Arsène Lupin versus Herlock Sholmes

What It's About

This is the second collection of adventures featuring Arsène Lupin, the gentleman-thief created by Maurice Leblanc, here pitted against Herlock Sholmes — a thinly veiled stand-in for Sherlock Holmes, introduced after Arthur Conan Doyle objected to Leblanc's earlier use of the real character's name. The book contains two linked stories: in "The Blonde Lady," a stolen antique desk and an overlooked winning lottery ticket set off a chain of thefts and daring escapes, while "The Jewish Lamp" finds Sholmes summoned to recover a stolen lamp, only to receive an audacious warning from Lupin himself. Across both tales, thief and detective size each other up in a running duel of wits played out across Paris.

Key Concepts

The book plays with the conventions of detective fiction itself, casting Lupin as a rival investigator every bit as sharp as his English opposite number, and drawing as much comedy from their exchanges as suspense from their contest. Leblanc is said to have drawn partial inspiration for Lupin's amoral charm from the real-life anarchist and thief Marius Jacob.

About the Author

Maurice Leblanc (1864–1941) was a French novelist and short-story writer from Rouen. His early literary work met with little commercial success, but he found lasting fame after being commissioned to write a crime story for the magazine Je sais tout in 1905, from which Arsène Lupin was born. He was later awarded the Légion d'Honneur for his services to literature.

About This Edition

This is a 1910 translation by George Morehead.