Other editions of book The Master Of The World

Set in the summer of 1903, a series of unexplained events occur across the eastern United States, caused by objects moving with such great speed that they are nearly invisible. The first-person narrator John Strock, 'Head inspector in the federal police department' in Washington, DC, travels to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina to investigate. He discovers that all the phenomena are being caused by Robur, a brilliant inventor.

Master of the World is one of the last novels by French pioneer science fiction writer, Jules Verne. It is a sequel to Robur the Conqueror. At the time Verne wrote the novel, his health was failing. Master of the World is a "black novel," filled with foreboding and fear of the rise of tyrants such as the novel's villain, Robur, and totalitarianism.Set in the summer of 1903, a series of unexplained events occur across the eastern United States, caused by objects moving with such great speed that they are nearly invisible. The first-person narrator John Strock, 'Head inspector in the federal police department' in Washington, DC, travels to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina to investigate. He discovers that all the phenomena are being caused by Robur, a brilliant inventor. (He was previously featured as a character in Verne's Robur the Conqueror.)Robur has perfected a new machine, which he has dubbed the Terror. It is ten-meter long vehicle, capable of operating as a speedboat, submarine, automobile, or aircraft. It can travel at the (then) unheard of speed of 150 miles per hour on land and at more than 200 mph when flying.Strock tries to capture the Terror but instead is captured himself. Robur drives the strange craft to elude his pursuers, heading to the Caribbean and into a thunderstorm. The Terror is struck by lightning, breaks apart, and falls into the ocean. Strock is rescued from the vehicle's wreckage, but Robur's body is never found. The reader is left to decide whether or not he has died.

"Master of the World", published in 1904, is one of the last novels by French pioneer science fiction writer, Jules Verne, and is a sequel to "Robur the Conqueror". At the time Verne wrote the novel, his health was failing, and Master of the World is a "black novel," filled with the fear of the coming of tyrants like the novel's villain, Robur, and totalitarianism.

"Master of the World", published in 1904, is one of the last novels by French pioneer science fiction writer, Jules Verne, and is a sequel to "Robur the Conqueror". At the time Verne wrote the novel, his health was failing, and Master of the World is a "black novel," filled with the fear of the coming of tyrants like the novel's villain, Robur, and totalitarianism.

A series of unexplained happenings occur across the eastern United States, caused by objects moving with such great speed that they are nearly invisible. The first-person narrator John Strock, 'Head inspector in the federal police department' travels to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina to investigate and discovers that all the phenomena are being caused by Robur, a brilliant inventor who had previously appeared in Verne's Robur the Conqueror.Robur had perfected a new invention, which he has dubbed the Terror. This is a ten-meter long vehicle, that is alternately speedboat, submarine, automobile or aircraft. It can travel at the (then) unheard of speed of 150 miles per hour on land and at over 200 mph when flying.Strock attempts to capture the Terror but instead is captured himself. The strange craft eludes its pursuers and heads to the Caribbean where Robur deliberately heads into a thunderstorm. The Terror is struck by lightning and falls into the ocean. Strock is rescued from the vehicle's wreckage, but Robur's body is never found. The reader is left to judge whether he has actually died or not.(Excerpt from Wikipedia)

When a volcano suddenly seems to erupt and threaten a mountain town of North Carolina, Inspector Strock is sent to determine the danger. When an automobile race in Wisconsin is interrupted by the unexpected appearance of a vehicle traveling at many times the top speed of the entrants, Strock is again consulted. And when an odd-shaped boat is sighted moving at impossible speeds off the New England coast, Strock and his boss begin to wonder if the incidents are related. Then Strock gets a note warning him to abandon his investigation on pain of death, but he is intrigued rather than deterred.The story is set in a period when gasoline engines were new and automobiles were rare, and so the appearance of a vehicle that can move at astounding speeds on land, on water—and as later seen, underwater and through the air—marks a technological advance far beyond the reach of any nation. It is technology invented by a man who styles himself "The Master of the World" and threatens the peace of the world unless Inspector Strock can find a way to stop the mad inventor.

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When a volcano suddenly seems to erupt and threaten a mountain town of North Carolina, Inspector Strock is sent to determine the danger. When an automobile race in Wisconsin is interrupted by the unexpected appearance of a vehicle traveling at many times the top speed of the entrants, Strock is again consulted. And when an odd-shaped boat is sighted moving at impossible speeds off the New England coast, Strock and his boss begin to wonder if the incidents are related. Then Strock gets a note warning him to abandon his investigation on pain of death, but he is intrigued rather than deterred.The story is set in a period when gasoline engines were new and automobiles were rare, and so the appearance of a vehicle that can move at astounding speeds on land, on water—and as later seen, underwater and through the air—marks a technological advance far beyond the reach of any nation. It is technology invented by a man who styles himself "The Master of the World" and threatens the peace of the world unless Inspector Strock can find a way to stop the mad inventor.