Other editions of book The Confessions of Arsène Lupin

Maurice-Marie-Emile Leblanc (1864-1941) was a French novelist and writer of short stories, known primarily as the creator of the fictional gentleman thief and detective Arsene Lupin, often described as a French counterpart to Conan Doyle's creation Sherlock Holmes. Clearly created, at editorial request, under the influence of, and in reaction to, the wildly successful Sherlock Holmes stories, the roguish and glamorous Lupin was a surprise success and Leblanc's fame and fortune beckoned. Like Conan Doyle, who often appeared embarrassed or hindered by the success of Sherlock Holmes and seemed to regard his success in the field of crime fiction as a detraction from his more "respectable" literary ambitions, Leblanc also appeared to have resented Lupin's success. Several times, he tried to create other characters, such as private eye Jim Barnett, but eventually merged them with Lupin. He continued to pen Lupin tales well into the 1930s. Leblanc also wrote two notable science fiction novels: Les Trois Yeux (1919) and Le Formidable Evenement (1920).

This early work by Maurice Leblanc was originally published in 1913 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introductory biography. "The Confessions of Arsene Lupin" is a collection of nine stories - or confessions - of the celebrated gentleman thief Arsene Lupin. Maurice Marie Émile Leblanc was born on 11th November 1864 in Rouen, Normandy, France. He was a novelist and writer of short stories, known primarily as the creator of the fictional gentleman thief and detective, Arsène Lupin. Leblanc spent his early education at the Lycée Pierre Corneille (in Rouen), and after studying in several countries and dropping out of law school, he settled in Paris and began to write fiction. From the start, Leblanc wrote both short crime stories and longer novels - and his lengthier tomes, heavily influenced by writers such as Flaubert and Maupassant, were critically admired, but met with little commercial success. Leblanc was largely considered little more than a writer of short stories for various French periodicals when the first Arsène Lupin story appeared. It was published as a series of stories in the magazine 'Je Sais Trout', starting on 15th July, 1905. Clearly created at editorial request under the influence of, and in reaction to, the wildly successful Sherlock Holmes stories, the roguish and glamorous Lupin was a surprise success and Leblanc's fame and fortune beckoned. In total, Leblanc went on to write twenty-one Lupin novels or collections of short stories. On this success, he later moved to a beautiful country-side retreat in Étreat (in the Haute-Normandie region in north-western France), which today is a museum dedicated to the Arsène Lupin books. Leblanc was awarded the Légion d'Honneur - the highest decoration in France - for his services to literature. He died in Perpignan (the capital of the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France) on 6th November 1941, at the age of seventy-six. He is buried in the prestigious Montparnasse Cemetery of Paris.

"Lupin," I said, "tell me something about yourself." "Why, what would you have me tell you? Everybody knows my life!" replied Lupin, who lay drowsing on the sofa in my study. "Nobody knows it!" I protested. "People know from your letters in the newspapers that you were mixed up in this case, that you started that case. But the part which you played in it all, the plain facts of the story, the upshot of the mystery: these are things of which they know nothing." "Pooh! A heap of uninteresting twaddle!" "What! Your present of fifty thousand francs to Nicolas Dugrival's wife! Do you call that uninteresting? And what about the way in which you solved the puzzle of the three pictures?" Lupin laughed:

Ten new adventures in the career of this gentleman burglar are recounted in the ten chapters of this book. The titles are: Two hundred thousand francs reward; The wedding ring; The sign of the shadow; The infernal trap; The red silk scar; Shadowed by death; A tragedy in the forest of morgues; Lupin's marriage; The invisible prisoner; Edith Swanneck.

This collection of ten new adventures in the career of Lupin, the gentleman burglar, presents more puzzling criminal involvements of the classic French hero-thief and his men. Contents: Two Hundred Thousand Francs Reward!; The Wedding-ring; The Sign Of The Shadow; The Infernal Trap; The Red Silk Scarf; Shadowed By Death; A Tragedy In The Forest Of Morgues; Lupin’s Marriage; The Invisible Prisoner; Edith Swan-neck.

The outrageous tales of the gentleman thief Arsène LupinIn “Two Hundred Thousand Francs Reward!,” it has been a fortnight since the baroness Repstein disappeared from Paris, taking with her a fortune in jewels stolen from her husband. French detectives have chased her all over Europe, following the trail of gemstones like so many precious breadcrumbs, but she has eluded their efforts. When Arsène Lupin finds her, she will not escape so easily. Meanwhile in “The Wedding-Ring,” a wife desperately tries to outwit a husband set on divorce and willing to use their son as a pawn. A greedy stepfather, a strange car accident, a false wedding announcement, and more are woven through the rest of these thrilling tales, in which the cunning gentleman thief outwits both policemen and criminals time and time again, always making sure to pocket something for himself.Full contents: “Two Hundred Thousand Francs Reward!” • “The Wedding-Ring” • “The Sign of the Shadow” • “The Infernal Trap” • “The Red Silk Scarf” • “Shadowed by Death” • “A Tragedy in the Forest of Morgues” • “Lupin’s Marriage” • “The Invisible Prisoner” • “Edith Swan-Neck”

It has been a fortnight since the baroness Repstein disappeared from Paris, taking with her a fortune in jewels stolen from her husband. French detectives have chased her all over Europe, following the trail of gemstones like so many precious breadcrumbs, but she has eluded their efforts. When Arsène Lupin finds her, she will not escape so easily. The most brilliant criminal mind in all of Europe, Lupin is not above performing the occasional good deed—especially when there is reward money at stake. In these thrilling stories, the gentleman thief outwits both policemen and criminals time and time again, always making sure to pocket something for himself.