangan Hannay seru untuk diikuti. Macam Sherlock gitu.
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Richard Hannay sudah pingin pensiun dan hidup tenang dgn istrinya Mary dan anaknya yg msh kecil Peter John, tp dia dimintai tolong dgn kasus hilangnya tiga orang yg sama sekali tidak ada hubungan. Setelah berembug kesana kesini dgn Sandy Arbuthnot, dibantu Greenslade, semua praduga menunjuk pada Dominick Medina yg cerdas, muda dan disukai semua orang. Banyak yg dilalui Hannay bersama Medina. Semua petunjuk mengarah padanya tp sulit untuk membuktikan bahwa Medina dalang dibalik semua penculikan itu. Soalnya, Medina menggunakan metode hipnotis.
.
.
Dengan hints disana sini, saya bisa menemukan dua dari tiga tawanan. Ngeri membayangkan membuat orang tunduk dgn hipnotis, mengambil jiwa mereka dan membuat mereka lupa dgn kehidupan yg dijalani sebelumnya.
.
.
Kejahatan yg tidak tampak, subtle, halus justru yg paling menakutkan. My first Hannay tapi ini bukan buku pertamanya. Saya jadi pengen baca kisah Hannay yg lain sebelum Hostages; 39 Steps, Greenmantle, Mr Standfast.
.
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Aura adventure-nya tampak jelas sekali. Ada unsur politik sedikit tp oke saja. Petualangan Hannay seru untuk diikuti. Macam Sherlock gitu.
December 15, 2016
While a few aspects of this 4th installment in the Richard Hannay series show their age (this was first published in 1924), most of it is surprisingly still relevant. The use of propaganda to get fanatics or troubled youngsters to stir up trouble is something we can see today.
The only thing that bothered me is the abruptness of the ending. I would have liked one or two more pages although in reality, there was nothing more that needed to be said.
The only thing that bothered me is the abruptness of the ending. I would have liked one or two more pages although in reality, there was nothing more that needed to be said.
October 19, 2024
حلوة جدًا جدًا ومثيرة وشيقة وفكرتها مختلفة مكنتش عايزة أسيبها من إيدي..الفصل الأخير بس هو اللي فيه شوية ملل بس نهايته كانت مرضية بالنسبالي وعوضتني عن الملل 👏💙 والترجمة جميلة 👍
June 10, 2025
Rather far fetched and the plot jumped around too much. The climax is quite underwhelming and doesn’t tie up several loose ends. Overall, the plot doesn’t really make much sense and was propelled by several instances of deus ex machina that serves to lessen the tension rather than drive it. In addition, a significant portion of the action takes place ‘off screen’ as it were further adding to the confusion. Disappointed. Certainly not a strong as his other works such as Greenmantle.
June 2, 2014
I found a paperback copy of this at a recent library sale. While switching back and forth between several non-fiction titles, I decided to start this yesterday afternoon. I couldn't put it down! Buchan knows how to keep the reader on the edge of his seat as he reveals clues and as Hannay uses his wit and nerve to face down villains. I don't like regular 'detective' novels, but this book was a pure delight.
I was struck by the unwritten code of honor inherent in this book, one that has completely disappeared in our time. One man, kidnapped and brain-washed by the bad guy, is given a gun, one that he promises not to use, preferring to give his captor "the hiding of his life". In today's world, he'd take the gun and blow the guy away as soon as he could. And later, when the top evil guy's life hangs in the balance, the protagonist struggles to throw him a rope, promising that they can settle their score when the playing field is level. If this was a modern book, he'd push the guy down and laugh while he fell.
But along with honor come funny moments. My son and I are always on the look-out for references to physiognomy, and Dickens never fails to satisfy. In this book, Hannay makes several mentions of the bad guy's round head. Despite a careful manner of combing his hair, the guy just can't conceal his round head, a sure sign of madness!
I was struck by the unwritten code of honor inherent in this book, one that has completely disappeared in our time. One man, kidnapped and brain-washed by the bad guy, is given a gun, one that he promises not to use, preferring to give his captor "the hiding of his life". In today's world, he'd take the gun and blow the guy away as soon as he could. And later, when the top evil guy's life hangs in the balance, the protagonist struggles to throw him a rope, promising that they can settle their score when the playing field is level. If this was a modern book, he'd push the guy down and laugh while he fell.
But along with honor come funny moments. My son and I are always on the look-out for references to physiognomy, and Dickens never fails to satisfy. In this book, Hannay makes several mentions of the bad guy's round head. Despite a careful manner of combing his hair, the guy just can't conceal his round head, a sure sign of madness!
February 20, 2025
Hannay is married with a small child and living in rural England when he's called back into service. This time it's not for his country, but to find and rescue three people who have been kidnapped by a criminal mastermind bent on destroying civilization. Fortunately he has his wife and friends to help him.
