The Sign of Silence

The Sign of Silence (1915) is a mystery novel by Anglo-French writer William Le Queux. Published at the height of Le Queux’s career as a leading author of popular thrillers, The Sign of Silence is a story of stolen identity, mystery, and international crime. Using his own research and experience as a journalist and adventurer, Le Queux crafts an accessible, entertaining for readers in search of a literary escape. Known for his works of fiction and nonfiction on the possibility of Germany invading Britain—a paranoia common in the early twentieth century—William Le Queux also wrote dozens of thrillers and adventure novels for a dedicated public audience. Although critical acclaim eluded him, popular success made him one of England’s bestselling writers. In The Sign of Silence, a man named Royle receives a late night telephone call from his friend Sir Digsby Kemsley, a wealthy socialite and renowned engineer. When he arrives at his mansion in Harrington Gardens, a strange air of secrecy and fear has taken over Digsby. Talking in a hurried manner, he asks his old friend to adopt a disguise in order to deliver a sealed envelope to a mysterious woman, then to await a call. Before he allows Royle to leave, he makes him promise to remain loyal to him at all costs, which the novel’s hero agrees to immediately. The next day, however, a man claiming to be Digsby reaches out via telephone, acting as though nothing had happened. As the story unfolds, a manhunt is launched for the shadowy figure whose friendship has been essential to Royle’s life in London, and whose disappearance will shock the world. This edition of William Le Queux’s The Sign of Silence is a classic thriller reimagined for modern readers.

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