Riddle 5 - The genre

RichardAbbott

Earlier detective books tended to focus on cerebral work by rather aloof individuals - think the Sherlock Holmes books or The Moonstone. Nowadays thrillers tend to focus on more ordinary individuals to whom special privilege or training has been given - think James Bond or Jason Bourne. Is Riddle of the Sands a transition stage between this? 

NeilNjae

In terms of protagonists, the outstanding thing for this book is that they were to some extent "everyman" characters. No great talents or training, and the privilege they had was purely to allow them to muck around in boats for a few weeks or months. Carruthers and Davies won through with a combination of luck, determination, and lucky guesses. The whole conspiracy was a very low-key affair was well, meaning their adversaries were similarly ordinary characters.

Therefore, I don't think it's a transition between stages. This isn't a book about larger-than-life characters having larger-than-life adventures.

Apocryphal

I agree with Neil. This felt very much like a slightly earlier version of Buchan’s 39 Steps, or a Hammond Innes novel, which mostly featured workaday people or ne’er do wells, or people trying to hide an ignominious past. Also a bit reminiscent of S.R. Crocket’s The Raiders, which isn’t about spies, but smugglers, and the chasing of them across the moors.

clash_bowley

His style reminded me very much of Hammond Innes - though I suppose the actual relationship would have to be the reverse...