Other editions of book The Prisoner of Zenda & Rupert of Hentzau

The ultimate escapist adventure story, The Prisoner of Zenda transports the listener into a bygone era, awash with swashbuckling heroism, cunning plots and courtly love. The popularity of Hopes tale of intrigue was such that is spawned an entirely new genre known as the Ruritanian romance. When the King of Ruritania is kidnapped, the onus falls on a British tourist, who bears an uncanny resemblance to the King, to stand in for him and to avert disaster by coming to his rescue. The frequent replays of the film with Ronald Colman and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. testify to the continuing popularity of this evergreen adventure. Andrew Pugsleys reading captures the excitement and the momentum.

The Prisoner of Zenda is an adventure novel by Anthony Hope. The king of the fictional country of Ruritania is abducted on the eve of his coronation, and the protagonist, is persuaded to act as his political decoy in an attempt to save the situation. The Prisoner of Zenda is an adventure novel by Anthony Hope, published in 1894. The protagonist is an English gentleman on holiday who fortuitously resembles the monarch.The villainous Rupert of Hentzau gave his name to the sequel published in 1898.

Anthony Hope's classic adventure story, beloved by generations. On the eve of his coronation, the incoming King of Ruritania has been poisoned and rendered unable to attend the ceremony. A vacationing Englishman who resembles the king must stand in as a decoy to avoid chaos and revolution in the unstable kingdom. The Prisoner of Zenda and its sequel, Rupert of Hentzau, inspired an entire genre of fiction -- the "Ruritanian romance."

The unabridged classic on MP3 audio, narrated by Alfred von Lecteur. Three playback speeds on one disk; etext edition included. Running time: 5.9 hours (slow), 5.4 hours (medium), 4.9 hours (fast). Regarded by many critics as the finest adventure story ever written, this is the tale of Rudolf Rassendyll, an English gentleman who finds that he has -- not only the blood of kings in him -- but the stuff of kings. Save a kingdom and win the love of the fair Flavia: all this does Rudolf (on his holiday!) in a brilliant satire on late-nineteenth century European politics.

This swashbuckling romance transports a droll young English gentleman from his comfortable life in London to a fast-moving adventure in a mythical country steeped in political intrigue. Rudolf Rassendyll, pondering his life's purpose, sets out on a journey to the tiny European kingdom of Ruritania, where he discovers that he bears a marked physical resemblance to the king. Perils and adventures ensue when he decides to impersonate the king in order to defeat a plot to dethrone him, and falls deeply in love with the king's betrothed, Princess Flavia. With its witty hero and shrewd villains, The Prisoner of Zenda became an instant classic when it appeared in 1894 and has been made into a film five times since.