The Illustrious Prince cover

The Illustrious Prince

Rating 3.2
Word count
486K words
Chapters
49

Tags

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Illustrious Prince by E. Phillips OppenheimAuthor: Oppenheim, E. Phillips (Edward Phillips), 1866-1946,Language: English, Class: PR: Language and Literatures: English literature, Release Date: Sep 1, 1998

Editor's review

E. Phillips Oppenheim's The Illustrious Prince is a quintessential early twentieth-century British popular suspense novel: a distinguished Eastern prince visits London, and a series of baffling events and political undercurrents follow. The plot moves through fluent dialogue, shifting between social etiquette and secret maneuvers to deliver the period's familiar pleasure of high society plus international intrigue. Oppenheim lays suspense with a brisk pace, and his characters are clearly good or bad yet not without wit, making the book suitable for reading in segments while traveling or before bed. For those studying exotic imagination and political anxiety in early twentieth-century British popular literature, the novel offers an analyzable textual sample; for general readers it is more like a brisk period suspense drama—no need to demand depth, just enjoy the story's momentum. The Project Gutenberg public-domain e-book is easy to search by character and chapter, making it a lightweight English original reading material.

Who it's for

A good fit for

  • Readers who enjoy early twentieth-century British popular suspense and spy fiction
  • Those looking for brisk, plot-driven English originals
  • Casual readers interested in exotic princes and London high society
  • Literature students studying Oriental images and political imagination in popular fiction

Not a good fit for

  • Readers expecting serious literary depth and complex psychological portrayal
  • Readers sensitive to exotic stereotypes in old popular fiction
  • Younger readers who prefer contemporary voice and fast-paced thriller narration

Reading tips

  1. Read it as a period suspense drama, follow the plot first, and don't over-scrutinize the plausibility of character motives.
  2. While reading, note the interaction between the prince's image and London society, and consider how the author constructs exotic imagination.
  3. Read chapter by chapter, pausing briefly at each chapter's end to guess what happens next and increase engagement.
  4. For a literature course, pair it with selected early twentieth-century British popular fiction and compare narrative conventions.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

Contents

  1. 1
  2. 2
  3. 3
  4. 4
  5. 5
  6. 6
  7. 7
  8. 8
  9. 9
  10. 10
  11. 11
  12. 12
  13. 13
  14. 14
  15. 15
  16. 16
  17. 17
  18. 18
  19. 19
  20. 20
  21. 21
  22. 22
  23. 23
  24. 24
  25. 25
  26. 26
  27. 27
  28. 28
  29. 29
  30. 30
  31. 31
  32. 32
  33. 33
  34. 34
  35. 35
  36. 36
  37. 37
  38. 38
  39. 39
  40. 40
  41. 41
  42. 42
  43. 43
  44. 44
  45. 45
  46. 46
  47. 47
  48. 48
  49. 49

FAQ

What kind of work is this novel?
The Illustrious Prince is an early twentieth-century British popular suspense novel, mixing international political intrigue, high-society socializing, and identity mystery. It is not notable for serious literary psychological depth but attracts readers with plot twists and dialogue tension, suitable for appreciation as period popular reading.
Does the Gutenberg edition include notes or an introduction?
Public-domain electronic texts from Project Gutenberg usually contain only the work's main text and basic bibliographic information, generally without scholarly notes or introductions. If background material is needed, consult Oppenheim's biography and overviews of early twentieth-century British popular fiction, or read a modern edition with an introduction alongside it.
Is it suitable for English beginners?
The overall language is not very difficult, but the novel was written early and some sentence patterns and word choices carry period features, and it involves social etiquette and political context. Intermediate English readers can read it through with a dictionary; beginners are advised to read a summary or Chinese translation first, then try the English original, so that background barriers do not dampen interest.

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About the author

E. Phillips Oppenheim (Edward Phillips Oppenheim, 1866–194) was a writer known for mystery and espionage fiction. Public information about him is limited, and the biographical details in our records are incomplete. The existing catalogue shows that he was a prolific author, with 61 of his works held on this site, including The Great Impersonation, The Double Traitor, The Governors, The Lost Ambassador, The Yellow House, and Stolen Idols. These works generally centre on disguise and false identity, political intrigue, detective pursuit, and adventure; their plots are tightly paced and full of suspense, and he was skilled at advancing the narrative through complex relationships among characters. His works are often classified under inspirational growth, reflecting readers' interest in the choices and turning points of fate faced by his characters.

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