I didn't like this one quite as much as the previous books in the series, solely because of the threat. Instead of a specific goal, the bad guy seems to just want to control, and then smash, the world. His method? Some kind of hypnotism/"Eastern philosophy" stuff that didn't work for me. In fact I rolled my eyes a couple of times while this supposedly super-evil man was talking. I still enjoyed the unraveling of the clues and appreciated seeing people from previous books pop up again, but I was never able to take the bigger threat seriously. Thus, for me it brought the rating down from an all-out-fun 5 to a sometimes flawed 4. Still, I did enjoy it and I look forward to reading the next one in the series.
NB - I have a neighbor from Scotland who is distantly related to the author. She assured me his last name is pronounced BUCK-un. In case you were wondering. :)
I didn't like this one quite as much as the previous books in the series, solely because of the threat. Instead of a specific goal, the bad guy seems to just want to control, and then smash, the world. His method? Some kind of hypnotism/"Eastern philosophy" stuff that didn't work for me. In fact I rolled my eyes a couple of times while this supposedly super-evil man was talking. I still enjoyed the unraveling of the clues and appreciated seeing people from previous books pop up again, but I was never able to take the bigger threat seriously. Thus, for me it brought the rating down from an all-out-fun 5 to a sometimes flawed 4. Still, I did enjoy it and I look forward to reading the next one in the series.
NB - I have a neighbor from Scotland who is distantly related to the author. She assured me his last name is pronounced BUCK-un. In case you were wondering. :)
June 19, 2018
Back in 2014 I rated this with three stars because, even for Buchan, it had so many bizarre riddles, coincidences, masquerades and an Iago-like motiveless malignity villain. Having just re-read it, I won't advance the book to four stars, but I appreciate it more and indulge in the whimsy. If you are new to Buchan do not begin with this one, but don't disdain to read it if you come to like Buchan's work as I do. It's fun in the grand context.
January 17, 2026
This is a long and detailed spy thriller, with a surprisingly simple plot! Three people are kidnapped, including a ten-year-old boy. The culprit turns out to be a young, charismatic hypnotist, Medina, wanting to bend people’s minds to his will…for motives never explained! We never find out what he wanted to do after hypnotising the hostages.
After some undercover work, Hannay and his wife Mary expose the scheme. The final act is a long, drawn-out, but admittedly very well-written cat-and-mouse sequence between Hannay and Medina on the cliffs of Haripol Forest.
This book partly explores post-war psychological fragmentation. There’s a long passage at the beginning about how people are more broken after the war and codes of morality feel more fragile. Which fits symbolically with the villain quite literally trying to bend people’s minds.
It also has spy fiction’s classic preoccupation with corruption lurking beneath respectable veneers. At one point, Hannay goes to a jewellery shop, a front for the villains, and figures this out by realising on closer inspection that the jewels are completely fake. Respectable surfaces hide sordid secrets.
And I liked the character arcs! Hannay wanting to preserve his self-care after the war by devoting himself to domesticity, only to be persuaded by everyone to come out for one last investigation…and his wife Mary taking charge of the investigation almost as much as he does.
All of that was fab. I did think it was a touch too long - there are long sections that could have been cut. But it’s good stuff.
After some undercover work, Hannay and his wife Mary expose the scheme. The final act is a long, drawn-out, but admittedly very well-written cat-and-mouse sequence between Hannay and Medina on the cliffs of Haripol Forest.
This book partly explores post-war psychological fragmentation. There’s a long passage at the beginning about how people are more broken after the war and codes of morality feel more fragile. Which fits symbolically with the villain quite literally trying to bend people’s minds.
It also has spy fiction’s classic preoccupation with corruption lurking beneath respectable veneers. At one point, Hannay goes to a jewellery shop, a front for the villains, and figures this out by realising on closer inspection that the jewels are completely fake. Respectable surfaces hide sordid secrets.
And I liked the character arcs! Hannay wanting to preserve his self-care after the war by devoting himself to domesticity, only to be persuaded by everyone to come out for one last investigation…and his wife Mary taking charge of the investigation almost as much as he does.
All of that was fab. I did think it was a touch too long - there are long sections that could have been cut. But it’s good stuff.
