Prelude for War
| File:Saint Plays With Fire.jpg 1967 paperback edition with alternate title | |
| Author | Leslie Charteris |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Series | The Saint |
| Genre | Mystery, Novel |
| Publisher | Hodder and Stoughton |
Publication date | 1938 |
| Publication place | United Kingdom |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| ISBN | NA Parameter error in {{ISBNT}}: invalid character |
| Preceded by | Thieves' Picnic |
| Followed by | Follow the Saint |
Prelude for War is a mystery novel by Leslie Charteris featuring his Robin Hood-inspired crime fighter, Simon Templar, alias "The Saint". The book was first published in the United Kingdom in 1938 by Hodder and Stoughton, and in the United States by The Crime Club the same year. Previously, the novel had been serialized in the American magazine Cosmopolitan. Publication of the book marked the 10th anniversary of the Simon Templar character.
Later editions of the book were retitled The Saint and the Sinners and The Saint Plays with Fire. This was the last time a Simon Templar novel or short story collection would be published under different titles (although a later novella, The Saint and the Sizzling Saboteur from The Saint on Guard would later be published individually).
Story summary
A peaceful moonlight drive in the English countryside is interrupted when Simon Templar and Patricia Holm listen to a disturbing radio broadcast from France by a would-be dictator who plans to make France the latest in a growing number of European dictatorships. This broadcasts disturbs Patricia, and Templar makes a dire (and, as events were to unfold in real life in the next few years, accurate) prediction that the future of Europe will be one of invasions and concentration camps.
The two adventurers are interrupted in their worries when they spot a house on fire in the distance. Rushing to help, Templar enters the burning building but is unable to rescue a man trapped inside. Later, he and Patricia learn that one of the occupants of the house is a known war profiteer who is expected to make millions off both sides should a new European war erupt.
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Television adaptation
Prelude for War was adapted as an episode of the The Saint entitled "The Saint Plays with Fire". The episode aired on November 28, 1963 during the second season. It is one of only a few full Saint novels to be adapted for the series.
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