Arsene Lupin week 1: Introduction to end of Ch 2, ( Arsene Lupin in Prison).

[Frances, Moderator]

Welcome to the first week of our Arsene Lupin reading! This appears to be an easy read adventure story, featuring an unreliable narrator in our first chapter and a very clever theft in the second.

Are you a reader of Sherlock Holmes or Golden Age Mystery writers such as Agatha Christie/Allingham/Ngaio Marsh? If so, what parallels do you see, and what sets Arsene Lupin apart? Are there any other fictional detectives or thieves that are brought to mind by these stories?

What do you think of the introduction to Arsene Lupin, and were you fooled by the set-up in chapter one? The theft in Chapter 2 is very clever-what assumptions are required for Lupin to carry out his heist?

What did you think of Ganimard and his relationship to Lupin? Is he modelled on or a model for other fictional police detectives that you are familiar with?

Please share your thoughts on the first 2 chapters.

[Deborah, Moderator]

I read a lot of mysteries - golden age, modern, cozies, and the like. I’ve enjoyed the stories so far even though I figured them out. The sense of humor in the writing and situations make this a book of pure fun. These mysteries are easier to figure out than some of the other golden age books.

[Lori, Moderator]

I enjoy mysteries but rarely read them anymore. These were kind of a fun break. I had kind of guessed in the first story that the narrator might himself be Lupin when it became clear the other "suspects" probably were not. It was a fun read.

The second story confused me a bit because I was under the impression that Lupin was someone who acted alone, but I guess he has his own crew of "merry men." I'm enjoying the stories so far.

[Frances, Moderator]

I assume from all the "impossible things" he did both on the ship in Ch 1 and from prison in ch 2 that he has some extensive network of supporters/accomplices. I wonder if this is a parallel to Holmes' Baker St irregulars, but clearly a bigger and better set of associates.

[Robin P, Moderator]

I read a lot of mysteries but this is unusual in that Lupin is the criminal but also in a sense a "good guy". He seems to steal from rich, selfish people, and he doesn't even need the items, he just enjoys the challenge. He never hurts people or uses violence.

I like Sherlock Holmes and recent additions to his canon a lot. I read Agatha Christie a long time ago, but I remember having the feeling that she cheats sometimes by either leaving out important information, or having people who are incredibly good actors. I do like the fact that her stories (and Holmes') aren't generally either gory or psychologically harrowing.

For this book, it seems like we start in the middle of a story, where everyone already knows about Lupin. We also don't get a really detailed explanation of how he does everything, we just find out it was done. In some ways, he uses human foibles against people, like figuring out how the miserly collector would react to his threat.

[Bill]

I’m finding Lupin’s rodomontade rather a bit much and Ganimard something of an Inspector Clouseu. Are we supposed to take these characters seriously or as comedians? In the Sherlock Holmes we always take the crimes seriously although Holmes’ powers of detection exceed normal abilities. A schoolboy could figure out the scheme here. Maybe the prose style would seem more natural in French.

[Trev]

My first thoughts about a criminal who steals from the rich wandered to ‘Robin Hood’ but then this thief does not seem to give to the poor. No doubt Monsieur Lupin’s motivation comes from the probability that most of the rich people he steals from gained their wealth either illegally or by swindling others using nefarious business practices. It is a little concerning (and amusing) that this master thief who never puts a foot wrong gets himself caught by losing his head over a good looking young woman even if she is in line to inherit a fortune.

It seems that Sherlock Holmes will be a recurring theme as he has already been mentioned and the similarities regarding disguise cannot be overlooked. In a sort of role reversal of characters, instead of Moriarty as a foil to Holmes we have Ganimard, but the relationship seems much more amiable and lighthearted than in the Conan Doyle stories. In the second story I have to admit that I had more or less worked out that the ‘famous detective’ would be an impostor, particularly as his accomplices were described as if they resembled a pair of thugs.

Nevertheless, both stories were engaging and, having read a number of other crime novels set around this period ( eg those by J S Fletcher) I look forward to Lupin’s further adventures with interest and anticipation.

[Robin P, Moderator]

Bill wrote: "I’m finding Lupin’s rodomontade rather a bit much and Ganimard something of an Inspector Clouseu. Are we supposed to take these characters seriously or as comedians? In the Sherlock Holmes we alway..."

I'm reading it in French and it has the same tone of everyone admiring Lupin as he humble-brags about his exploits.

[Piyangie]

I'm enjoying this story collection. The mysteries in them aren't great but interesting and fun to read. The humour is very satisfying. I do like Arsene Lupin, although he is a dishonest thief! :)

[Rosemarie, Moderator]

I'm enjoying these as fun reads, and they are entertaining.
I'm reading them in French too-in a free ebook version by Bibebook, which has a nice font and is a pleasure to read.

You mentioned Inspector Clouseau, Bill, but I think Ganimard is less accident prone.
I was describing the book to my husband, and he mentioned that Arsene is like The Phantom, as played by David Niven in The Pink Panther. That made sense to me.

[Frances, Moderator]

Well done Rosemarie for reading this in french, I feel I ought to but haven't. If you have a chance to glance at the translation I would love to hear if you feel there's much difference in feel or character.