November 24, 2011
This book can be got for very cheap since it is out of copyright in some places. Amazing book, it's great to get back to classic Buchan. The author has really become used to his characters and they fill the book with their various personalities (for all his silly imperialism). This one has Richard Hanney at his most un-hypnotisable, chasing round men of such strong will they intoxicate others with their presence. He doesn't actually get out into the country much in this one, and not at all to Scotland which must be a first for him, but for all that it works rather well. Even the dedication was quite fun. Only took me a couple of days to read since the flow is so good. Three longish quotes (Buchan is soo quotable):
{cool learning}
"The Latin quotation. Sit vini abstemius qui hermeneuma tentat aut hominum petit dominatum. I nearly had a fit when I heard it. Listen, Dick. I've always had a craze for recondite subjects, and when I was at Oxford I wasted my time on them when I should have been working for my schools. I only got a third in Greats, but I acquired a lot of unusual information. One of my subjects was Michael Scott. Yes--the wizard, only he wasn't a wizard, but a very patient and original thinker. He was a Borderer like me, and I started out to write a life of him. I kept up the study, and when I was at the Paris Embassy I spent my leisure tracking him through the libraries of Europe. Most of his works were published in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, and mighty dull they are, but there are some still in manuscript, and I had always the hope of discovering more, for I was positive that the real Michael Scott was something far bigger than the translator and commentator whom we know. I believed that he taught the mad Emperor Ferdinand some queer things, and that the centre of his teaching was just how one human soul could control another. Well, as it turned out, I was right. I found some leaves of manuscript in the Bibliothèque Nationale, which I was certain were to be attributed to Michael. One of his best-known works, you remember, is the Physionomia, but that is only a version of Aristotle. This, too, was part of a Physionomia, and a very different thing from the other, for it purported to give the essence of the Secreta Secretorum--it would take too long to explain about that--and the teaching of the Therapeutae, with Michael's own comments. It is a manual of the arts of spiritual control--oh, amazingly up-to-date, I assure you, and a long way ahead of our foolish psycho-analysts. Well, that quotation of Medina's comes from that fragment--the rare word 'hermeneuma' caught my attention as soon as he uttered it. That proved that Medina was a student of Michael Scott, and showed me what was the bent of his mind."
….
Did you ever read the old Irish folk-lore? Very beautiful it is, but there is always something fantastic and silly which mars the finest stories. They lack the grave good-sense which you find in the Norse sagas and, of course, in the Greek. Well, he has this freakish element in his blood.
{great explorers?}
"It's the last geographical secret left unriddled," he said, and now he spoke seriously. "Well, perhaps not quite the last. I'm told there's still something to be done with the southern tributaries of the Amazon. Mornington, you know, believes there's a chance of finding some of the Inca people still dwelling in the unexplored upper glens. But all the rest have gone. Since the beginning of the century we've made a clean sweep of the jolly old mysteries that made the world worth living in. We have been to both the Poles, and to Lhasa, and to the Mountains of the Moon. We haven't got to the top of Everest yet, but we know what it is like. Mecca and Medina are as stale as Bournemouth. We know that there's nothing very stupendous in the Brahmaputra gorges. There's little left for a man's imagination to play with, and our children will grow up in a dull, shrunken world. Except, of course, the Great Southern Desert of Arabia."
{post war problems}
"Simply this. The barriers between the conscious and the subconscious have always been pretty stiff in the average man. But now with the general loosening of screws they are growing shaky and the two worlds are getting mixed. It is like two separate tanks of fluid, where the containing wall has worn into holes, and one is percolating into the other. The result is confusion, and, if the fluids are of a certain character, explosions. That is why I say that you can't any longer take the clear psychology of most civilised human beings for granted. Something is welling up from primeval deeps to muddy it." "I don't object to that," I said. "We've overdone civilisation, and personally I'm all for a little barbarism. I want a simpler world." "Then you won't get it," said Greenslade. He had become very serious now, and was looking towards Mary as he talked. "The civilised is far simpler than the primeval. All history has been an effort to make definitions, clear rules of thought, clear rules of conduct, solid sanctions, by which we can conduct our life. These are the work of the conscious self.
…
Gaudian gave me a grisly picture of the condition of his own country. It seemed that the downfall of the old régime had carried with it the decent wise men like himself, who had opposed its follies, but had lined up with it on patriotic grounds when the War began. He said that Germany was no place for a moderate man, and that the power lay with the bloated industrials, who were piling up fortunes abroad while they were wrecking their country at home. The only opposition, he said, came from the communists, who were half-witted, and the monarchists, who wanted the impossible. "Reason is not listened to, and I fear there is no salvation till my poor people have passed through the last extremity. You foreign Powers have hastened our destruction, when you had it in your hands to save us. I think you have meant well, but you have been blind, for you have not supported our moderate men and have by your harshness played the game of the wreckers among us."
{cool learning}
"The Latin quotation. Sit vini abstemius qui hermeneuma tentat aut hominum petit dominatum. I nearly had a fit when I heard it. Listen, Dick. I've always had a craze for recondite subjects, and when I was at Oxford I wasted my time on them when I should have been working for my schools. I only got a third in Greats, but I acquired a lot of unusual information. One of my subjects was Michael Scott. Yes--the wizard, only he wasn't a wizard, but a very patient and original thinker. He was a Borderer like me, and I started out to write a life of him. I kept up the study, and when I was at the Paris Embassy I spent my leisure tracking him through the libraries of Europe. Most of his works were published in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, and mighty dull they are, but there are some still in manuscript, and I had always the hope of discovering more, for I was positive that the real Michael Scott was something far bigger than the translator and commentator whom we know. I believed that he taught the mad Emperor Ferdinand some queer things, and that the centre of his teaching was just how one human soul could control another. Well, as it turned out, I was right. I found some leaves of manuscript in the Bibliothèque Nationale, which I was certain were to be attributed to Michael. One of his best-known works, you remember, is the Physionomia, but that is only a version of Aristotle. This, too, was part of a Physionomia, and a very different thing from the other, for it purported to give the essence of the Secreta Secretorum--it would take too long to explain about that--and the teaching of the Therapeutae, with Michael's own comments. It is a manual of the arts of spiritual control--oh, amazingly up-to-date, I assure you, and a long way ahead of our foolish psycho-analysts. Well, that quotation of Medina's comes from that fragment--the rare word 'hermeneuma' caught my attention as soon as he uttered it. That proved that Medina was a student of Michael Scott, and showed me what was the bent of his mind."
