‘The Complete Raffles – 1’ by EW Hornung

My Review (3 stars out of 5)

Cricket-loving and thrill-seeking A. J. Raffles and his old school pal ‘Bunny’, embark on a series of burglaries in a bid to stay financially solvent. This is the first of two collections of 16 stories, including The Ides of March, Nine Points of the Law, and The Fate of Faustina.

The first of the Raffles stories appeared in Cassell’s Magazine in 1898. The characters were supposedly inspired by Oscar Wilde and Lord Alfred Douglas, though the real inspiration clearly comes from Arthur Conan Doyle’s infamous consulting detective, Sherlock Holmes and his side-kick Doctor Watson. The stories are very similar in style, though to my mind lack the suspense and excitement of ACD’s tales. The cricketing references, too, go on way too long for my liking and I found if difficult not to skip ahead to find something interesting.

Probably came across as rather good at the time, but this collection has not worn well.

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