Arsene Lupin Vs. Herlock Sholmes: A Classic Tale of the World's Greatest Thief and the World's Greatest Detective! [Paperback]

Maurice Leblanc (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2001

LeBlanc's creation, gentleman thief Arsene Lupin, is everything you would expect from a French aristocrat -- witty, charming, brilliant, sly . . . and possibly the greatest thief in the world. In this classic tale, Lupin comes up against the only man who may be able to stop him . . . no less than the great British gentleman-detective Herlock Sholmes! Who will emerge triumphant?

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Maurice Leblanc (1864-1941) was a French novelist and writer of short stories, known primarily as the creator of the fictional gentleman thief and detective Arsène Lupin, often described as a French counterpart to Conan Doyle's creation Sherlock Holmes. The character Arsène Lupin III, protagonist of the Japanese manga Lupin III beginning in 1967 was written as the grandson of Arsène Lupin, though without permission from LeBlanc's estate. This was later the source of a lawsuit, though the copyright on Leblanc's work has since expired. When the anime version was broadcast in France, the character was renamed Edgar, le détective cambrioleur ("Edgar, the Burglar Detective"). The authors of the various Lupin III properties drew on Leblanc's novels as inspiration, notably the film The Castle of Cagliostro was loosely based on based on La Comtesse de Cagliostro (The Countess of Cagliostro). --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 282 pages
• Publisher: Wildside Press; First Wildside Press Edition edition (October 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1587154641
• ISBN-13: 978-1587154645
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,197,505 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Super Thief, October 6, 2004

By 

T. Hooper "thdizzy" (Osaka, Japan) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Arsene Lupin Vs. Herlock Sholmes: A Classic Tale of the World's Greatest Thief and the World's Greatest Detective! (Paperback)

Most English speakers are unfamiliar with Arsene Lupin. He is one of France's most famous fictional characters--a gentleman master thief. He's the sort of anti-hero who uses his brains and his carm to escape from any situation the police may put him in. In this novel, the police have failed to capture Lupin again, so one of the victims calls on the famous English detective Herlock Sholmes (obviously Sherlock Holmes). The Holmes of this novel is a little different than the Holmes of Conan Doyle. This Holmes is a little more rigid and cold-hearted than Doyle's Holmes. He works like a machine and is always hot on Lupin's tracks. The world's greatest detective verses the world's greatest thief--who will win?

This novel seems to use an old translation. Some of the phrases are a little old-fashioned, and it seems that the translation was perhaps a bit too tight. If they retranslated this and used a more modern writing style, it would really improve this book. However, this is the only translation available that I know of. Despite this, I still give this book five stars because once you start reading this book, you forget about the structural problems. You just want to find out who will win.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Superbly Clever!, January 29, 2002

By 

ffoulkes "ffoulkes" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Arsene Lupin Vs. Herlock Sholmes: A Classic Tale of the World's Greatest Thief and the World's Greatest Detective! (Paperback)

I can't believe that so few people in the USA know about the Arsene Lupin books! They're great adventure stories, fast paced, and superbly clever. It seems like they've been overlooked merely because they weren't originally written in English. Arsene Lupin vs. Herlock Sholmes is a semi-parody on Sherlock Holmes, yet I think that it's Arsene Lupin that will truly fascinate readers. I'd highly recomend this book and all other Arsene Lupin books to anyone who enjoyed the Scarlet Pimpernel series and wants a bit more fast paced adventure.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Perhaps not for ALL Sherlock Holmes fans, March 7, 2008

By 

Col. Sanders (New York, USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Arsene Lupin Vs. Herlock Sholmes: A Classic Tale of the World's Greatest Thief and the World's Greatest Detective! (Paperback)

A few brilliant lines of humor, a plot that makes it hard to refuse and a mystery like no other. Arsene Lupin vs. Herlock Sholmes would have been better off however, had LeBlanc not written out the parts of Holmes and Watson or as they are called here Herlock and Wilson so poorly.

For fans of the Lupin series but not many Conan Doyle fans will appreciate this detective.

Unlike the Holmes and Watson that Conan Doyle fans have come to love, Herlock and Wilson are NOT what any C.D. fan would expect. Herlock is crude, cold-hearted, and has quite a temper. Meanwhile, Wilson is very stupid and makes a hobby of stating the obvious (literally). There is good reason why LeBlact couldn't use the names of Sherlock and Watson, he didn't deserve to (that and I'm sure some nice lawyers would sue him relentlessly for copyright infringement).

I you are a fan of the Lupin series then you'll most likely love this as well, for fans of the REAL Sherlock Holmes......probably not, for those who have not read the original S.H. I recomend reading the original before this. But the one thing that I did take away from this book is a new-found appreciation for my new favorite thief, Arsene Lupin, as a stand-alone series it IS great, but mixing it with the S.H. franchise.....not the best idea in the world...well maybe if it was more true to the original character.