The Secret Agent

By: Joseph Conrad

Narrated by: David McCallion

The Secret Agent is a Victorian terrorist tale that has found a new audience with today's audiences. Set in 1866 London, this book tells the story of Adolf Verloc, a shopkeeper turned anarchist.

Mr. Verloc has a strange family life on top of a group of friends who belong to a terrorist group promoting anarchy. Although the group is relatively harmless, they do publish rebellious literature in the form of pamphlets entitled F.P, which brings them to the attention of the police. This changes when the group plans a dangerous terrorist attack, targeting one of London's most iconic landmarks.

The Secret Agent is in part, inspired by real life events. Joseph Conrad based one of the characters on the French anarchist, Martial Bourdin, who was killed in Greenwich Park when a bomb he was transporting, exploded. Conrad does a fantastic job of weaving his words into a mysterious and intriguing story that will keep you entertained until the very end.

Public Domain (P)2017 A.R.N. Publications

Typically good Conrad but . . .

Some publications have piqued interest in this book claiming it has relevance to today's terrorists.If that is why you are thinking of buying the book you will be disappointed. I think the modernity claim is demonstrably false. The terrorists here are inept in action and vague in their goals. That said, the book is a worthy read as Conrad's work typically is.

My favorite Joseph Conrad book

After reading his other more well know works, The Secret Agent has given me new appreciation for Conrad.

great story, mechanical reading

Excellent story, if you can find it underneath the reader's mechanical recitation. I do not blame those who quit early. The only thing read better than a computer could have done was the dialogue, but even that was often insensitive to context or inconsistent.