The Secret Tomb

What It's About

In the aftermath of the First World War, Dorothy, a young rope-dancer and fortune-teller, travels the French countryside with a ragtag troupe of orphaned boys she has taken in. When their circus makes camp near the Château de Roborey — a name that stirs faint and troubling memories from her own past — a chance discovery at the castle draws her and her resourceful companion Saint-Quentin into a web of buried family secrets, old rivalries, and a legendary hidden treasure. As Dorothy investigates, a new-found nemesis dogs her every move, and fragments of her own forgotten history begin to surface.

Key Concepts

The novel blends mystery, adventure, and family drama around a treasure hunt and a question of hidden identity. It also explores found family and resilience, as its band of young protagonists — all orphaned by war — rely on each other to navigate danger. Though numbered within Leblanc's wider Arsène Lupin story-world (the mystery here is later referenced in his novel The Countess of Cagliostro), Lupin himself does not appear in this book.

About the Author

Maurice Leblanc (1864–1941) was a French novelist and journalist from Rouen. He abandoned his law studies to pursue writing, working first as a journalist and short-story writer before achieving lasting fame as the creator of the gentleman-thief-turned-detective Arsène Lupin, often described as a French counterpart to Sherlock Holmes.

About This Edition

This is a 1923 translation by Edgar Jepson.