….
Did you ever read the old Irish folk-lore? Very beautiful it is, but there is always something fantastic and silly which mars the finest stories. They lack the grave good-sense which you find in the Norse sagas and, of course, in the Greek. Well, he has this freakish element in his blood.
{great explorers?}
"It's the last geographical secret left unriddled," he said, and now he spoke seriously. "Well, perhaps not quite the last. I'm told there's still something to be done with the southern tributaries of the Amazon. Mornington, you know, believes there's a chance of finding some of the Inca people still dwelling in the unexplored upper glens. But all the rest have gone. Since the beginning of the century we've made a clean sweep of the jolly old mysteries that made the world worth living in. We have been to both the Poles, and to Lhasa, and to the Mountains of the Moon. We haven't got to the top of Everest yet, but we know what it is like. Mecca and Medina are as stale as Bournemouth. We know that there's nothing very stupendous in the Brahmaputra gorges. There's little left for a man's imagination to play with, and our children will grow up in a dull, shrunken world. Except, of course, the Great Southern Desert of Arabia."
{post war problems}
"Simply this. The barriers between the conscious and the subconscious have always been pretty stiff in the average man. But now with the general loosening of screws they are growing shaky and the two worlds are getting mixed. It is like two separate tanks of fluid, where the containing wall has worn into holes, and one is percolating into the other. The result is confusion, and, if the fluids are of a certain character, explosions. That is why I say that you can't any longer take the clear psychology of most civilised human beings for granted. Something is welling up from primeval deeps to muddy it." "I don't object to that," I said. "We've overdone civilisation, and personally I'm all for a little barbarism. I want a simpler world." "Then you won't get it," said Greenslade. He had become very serious now, and was looking towards Mary as he talked. "The civilised is far simpler than the primeval. All history has been an effort to make definitions, clear rules of thought, clear rules of conduct, solid sanctions, by which we can conduct our life. These are the work of the conscious self.
…
Gaudian gave me a grisly picture of the condition of his own country. It seemed that the downfall of the old régime had carried with it the decent wise men like himself, who had opposed its follies, but had lined up with it on patriotic grounds when the War began. He said that Germany was no place for a moderate man, and that the power lay with the bloated industrials, who were piling up fortunes abroad while they were wrecking their country at home. The only opposition, he said, came from the communists, who were half-witted, and the monarchists, who wanted the impossible. "Reason is not listened to, and I fear there is no salvation till my poor people have passed through the last extremity. You foreign Powers have hastened our destruction, when you had it in your hands to save us. I think you have meant well, but you have been blind, for you have not supported our moderate men and have by your harshness played the game of the wreckers among us."
September 23, 2024
Après-guerre 14-18. Mais le -devenu- gentleman farmer Dick Honnay est pressé d'intervenir -càd de résoudre- dans un triple enlèvement. Qui et dans quel but a pratiqué ces enlèvements? Une association internationale réunissant des huiles de la planète ou un individu mu par d'étranges motivations. Deux enquêtes de front. Celle de Scotland Yard contre l'organisation mafieuse tient la route, mais passe au second plan. La piste d'un individu tout puissant doté de pouvoirs de sorcellerie va plutôt prendre la préférence. Donc, duel entre l'individu aux pouvoirs ensorcelants face à Dick. Un duel absurde, se voulant respecter les règles de la très haute société so British et tournant au ridicule. Une grande déception de lecture après trois premiers tomes fort séduisants.
Comme Dick a -encore- survécu (je dévoile mais personne ne doute), je peux espérer que le 5e épisode me séduira de nouveau.
Comme Dick a -encore- survécu (je dévoile mais personne ne doute), je peux espérer que le 5e épisode me séduira de nouveau.
March 16, 2025
One of those rare things on my Goodreads list... a DNF... Did not finish. A friend gave me a copy of this and the best one in the Richard Hannay series "The Island of Sheep" but 60 pages of this reminded me that I hadn't really enjoyed "The 39 Steps" much, so why would I connect with the less well known books of the series any better? It is definitely of it's time, forged in the post WW1 sunset of the British Empire, and adventurers like Shackleton and Scott, before the last "Hurrrah" of WW2, which gave the sort of characters described here a final raison d'etre. The casual antisemitism is again, of its time and whilst Hannay's wife Mary is painted as a capable woman, she knows her place and stays at home with their young son. All of this would be bearable if there was any drive to the storytelling, but sadly not in the portion I read. So this will be my last outing with Sir Richard...
