The year is 1912. Richard Hannay, a thirty year old Mining Engineer is on his way from South Africa to England on the steamship 'Union Castle'. Whilst on board ship he encounters Lord Haslemere and his beautiful daughter, Lady Anne, and is invited to Lady Anne's coming-of-age party in London.

Upon arriving in England, Hannay tells his good friend Reggie Armitage that whilst working in Rhodesia some months previously, he had been shot and left for dead by Count Von Schwabing and a curious black stone had been left in his right hand. Reggie tells him that five agents, all of them working for Military Intelligence, had been found murdered under similar circumstances.

Hannay finds a mysterious package has been left in his cabin trunk on board the ship, but when he tries to deliver the package he is assaulted and left for dead in a cellar in Limehouse.

During the course of the next day or so Hannay finds himself charged with two murders of which he is innocent, and with the assistance of

On his way to visit friends at Waddam Hall, Richard Hannay encounters Lady Madrigal Fitzjames, an impoverished member of the aristocracy, who is sharing the same railway compartment. By coincidence, Lady Madrigal is also on her way to Waddam Hall.

Due to muddled directions, both Hannay and Lady Madrigal end up at Waddam Manor, not Waddam Hall; here they are mistaken for the newly married couple Sir Gerald and Lady Masefield.

A fabulously valuable diamond necklace known as 'The Masefield Diamonds' plays a large part in the rest of the proceedings, which involves an international gang of jewel thieves, servants in the attic, abductions, mistaken identities, and swashbuckling adventure.

Von Schwabing is on the carpet at the German Embassy over the mess he made of the plot to destroy the British/Russian Peace Alliance described in 'Fellowship Of The Black Stone'. He swears that The Fellowship Of The Black Stone will be successful this time in its intention to eliminate Britain's First Sea Lord, Sir James West, whose armament of Great Britain is faster than Germany's.

Von Schwabing sets out to enlist Richard Hannay as an unwilling assassin of Sir James West. Hannay is kidnapped and finds himself upon what appears to be a sea-going vessel.

Using a young schoolgirl, who is in reality the Russian Grand-Duchess Madeline, Von Schwabing applies relentless pressure to Hannay who is put into a terrible moral dilemma. He must choose between the life of one of his best friends, Saunders, a member of Intelligence, and that of the Grand-duchess Madeline. Further he is railroaded by Von Schwabing into either killing Sir James West or letting Madeline die.

Using all of his ingeni

Somebody is sending threatening letters containing quotes from Shakespeare to Richard Hannay's old friend Reggie Armitage.

Hannay gets a lesson in female equality when his life is saved by Simone Angeketell, a member of the Suffragette Movement, who saves him from a person who has murdered a number of men who have one thing in common - all were members of the same squadron in the Boer War who gave evidence at the court-martial of Jerry Edwards - an act which leads to tragic consequences.

The Under-Secretary Of State For War, Sir Greville Strickland is visiting Monte Carlo with his beautiful young wife, Lady Veronica. While Lady Veronica loses heavily at the gambling tables, Sir Greville is convincing the Baronne Di Castigliani, who is expected to be the new Head of Government in Italy, that it is in Italy's best interests to dump the Austro-Hungarian Alliance and Germany, and to join up with the new alliance between Great Britain, France and Russia, since war in Europe is expected to break out very soon.

The Baronne Di Castigliani is thoroughly convinced when Sir Greville tells him that Italy's defences will be strengthened by the introduction of a new weapon which is being tested in England, the Vickers Machine Gun. Unknown to Sir Greville is the fact that the sinister Count Von Schwabing and his Fellowship Of The Black Stone are lurking in the background, gathering intelligence and waiting to undermine the delicate negotiations between Great Britain and Italy.

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