A Royal Prisoner (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. Mystery NovelBy Pierre Souvestre, Marcel Allain
Length6h 59m
About this audiobook
A Royal Prisoner exemplifies the fevered energy of early twentieth-century French popular fiction, where detective intrigue, political conspiracy, melodrama, and Gothic menace converge. Within the wider Fantômas cycle, the volume extends a world of disguises, reversals, and spectacular crimes, using rapid episodic pacing and theatrical suspense to unsettle distinctions between legality and criminal genius. Its prison motifs, aristocratic tensions, and breathless revelations make it a striking instance of serial narrative's power to transform sensational plots into social fantasy. Pierre Souvestre and Marcel Allain, working in close collaboration, helped define the modern criminal mastermind as a figure of mass-cultural fascination. Their fiction belongs to the Belle Époque and prewar milieu of feuilleton publication, alongside detective fiction, urban mystery, and popular adventure. Through their combined craft, anxieties about class, policing, modern identity, and media spectacle are dramatized in a form accessible to broad readerships yet rich in cultural implication. Readers interested in crime literature, French modernity, or the genealogy of thriller fiction will find A Royal Prisoner especially rewarding. It offers not only excitement and narrative ingenuity, but also a window onto the popular imagination of its period, inviting reflection on justice, power, and performance.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes.
- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.
- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing.
- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.
- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life.
- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.
- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 3.6 (78)
Includes Goodreads
GenreMystery and Thriller
Length6 hrs 59 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateJun 27, 2018
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Introduction
2Introduction
3Synopsis
4Historical Context
5CHAPTER I A ROYAL JAG
Show all chaptersShow less
6CHAPTER II MOTHER CITRON'S TENANTS
7CHAPTER III THE TRAGEDY OF THE RUE DE MONCEAU
8CHAPTER IV WHO DO THEY THINK I AM?
9CHAPTER V BY THE SINGING FOUNTAINS
10CHAPTER VI THE INVESTIGATION BEGINS
11CHAPTER VII THE KING RECEIVES
12CHAPTER VIII MARIE PASCAL
13CHAPTER IX A PARTY OF THREE
14CHAPTER X WULFENMIMENGLASCHK
15CHAPTER XI ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-SEVEN STATIONS
16CHAPTER XII CAMOUFLAGE
17CHAPTER XIII THE KINGDOM OF HESSE-WEIMAR
18CHAPTER XIV QUEEN HEDWIGE RECEIVES
19CHAPTER XV THE MYSTERIOUS PRISON
20CHAPTER XVI THE THEFT OF THE DIAMOND
21CHAPTER XVII ON THE RIGHT TRAIL
22CHAPTER XVIII A SLEEPER
23CHAPTER XIX FREE!
24CHAPTER XX FREDERICK-CHRISTIAN
25CHAPTER XXI HORRIBLE CERTAINTY
26CHAPTER XXII BETWEEN US THREE — FANTÔMAS!
27CHAPTER XXIII OFFICIAL OPINIONS
28CHAPTER XXIV JUVE'S LIES
29CHAPTER XXV "I WANT TO LIVE!"
30CHAPTER XXVI THE ACCUSING WAISTCOAT
31CHAPTER XXVII THE EXPLOSION OF THE NORD-SUD
32CHAPTER XXVIII INNOCENT OR GUILTY?
33CHAPTER XXIX COMPROMISING DISCOVERIES
34CHAPTER XXX SHADOWED
35CHAPTER XXXI THE DEATH WATCH
36CHAPTER XXXII THE ARREST OF FANTÔMAS
37Analysis
38Reflection
39Memorable Quotes
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