August 6, 2023
Продовження пригод Річарда Ганнея, що відбуваються вже після завершення Першої світової війни, у 20-х роках ХХ століття. Здавалося б, що зі шпигунською кар'єрою Річарда вже покінчено, але після викрадення трьох людей, спадкоємців помітних і впливових фігур британського політикуму, йому доводиться повернутися до справ. Легкий шпигунський роман, за атмосферою дуже подібний до "Тридцяти дев'яти сходин", хоча детективна складова тут слабенька, бо майже відразу стає зрозуміло, хто ж викрав тих заручників. Але тут загадка полягає більше в тому, де їх тримають і чи вдасться Ганнею відшукати всіх вчасно.
Загалом мені книжка сподобалася, люблю такі приємні затишні історії. Ще й з гарними описами Лондона, Британії та цікавими думками щодо поствоєнних проблем і суспільних настроїв.
Загалом мені книжка сподобалася, люблю такі приємні затишні історії. Ще й з гарними описами Лондона, Британії та цікавими думками щодо поствоєнних проблем і суспільних настроїв.
September 12, 2020
A stirring conclusion to Buchan's seminal spy novels, "The Three Hostages" finds Sir Richard Hannay comfortably settled with his wife Mary (from "Greenmantle") and their young son on a farm in the Cotswolds, only to be drawn against his will into another adventure. This time, the struggle is not against an enemy nation, but against a vast criminal enterprise led by a genius every bit the equal of Sherlock Holmes' Moriarty. As always, Hannay wins in the end, but the journey is mostly tightly-paced and interesting.
March 18, 2025
This is the sort of book that can be a fun read when one wants some mindless action espionage, full of coincidence and unrealistic plot elements (hypnotism is a major factor of this story). That being said, the racism against basically any group that isn't English is jarring, and a drawn out, illogical ending (how many geographical terms do you know for the Scottish landscape? Not enough to easily follow that chapter) highlights that the pacing lags too much for the genre.
April 15, 2019
Another Hannay adventure. This one goes a bit slow at first and ever so often throughout the narrative... The ending (or just the entire final chapter), after being overly descriptive ends quite suddenly, but the plot is generally a good one...
February 26, 2025
‘But I am not in my country’s service,’ I stammered. ‘I left it at the Armistice, and I’m a farmer now.’
‘Do English farmers travel in Norway under false names?’
‘That’s a private business which I want to explain to you.’
never in my life have I thought I would find a Richard Hannay’s novel funny. this plot was r-i-d-i-c-u-l-o-u-s and trust me, I was having a hard time trying to dissociate it from the three books before this one. an unserious scenario was not something that I have imagined so far but I went through it and given my rating, I need to explain why. after all, I liked another Richard Hannay’s book again. nothing surprising, I have indeed said he is my new favourite male book character and that fact is not changing. but still, I need to start off this review by admitting I am a little mixed. you see, the war had a complete different setting. I am not saying I had to force myself to go through, this is not true at all! but I definitely tried my best to interpret this fourth book as an individual experience and not to link it with the three former books. but to be honest, this book is definitely not as strong as the first, second and third books. but I will explain my interpretation later, because I wish to write the same type of review as I did for the third book a few days ago.
I remember that I used to mention our Richard’s challenges. this time, there is no war going on (‘Thank God!’ he would say with relief) but this plot still was awful towards our dear hero. Richard had literally no break, people he barely know to save, was fascinated with yarns, avoiding mental control upon him, seeing time running fast, being away from his family, having to cut off ties with his dear ones and more. yes, this is ridiculous indeed. and I still liked it. but at least Richard was there as the MC, I need to accept his new life and I made an effort to move on. I still wonder : if this book was dissociated from the series, would I have enjoyed it that much? we might never know the answer. at the point, Richard could be doing anything and I’d still be reading his adventures because I chose him and that’s it. even if the genius John Buchan wanted to write a story about him attending a racing game as a pro while being a culinary expert looking for ingredients in Asia in order to sign with a major modeling brand, I’d be in. and no, I am not joking. I suppose the fifth and the sixth books are no different from this one.
