cover image The Great Impersonation

The Great Impersonation

E. Phillips Oppenheim. Poisoned Pen, $12.95 trade paper (248p) ISBN 978-1-4642-0655-9

First published in 1920, Oppenheim’s ripping yarn, now available as a British Library Spy Classic, opens in German East Africa in 1913. British aristocrat Everard Dominey, who has been in self-imposed exile for the last 10 years, has reached the nadir of his life: he’s out of condition, drinks too much, has frittered away much of his wealth, and has no real plans for the future. Having been deserted by his native bearers, he wanders into the camp of Baron Leopold von Ragastein, who by chance went to Eton with Dominey and with whom he shares an astonishing likeness. The two men sit late into the night exchanging the stories of their lives. As it happens, the Kaiser has ordered von Ragastein to infiltrate British society and spy for the fatherland. Von Ragastein plans to kill Dominey and assume the Brit’s identity. Espionage, a ghostly presence, an evil crone, a woman scorned, and secret documents on which the future of Europe depend are just a few of the melodramatic elements that enrich this fun, far-fetched tale. (Nov.)