Title: Arsène Lupin, gentleman cambrioleur.
Series: Arsène Lupin #1.
Writer(s): Maurice Leblanc.
Publisher: Le Livre de Poche.
Format: Paperback.
Release Date: January 1st 2010 (first published June 10th 1907).
Pages: 184.
Genre(s): Mystery.
ISBN13: 9782253002826.
My Overall Rating: ★★★☆☆.
What do you do when you’ve got a thief that you just can’t seem to get your hands on no matter how ahead of everything you are? Absolutely nothing. While he doesn’t pray on the poor and prefers to take on the rich and powerful, he however spontaneously shares his spoils with the less fortunate that happen to be in the right place at the right moment. Created in 1905 by the French writer Maurice Leblanc, Arsène Lupin quickly gained fame among readers as the most charming fictional gentleman thief. It was only a matter of time before the greatest detective of all time found himself up against Arsène Lupin with legal implications from Sir Conan Arthur Doyle’s lawyers that forced Maurice Leblanc to change the British crime solvers name to Herlock Sholmes. But what exactly is Arsène Lupin capable of to draw this much attention?
Arsène Lupin, Gentleman-Thief is the first collection of short stories featuring the master of disguise. Initially serialized in the magazine Je sais tout, these stories are now collected in volumes and presents Arsène Lupin’s adventures that often turn into elaborate capers with some recurrent characters like Lupin-expert inspector Ganimard present to highlight the rogue’s incredible skill set. With nine short stories in this first volume, including the introduction of Herlock Sholmes in the last story, this volume essentially gives readers an overall idea of some of Arsène Lupin’s greatest thefts and escapes. It also presents readers with his sense of humour and his charismatic ways that catches you off guard as you try and see ahead of what he’s planning. However, it is how you find yourself cheering for this villain’s success that remains the greatest mystery here.
Often acknowledged as a modern French Robin Hood, Arsène Lupin is a character that I did not see through from the very first moment he appears. His flamboyant personality is what strikes you first and his reputation often precedes him. With abilities that are beyond human, he achieves some of the most impossible crimes but always has a target that justifies his actions and easily makes a fool out of anyone who dares get in his way. Unfortunately, the unexpected surprise of finding out that Maurice Leblanc’s books are actually collections of short stories also confounded me momentarily and took away some of the potential awe that could’ve been generated from the character’s adventures. In fact, the length of the stories made it harder to appreciate the complexity of the character or the crime, but at least made it enjoyable to consume rapidly.
While I have always been curious about this character’s story, it is in hopes to read The Quantum Thief by Hannu Rajaniemi that I have mostly wanted to visit Arsène Lupin’s first stories. Each of the stories in this volume doesn’t necessarily cover as much of his personality as you’d wish for, just like how his Robin Hood ways were a little overshadowed by the prose and mystery in itself, but they do give you a pretty good idea of who Arsène Lupin is and what to expect from him. How his reputation plays a role in his career as well as his grasp on the media’s attention to his exploits are some of the most interesting elements of his character, but a big kudos should be given to Maurice Leblanc’s writing style that is not only elegant, but also concise and exceptional in blending humour and melodrama together.
Arsène Lupin, Gentleman-Thief is the first collection of short stories featuring the great famous French rogue and his dazzling ability to get away with just about anything.
Roars and Echoes 
Nice review.
Not my kind of book 🙂
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Thank you! I appreciate that you took the time to read it though! 😂
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Fab review! Sounds a bit like the Raffles stories by E W Hornung.
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Thanks Nicki! I’ll definitely have to check out Raffles for sure now! 😁
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I didn’t even care for the Lupin the 3rd anime, so I doubt the original novels would work for me 😀
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Hahaha while they’re related, I have no clue if they’re similar though; I’ve never tried the anime.
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I like Lupin, Raffles, and Dr. Thorndyke. 🙂
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I definitely need to look into Raffles and Dr. Thorndyke now! 😁
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Raffles and Dr. Thorndyke are good, but my favorites are still Conan Doyle and Dashiell Hammett.
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Nothing beats Conan Doyle. Except maybe some Batman stories. 😁😏
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Aaugh!
Don’t make me choose a fave between Sherlock and the Bat! They are both the awesomest dudes ever!
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Just by reading the title I know I will be laughing my booty off. I admit that before this I’ve heard of it or the author before. It sounds interesting but if it’s like you review describe I probably wouldn’t like it.
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Hahahah it is indeed a charismatic and interesting character! I feel like there’s so much potential to the story and that it would’ve been best exploited in the form of a longer story, like the Sherlock Holmes stories! Thank you for reading though! 😁
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Wait I meant I haven’t heard of it.
I really need to finish reading the Sherlock Holmes series.
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I actually need to revisit my Sherlock Holmes collection too! It’s been too long. 😜
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I’ve only read two. I’m not a fan of old English ’cause English isn’t my first language so old English it makes it hard to enjoy as much as others do but I still want to continue it.
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Totally admire your determination! I think the biggest challenge yet was Charles Dickens’ writing. Soooo not easy to read sometimes!
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Shakespeare kills me
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I really like the idea of book of short mysteries. Especially if they are good, and hold up over the years.
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Some of them are definitely better than others, but it’s always worth trying out what’s known as a classic today! 😁
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Finally someone who reads Arsene Lupin! This might be blasphemy, but I love him more than Sherlock 😀 His flair and humor really got you cheering for him!
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I was super curious to see who might know Arsène Lupin and who might have read some of his stories too! So glad to hear from a fan! However… I got too much love for Sherlock to put him second to Arsène Lupin! 😁 I am curious to see what other adventures he might have went on!
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Oh, i remember this character from some old movies i used to see on telly when i was little! Even then the movie seemed like it was 100 years old 😀
Nice, gonna have to check out the book 🙂 That cover is awesome too.
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Hahahah so cool that you recognize the character though! It’s definitely something nice to tick off your checklist of iconic characters in the whole “mystery” game though. 😉
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The character sounds really interesting! Even though I’ve heard his name a lot, I’ve never been curious enough to actually read the books or learn anything about him! I’m not really a fan of short stories, it’s hard to truly appreciate the story or the characters, I always feel like something’s missing or it leaves me with a weird feeling of disappointment, haha 😂
Great review, Lashaan! 😄
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He really is! I’ve heard of him once and they dared say he was better than Sherlock Holmes and since that day I’ve always wanted to find out why. Conclusion? He isn’t. 😂 But he’s definitely a nice creation. The short story format just wasn’t ideal in my books for this to win my heart. 😁 Totally agree with you there. Thank you, toi. 😜
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Hahaha I guess nobody can beat Sherlock Holmes in your opinion 😉 Always a pleasure to read you 😘
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