‘Why the devil can’t I be left alone?’ I cried. ‘I don’t ask for much - only a little peace.’
it was a different experience because Richard Hannay now has a complete different life : he is a Sir, not working under the Army and has a family. he is now a farmer in Fosse Manor, in the Cotswolds (I still have no idea where is that. in Scotland or England?), particularly interested in yards. to be honest, I was expecting so many interactions with Mary. unfortunately, the author was once again discreet about such intimacy. there were a few mentions, but nothing more and to be honest, I am so unhappy to see that. after all, Mary had a great part in the third book and I wish she’d be more present. despite the discreet comments, I have seen how she actually still holds much power towards Richard. after all, in the beginning, he was stubborn, he constantly refused to help finding the three hostages but as soon as she was aware of this delicate situation, she immediately had the last word. Richard affirmed he had accepted because of her knowing. this shows Richard’s dedication to the well-being of his hearth and how he now makes decisions based on his responsibilities. saving your own self during a war is something but having a family and being the head of it is definitely another. and yeah, he also named his son Peter John! the literal reference to his deceased major support character : Peter Pieenar, and the other friend that helped him overthrow that ***** of Ivery : John S. Blenkiron. these two men were a great help in Richard’s successes for quite some time and Mary even knew them. this is a detail that warmed my heart for sure. talking about past friendships, Sandy Arbuthnot was back from the US :
“You may imagine how glad I was to see old Sandy again, for I had not set eyes on him since 1916.”
most of his friends were also there and it was pleasant to hear about them. I think Archie was the funniest out there. I liked this silliness, definitely needed in this book. I was so happy for this return!!! even this old alter ego was back to business :
‘I’d better have my old name, Cornelius Brand.’
the writing, subtle as it might be sometimes, was not actually a recap of our Richard’s actions - if I remember correctly, there were times were he would say ‘I remember how it was happening like that’, ‘at first I felt like that’ and so on. the writing made it look like we have reached the present times. it may be a detail but I paid great attention to this fact. when I was reading it, I found a few elements referring to his past and all of the things he went through, but at the same time, these experiences seemed long gone now. there no date for this particular, we barely know his age (mid-forties but I am pretty sure that Peter John is a toddler). let’s not forget that our Richard has been mental challenged for quite some time now. he has not changed much. technically, he addresses his concerns to us (the readers) only and doesn’t like to share what was could be normally discussed with people around him. I was glad that he had a support from his wife and I was sure that she could interfere at some point. after all, she is supposed to be a clever young woman who dedicates her actions for the better around her. he still is a very big pessimistic person and his personal traits still remained the same. knowing I was dealing with our usual dear old Richard probably made me ease and that may be why I still somehow liked this book.
“I congratulated myself on having attained the kind of position I wanted - that of a disciple whose subjection was much taken for granted that he was treated like a piece of furniture.”
outside of the three hostages, most of characters suffered as well. rather than during the war, it was a mental challenge that could only be achieved through breakdowns, doubts, fear and a lot of separation. the harsh weariness from the war seems long gone, but its consequences are still part of the aura surrounding the characters, and it was not pleasant to witness. I remember one mention of each Peter Pieenar and John S. Blenkiron, and it reminded me that I was reading the right book. and to think I was sure that Richard could be surrounding by others, I was totally wrong. he was cut off from his wife, Sandy and could not speak a word about his plans to others. I think Sandy would be considered MVP of this story, because dang! Medina really was against his entire existence. our Richard probably was not the aim at the point, just give a look at the construction of the hate towards old Sandy :
‘If I were you I wouldn’t have much to do with Arbuthnot,’ he said, and his tone was a command. I grinned sheepishly, but my fingers itched for his ears.
‘You mean you quarrelled. I thought you were old friends.’
‘We once were. Now I never want to see the fellow again.’ I thought I might as well do the thoroughly, though the words stuck in my throat.
He seemed pleased.
‘You see he has been trying hard to murder me.’
‘Good Lord!’ I exclaimed. ‘When?’
‘Four times,’ said Sandy calmly, counting on his fingers.
Medina could be considered worst than that ***** of Ivery but to be honest, I think he was less cruel than him. but that doesn’t mean he is not cruel. John Buchan made sure to write the perfect villain out there : he is a cunning artist, a cold manipulator but also a maniac with a God complex. he actually represents the mental damage of people after the war. it is a great comparison but in my opinion, it is too sophisticated. he is still toxic and talked lowly enough for us to understand. but still, it is only his real side. Medina was said to be popular, loved by others and made sure his reputation could save him, otherwise how would he manipulate people? the introduction of his potential was a bit clumsy and I wish it would have been happening differently. for example, Richard barely has feelings for his opponents and admitting that he felt pity for Medina was not something that I supported and I wanted to shake some sense out of him.
“He walked up to me, and gave me a smart slap in the face. I accepted it with Christian meekness. I wasn’t even angry. (…) Then he spat in my face. That, I admit, tried me pretty high.”
even though our Richard always received great help from others, he actually went all of this mostly by himself. it was indeed difficult to ask for help, but Richard is definitely the type to act for himself. I didn’t understand much of his actions in this book, it was like it was him but from another lifetime. I never thought I would say something like this but I am saying. there were bad elements in this book. first, it was too long. chapters fifteen and seventeen should be erased as they bring nothing to the plot. second, it was not as thrilling as it should have been, considering the potential of the idea. the fact that Richard was a good actor that pretended to be hypnotized and being constantly right next to the villain was not as splendid as what he is capable of. at the point, it really should have been shorter in many parts (for example : the end) because it was really was unpleasant. we already know who dear Richard is, no need to describe things for that long. he had been a good actor for quite some time, even Mary has seen him in action. third, yes, it should have been different. this idea was ridiculous, like I said, but mostly not done smoothly and it may explain why it was not the best from him.
it would be hard to find a favourite chapter, since I still feel mixed about this story. chapter nineteen was good but I didn’t understand anything so it’s a pass. Mary’s comparison of Joan D’Arc’s authority was still liked, though. but the tenth was probably the most interesting one thanks to this part :
‘Was the guru’s name Kharama?’ I asked.
