The Secret Agent

By: Joseph Conrad

Narrated by: Ralph Cosham

This classic precursor to the modern-day spy novel was recently in headlines when it was revealed that the Unabomber drew considerable inspiration from its prophetic portrait of terrorism. Written in 1907 and set in Edwardian London, The Secret Agent resonates just as strongly in today's world, where a handful of fanatics can still play mad politics and victimize the innocent.

Mr. Verloc keeps a shop in London's Soho, where he lives with his wife, Winnie; her infirm mother; and her idiot brother, Stevie. When Verloc is reluctantly involved in an anarchist plot to blow up the Greenwich Observatory, things go disastrously wrong.

The brooding atmosphere of conspiracy, powerful characters, and tragic plot of The Secret Agent are brilliantly captured in this audio production.

Public Domain (P)1996 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Critic reviews

"One of Conrad's supreme masterpieces...one of the unquestioned classics of the first order that he added to the English novel." (F. R. Leavis)

struggled to understand the flow

lots of time jumps that would probably be caught if actually reading the book. didn't always know why a character knew things because of a flashback.

"A domestic drama"

Would you consider the audio edition of The Secret Agent to be better than the print version?

Yes. Revisiting this novel after a few years, I was surprised how long it seemed. In a good way! It immersed me into the underworld of 110 years ago in seedy London, and I was reminded of how it was structured, so the expected climax comes halfway in (like "Hamlet").

Would you recommend The Secret Agent to your friends? Why or why not?

Yes. It's relevant as a study, however biased as Conrad admits in his typically honest preface. It reminds readers of the lure of terror and the machinations of the power structure.

What about Ralph Cosham’s performance did you like?

I loved his voices in "Kim" full of Kipling's panoply of lively characters, however "politically incorrect" some may be by today's straitened standards. In "The Secret Agent," Cosham has to tamp down his approach, and this shows too his talent. He digs into the unlikable figures, and allows them to emerge as Conrad intended, fairly exhibited for our inspection.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

Neither, but it's a harrowing few hours. As I said, the book plumbs into disturbing motivations and seems much more extended an immersion than the actual timing lets on.

Any additional comments?

This makes me want to seek out more Conrad on audiobooks. I read a lot of him decades ago, but I realize how enriching it is to hear his intricately constructed sentences and the cadences that make him, trilingual and late to English, one of our literature's best stylists.

Uneven

Excellent writing by Conrad but plot twists unexpected. Ending was uneven. Not a satisfying conclusion.

As Good As Conrad Is...

in books like Heart Of Darkness and The Secret Sharer, in ways, The Secret Agent is a better novel. This is not to take away from either of the two aforementioned classics, simply to say that Agent is more grounded and less sticky with the sometimes overladen psychological symbolism that Conrad could invoke, even in his great works. It is also a story remarkably modern, and it was cited many times after the September 11 terrorism. I cannot believe the Amazon reviewer who thought this book was "boring." I found it riveting!

Good but not the best Conrad

This is an odd story about a anarchist secret agent/agitator working against British interests prior to WW-I. The characters and story are somewhat one dimensional. The novel instead depends upon the existentialist world view projected upon the characters. The story is nonlinear, depending upon flashbacks and internal recollections to frame the story. This is an early example of proto-modernist writing, and is a bit interesting in seeing the clear influences of Conrad on later modernists.

This is not my favorite Conrad, for a better introductory taste, start with Heart of Darkness.