First published in 1878, The Suicide Club is a collection of three gruesome adventure stories which combine into a single narrative, recounting the exploits of Floritzel, Prince of Bohemia, and his trusty confidant Colonel Geraldine as they infiltrate a secret society of dubious individuals intent on losing their own lives.
Story of the Young Man with the Cream Tarts
The Prince and the Colonel are out incognito in London, when they meet a strange young man giving free cream tarts to all he meets. He introduces them to the Suicide Club, a horrific society whose members gamble with their own lives each night. Our heroes succeed in disbanding the club and its president is sent abroad “for disposal” with Geraldine’s brother.
Story of the Physician and the Saratoga Trunk
In the Latin Quarter of Paris, an unsuspecting American tourist finds himself at the heart of a dastardly plot. He is lured away by an attractive countess, only to discover a dead body in his bed on his return. His kind neighbour, Dr. Noel, arranges to hide the body in a trunk which is smuggled to London in the baggage of Prince Floritzel and Colonel Geraldine. When Floritzel discovers the plot, he also finds that the body is that of Geraldine’s brother—and the President of the Suicide Club has escaped.
The Adventure of the Hansom Cab
In London, Lieutenant Brackenbury Rich is taken by a mysterious hansom cabman to a house where an odd party is underway. The host turns out to be Colonel Geraldine in disguise, who whisks him off to a secret location where Prince Floritzel and the President of the Suicide Club are to fight a final duel to the death.
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"The Suicide Club is only 59 pages long and only contains three connected short stories, but, of course, it was fabulous, as all Stevenson's writing is in my humble opinion. Strikes me as imitative of Poe but a little less dark. A fast-paced, easy read, it nonetheless contains some interesting comments on the body as object, social atavism, and foreign relations that merit scholarly consideration."
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Laura (5 out of 5 stars)