Sandy stared as if he had seen a ghost.
‘Now how on earth do you know that?’
‘Simply because I spent an hour with him and Medina a few nights ago.’
‘The devil you did! Kharama in London! Lord, Dick this is an awesome business. Quick, tell me every single that that passed.’
technically, I really enjoyed reading this book and I was attracted to it. and as I don’t really want to cut off the five stars spree of this series, I have no choice but to still do it. I’d unveil its real rating : three stars if compared to the other books, but four stars if processed alone. it was not the best of John Buchan I fear.
‘Do English farmers travel in Norway under false names?’
‘That’s a private business which I want to explain to you.’
never in my life have I thought I would find a Richard Hannay’s novel funny. this plot was r-i-d-i-c-u-l-o-u-s and trust me, I was having a hard time trying to dissociate it from the three books before this one. an unserious scenario was not something that I have imagined so far but I went through it and given my rating, I need to explain why. after all, I liked another Richard Hannay’s book again. nothing surprising, I have indeed said he is my new favourite male book character and that fact is not changing. but still, I need to start off this review by admitting I am a little mixed. you see, the war had a complete different setting. I am not saying I had to force myself to go through, this is not true at all! but I definitely tried my best to interpret this fourth book as an individual experience and not to link it with the three former books. but to be honest, this book is definitely not as strong as the first, second and third books. but I will explain my interpretation later, because I wish to write the same type of review as I did for the third book a few days ago.
I remember that I used to mention our Richard’s challenges. this time, there is no war going on (‘Thank God!’ he would say with relief) but this plot still was awful towards our dear hero. Richard had literally no break, people he barely know to save, was fascinated with yarns, avoiding mental control upon him, seeing time running fast, being away from his family, having to cut off ties with his dear ones and more. yes, this is ridiculous indeed. and I still liked it. but at least Richard was there as the MC, I need to accept his new life and I made an effort to move on. I still wonder : if this book was dissociated from the series, would I have enjoyed it that much? we might never know the answer. at the point, Richard could be doing anything and I’d still be reading his adventures because I chose him and that’s it. even if the genius John Buchan wanted to write a story about him attending a racing game as a pro while being a culinary expert looking for ingredients in Asia in order to sign with a major modeling brand, I’d be in. and no, I am not joking. I suppose the fifth and the sixth books are no different from this one.
‘Why the devil can’t I be left alone?’ I cried. ‘I don’t ask for much - only a little peace.’
it was a different experience because Richard Hannay now has a complete different life : he is a Sir, not working under the Army and has a family. he is now a farmer in Fosse Manor, in the Cotswolds (I still have no idea where is that. in Scotland or England?), particularly interested in yards. to be honest, I was expecting so many interactions with Mary. unfortunately, the author was once again discreet about such intimacy. there were a few mentions, but nothing more and to be honest, I am so unhappy to see that. after all, Mary had a great part in the third book and I wish she’d be more present. despite the discreet comments, I have seen how she actually still holds much power towards Richard. after all, in the beginning, he was stubborn, he constantly refused to help finding the three hostages but as soon as she was aware of this delicate situation, she immediately had the last word. Richard affirmed he had accepted because of her knowing. this shows Richard’s dedication to the well-being of his hearth and how he now makes decisions based on his responsibilities. saving your own self during a war is something but having a family and being the head of it is definitely another. and yeah, he also named his son Peter John! the literal reference to his deceased major support character : Peter Pieenar, and the other friend that helped him overthrow that ***** of Ivery : John S. Blenkiron. these two men were a great help in Richard’s successes for quite some time and Mary even knew them. this is a detail that warmed my heart for sure. talking about past friendships, Sandy Arbuthnot was back from the US :
“You may imagine how glad I was to see old Sandy again, for I had not set eyes on him since 1916.”
most of his friends were also there and it was pleasant to hear about them. I think Archie was the funniest out there. I liked this silliness, definitely needed in this book. I was so happy for this return!!! even this old alter ego was back to business :
‘I’d better have my old name, Cornelius Brand.’
the writing, subtle as it might be sometimes, was not actually a recap of our Richard’s actions - if I remember correctly, there were times were he would say ‘I remember how it was happening like that’, ‘at first I felt like that’ and so on. the writing made it look like we have reached the present times. it may be a detail but I paid great attention to this fact. when I was reading it, I found a few elements referring to his past and all of the things he went through, but at the same time, these experiences seemed long gone now. there no date for this particular, we barely know his age (mid-forties but I am pretty sure that Peter John is a toddler). let’s not forget that our Richard has been mental challenged for quite some time now. he has not changed much. technically, he addresses his concerns to us (the readers) only and doesn’t like to share what was could be normally discussed with people around him. I was glad that he had a support from his wife and I was sure that she could interfere at some point. after all, she is supposed to be a clever young woman who dedicates her actions for the better around her. he still is a very big pessimistic person and his personal traits still remained the same. knowing I was dealing with our usual dear old Richard probably made me ease and that may be why I still somehow liked this book.
