| The Double Florin | |
| Author: | John Rhode |
| Country: | United Kingdom |
| Language: | English |
| Genre: | Thriller |
| Publisher: | Geoffrey Bles |
| Release Date: | 1924 |
| Media Type: | |
The Double Florin is a 1924 thriller novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street.[1] Like H.C. McNeile's Bulldog Drummond and Agatha Christie's The Secret Adversary the plot revolves around a Bolshevik conspiracy to destroy capitalism and western democracy.[2] The title refers to the Double florin coin.
It was his second published novel and anticipated the introduction of his best-known character Dr. Priestley in his following book The Paddington Mystery. The conspiracy is being directed by Professor Sanderson, a brilliant mathematician.[3] Sanderson is not himself a communist, but is manipulating the organisation to try and create a new order based on pure reason.[4]
A young English aristocrat Lord Robert Mountmichael is recruited by LIDO, a secret organisation formed by international financiers to battle the forces of disorder. He eventually exposes the Professor as the mastermind behind the plot to destroy Britain's social system as a prelude to world collapse, while falling in love with his daughter Joan. After exposing Sanderson's true motivation, the professor is shot dead by one of his fanatical henchman.