It was the original short story collection by Hornung, featuring his most famous character, A. J. Raffles, a gentleman thief in late Victorian Great Britain. The book was very well received and spawned three follow-ups: two more short story collections, The Black Mask (1901) and A Thief in the Night (1904), as well as a full-length novel, Mr. Justice Raffles (1909).
A national sporting hero, Arthur J. Raffles[note 1] is a prominent member of London society. As a cricketer, he regularly represents England in Test matches. He uses this as cover to commit a number of burglaries, primarily stealing valuable jewelry from the elite of London, for thrill and profit. He is assisted in this by his friend, the younger Harry "Bunny" Manders[note 2], who idealizes Raffles as a sportsman. Both men are constantly under the surveillance of Inspector Mackenzie of Scotland Yard, who is always thwarted in his attempts to pin the crimes on Raffles.
"The Ides of March" – Raffles initiates Bunny into his profession, taking him along as an accomplice.
"A Costume Piece" – Raffles schemes to steal diamonds from the millionaire Reuben Rosenthall.
"Gentlemen and Players" – While in the countryside to play a cricket match, Raffles and Bunny are surprised to discover Inspector Mackenzie of Scotland Yard there, attempting to thwart an expected burglary.
"Le Premier Pas" – Raffles recounts his first felony, committed in Australia.
"Wilful Murder" – Becoming aware that a dealer has discovered his real identity, Raffles proceeds to his house with the intention of murdering him.
"Nine Points of the Law" – Raffles and Bunny are tasked by a lawyer to extricate a rare picture, bound for Australia.
"The Return Match" – Raffles expects a visit from a recently escaped convict.
"The Gift of the Emperor" – Raffles and Bunny board a vessel carrying a famous pearl as a diplomatic gift.
Notesedit
^While Raffles's initials are given in this story collection, his first name is not stated. It is revealed in stories collected in The Black Mask (1901).[2]
^Bunny's real first name is not given in this story collection, and is only mentioned in the last short story in A Thief in the Night (1905).[3]
^Hornung, E. W. (2003) [1899]. "Notes". In Richard Lancelyn Green (ed.). Raffles: The Amateur Cracksman (Reprinted ed.). London: Penguin Books. p. 142. ISBN978-1856132824.
^See all four Raffles books: The Amateur Cracksman706, Raffles: Further Adventures of the Amateur Cracksman (UK title: The Black Mask) 707, A Thief in the Night2098, and Mr. Justice Raffles9806. Bunny's real name is also given as Harry in the 1903 play Raffles, the Amateur Cracksman.
Sources
Hornung, E. W. (1899). The Amateur Cracksman. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.
Rowland, Peter (1999). Raffles and His Creator. London: Nekta Publications. ISBN0-9533583-2-1.
The Amateur Cracksman public domain audiobook at LibriVox
January 01, 1970
amateur, cracksman, 1899, short, story, collection, hornung, published, methuen, london, scribner, york, many, later, editions, nelson, sons, 1914, university, nebraska, press, 1976, expand, title, raffles, some, editions, such, penguin, books, 1948, retitle, . The Amateur Cracksman is an 1899 short story collection by E W Hornung It was published in the UK by Methuen amp Co London and in the US by Scribner s New York 1 Many later editions T Nelson amp Sons 1914 University of Nebraska Press 1976 et al expand the title to Raffles The Amateur Cracksman Some editions such as Penguin Books 1948 retitle the collection simply Raffles The Amateur CracksmanAuthorE W HornungCountryUnited KingdomLanguageEnglishSeriesA J RafflesGenreCrime fictionPublisherMethuen amp Co UK Scribner s US Publication date1899Followed byThe Black Mask It was the original short story collection by Hornung featuring his most famous character A J Raffles a gentleman thief in late Victorian Great Britain The book was very well received and spawned three follow ups two more short story collections The Black Mask 1901 and A Thief in the Night 1904 as well as a full length novel Mr Justice Raffles 1909 Contents 1 Overview 2 Contents 3 Notes 4 References 5 External linksOverview editA national sporting hero Arthur J Raffles note 1 is a prominent member of London society As a cricketer he regularly represents England in Test matches He uses this as cover to commit a number of burglaries primarily stealing valuable jewelry from the elite of London for thrill and profit He is assisted in this by his friend the younger Harry Bunny Manders note 2 who idealizes Raffles as a sportsman Both men are constantly under the surveillance of Inspector Mackenzie of Scotland Yard who is always thwarted in his attempts to pin the crimes on Raffles Contents edit nbsp Raffles 1905 frontispiece by F C Yohn The Ides of March Raffles initiates Bunny into his profession taking him along as an accomplice A Costume Piece Raffles schemes to steal diamonds from the millionaire Reuben Rosenthall Gentlemen and Players While in the countryside to play a cricket match Raffles and Bunny are surprised to discover Inspector Mackenzie of Scotland Yard there attempting to thwart an expected burglary Le Premier Pas Raffles recounts his first felony committed in Australia Wilful Murder Becoming aware that a dealer has discovered his real identity Raffles proceeds to his house with the intention of murdering him Nine Points of the Law Raffles and Bunny are tasked by a lawyer to extricate a rare picture bound for Australia The Return Match Raffles expects a visit from a recently escaped convict The Gift of the Emperor Raffles and Bunny board a vessel carrying a famous pearl as a diplomatic gift Notes edit While Raffles s initials are given in this story collection his first name is not stated It is revealed in stories collected in The Black Mask 1901 2 Bunny s real first name is not given in this story collection and is only mentioned in the last short story in A Thief in the Night 1905 3 References editCitations Rowland p 280 Hornung E W 2003 1899 Notes In Richard Lancelyn Green ed Raffles The Amateur Cracksman Reprinted ed London Penguin Books p 142 ISBN 978 1856132824 See all four Raffles books The Amateur Cracksman 706 Raffles Further Adventures of the Amateur Cracksman UK title The Black Mask 707 A Thief in the Night 2098 and Mr Justice Raffles 9806 Bunny s real name is also given as Harry in the 1903 play Raffles the Amateur Cracksman Sources Hornung E W 1899 The Amateur Cracksman New York Charles Scribner s Sons Rowland Peter 1999 Raffles and His Creator London Nekta Publications ISBN 0 9533583 2 1 External links editThe Amateur Cracksman at Standard Ebooks The Amateur Cracksman at Project Gutenberg nbsp The Amateur Cracksman public domain audiobook at LibriVox Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title The Amateur Cracksman amp oldid 1171429211, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