“I congratulated myself on having attained the kind of position I wanted - that of a disciple whose subjection was much taken for granted that he was treated like a piece of furniture.”
outside of the three hostages, most of characters suffered as well. rather than during the war, it was a mental challenge that could only be achieved through breakdowns, doubts, fear and a lot of separation. the harsh weariness from the war seems long gone, but its consequences are still part of the aura surrounding the characters, and it was not pleasant to witness. I remember one mention of each Peter Pieenar and John S. Blenkiron, and it reminded me that I was reading the right book. and to think I was sure that Richard could be surrounding by others, I was totally wrong. he was cut off from his wife, Sandy and could not speak a word about his plans to others. I think Sandy would be considered MVP of this story, because dang! Medina really was against his entire existence. our Richard probably was not the aim at the point, just give a look at the construction of the hate towards old Sandy :
‘If I were you I wouldn’t have much to do with Arbuthnot,’ he said, and his tone was a command. I grinned sheepishly, but my fingers itched for his ears.
‘You mean you quarrelled. I thought you were old friends.’
‘We once were. Now I never want to see the fellow again.’ I thought I might as well do the thoroughly, though the words stuck in my throat.
He seemed pleased.
‘You see he has been trying hard to murder me.’
‘Good Lord!’ I exclaimed. ‘When?’
‘Four times,’ said Sandy calmly, counting on his fingers.
Medina could be considered worst than that ***** of Ivery but to be honest, I think he was less cruel than him. but that doesn’t mean he is not cruel. John Buchan made sure to write the perfect villain out there : he is a cunning artist, a cold manipulator but also a maniac with a God complex. he actually represents the mental damage of people after the war. it is a great comparison but in my opinion, it is too sophisticated. he is still toxic and talked lowly enough for us to understand. but still, it is only his real side. Medina was said to be popular, loved by others and made sure his reputation could save him, otherwise how would he manipulate people? the introduction of his potential was a bit clumsy and I wish it would have been happening differently. for example, Richard barely has feelings for his opponents and admitting that he felt pity for Medina was not something that I supported and I wanted to shake some sense out of him.
“He walked up to me, and gave me a smart slap in the face. I accepted it with Christian meekness. I wasn’t even angry. (…) Then he spat in my face. That, I admit, tried me pretty high.”
even though our Richard always received great help from others, he actually went all of this mostly by himself. it was indeed difficult to ask for help, but Richard is definitely the type to act for himself. I didn’t understand much of his actions in this book, it was like it was him but from another lifetime. I never thought I would say something like this but I am saying. there were bad elements in this book. first, it was too long. chapters fifteen and seventeen should be erased as they bring nothing to the plot. second, it was not as thrilling as it should have been, considering the potential of the idea. the fact that Richard was a good actor that pretended to be hypnotized and being constantly right next to the villain was not as splendid as what he is capable of. at the point, it really should have been shorter in many parts (for example : the end) because it was really was unpleasant. we already know who dear Richard is, no need to describe things for that long. he had been a good actor for quite some time, even Mary has seen him in action. third, yes, it should have been different. this idea was ridiculous, like I said, but mostly not done smoothly and it may explain why it was not the best from him.
it would be hard to find a favourite chapter, since I still feel mixed about this story. chapter nineteen was good but I didn’t understand anything so it’s a pass. Mary’s comparison of Joan D’Arc’s authority was still liked, though. but the tenth was probably the most interesting one thanks to this part :
‘Was the guru’s name Kharama?’ I asked.
Sandy stared as if he had seen a ghost.
‘Now how on earth do you know that?’
‘Simply because I spent an hour with him and Medina a few nights ago.’
‘The devil you did! Kharama in London! Lord, Dick this is an awesome business. Quick, tell me every single that that passed.’
technically, I really enjoyed reading this book and I was attracted to it. and as I don’t really want to cut off the five stars spree of this series, I have no choice but to still do it. I’d unveil its real rating : three stars if compared to the other books, but four stars if processed alone. it was not the best of John Buchan I fear.
June 16, 2023
I enjoy Richard Hannay's adventures immensely. He's the best kind of hero. He is loyal, moral and humble.
September 19, 2025
Now reading this series as a personal challenge rather than the pleasure of the storytelling.. four down one more to go …
July 13, 2021
Легке розважальне чтиво, до якого можна взятися після насиченого робочого дня
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