The Adventures of Joseph Rouletabille

Gaston Leroux

Jun 2021 · Graphic Arts Books

About this ebook

The Adventures of Joseph Rouletabille (2021) is a trilogy of novels by French writer Gaston Leroux. Originally a journalist, Leroux turned to fiction after reading the works of Arthur Conan Doyle and Edgar Allan Poe. This collection compiles the first three novels in his series featuring Joseph Rouletabille, a reporter and amateur detective whose crime solving abilities gain him a reputation throughout Europe. Joseph Rouletabille is more than meets the eye. A reporter by profession, he spends his free time working as an amateur detective, using his journalistic talents to compile facts and track down leads. In The Mystery of the Yellow Room, a young heiress is found beaten within an inch of her life in a room locked from the inside. When Frédéric Larsan, France’s top detective, unexpectedly solves the case, Rouletabaille grows suspicious. In The Perfume of the Lady in Black, Rouletabille is shaken by the return of criminal mastermind Ballmeyer, an enemy he believed was dead. The Secret of the Night finds Leroux’s hero in Russia on assignment for a French newspaper. While there, he is summoned to the palace of Tsar Nicholas II, who wishes to employ him in his capacity as a detective in order to foil a plot against his generals. The Adventures of Joseph Rouletabille is an action-packed trilogy of novels featuring revolution, murder, romance, and endless suspense. Joseph Rouletabille is without a doubt France’s answer to Sherlock Holmes. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Gaston Leroux’s The Adventures of Joseph Rouletabille is a classic of French detective fiction reimagined for modern readers.

About the author

Gaston Leroux (1868-1927) was a French journalist and writer of detective fiction. Born in Paris, Leroux attended school in Normandy before returning to his home city to complete a degree in law. After squandering his inheritance, he began working as a court reporter and theater critic to avoid bankruptcy. As a journalist, Leroux earned a reputation as a leading international correspondent, particularly for his reporting on the 1905 Russian Revolution. In 1907, Leroux switched careers in order to become a professional fiction writer, focusing predominately on novels that could be turned into film scripts. With such novels as The Mystery of the Yellow Room (1908), Leroux established himself as a leading figure in detective fiction, eventually earning himself the title of Chevalier in the Legion of Honor, France’s highest award for merit. The Phantom of the Opera (1910), his most famous work, has been adapted countless times for theater, television, and film, most notably by Andrew Lloyd Webber in his 1986 musical of the same name.