Both of those stories follow a similar story arc and are led by similar protagonists, the reluctant hero; a man who is clearly a patriot, has certain latent skills, is a gentleman (obviously) and who happens to find himself in the right place at the right time to prevent a calamity that would certainly mean the end of Britain as he knows it, and may perhaps mean the end of the civilized world. What’s a man to do? what, what
Each of these short stories is broken down into a series of chapters that play like mini episodes or adventures in the overall story. The chapters have names like The One-eyed Red Mustachioed Groomsman or The Weeping Lady in Ermine so you have good idea where our man be headed or at least who or what he may run into along the way. yeah, I made those chapter titles up.
These two tales were fast-paced and fun and I can certainly see the similarities to Fleming’s Bond. Makes me want to go back and read some of Fleming’s stuff, it’s been years since I have.
A quick look at Wikipedia tells me that Richard Hannay appears in a total of 5 Buchan stories, and that The Thirty-Nine Steps first appeared in Blackwood's Magazine in 1915.
The second story in this slim volume is called The Power-House, and follows the adventures of Edward Leithen, a British MP and lawyer, who I think also appears in a number of Buchan stories. Unlike Richard Hannay, Leithen is more of a home-body, rather than a man-of-action as Hannay is. Leithen seems to use his brains, and careful consideration to take care of business. You won't find this guy hiding in a tree, in borrowed pants, out on the moors waiting for an execution squad to wander past in the night. You're more likely to find Leithen at the club, chatting up some credulous acquaintance whilst sipping a whiskey and soda.
Both were fun. Read this book
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