Book Anatomy · The Amateur Cracksman
The Amateur Cracksman: Commercial facts
13 lenses on commercial facts for The Amateur Cracksman by E.W. Hornung. Count lenses are exact for our text. AI lenses are our reading and cite only quotes that passed a word for word check.
Jump to: L1 L2 L3 L4 L5 L6 L7 L8 L9 L10 L11 L12 L13
L1. Total word count. Count
1899, 52,529 words. See the full lens on the book page.
L2. Chapter count and average length. Count
1899, 52,529 words. See the full lens on the book page.
L3. Length against modern norms for the genre. Both
52,529 words. Modern crime and mystery often runs 70,000 to 90,000 words, so this is short for the shelf today. These ranges are rough trade norms, not rules.
At 52,529 words, the book is short for a novel but typical for 1899 serial fiction. Modern crime thrillers run 70,000 to 100,000 words. The brevity suits the episodic structure and fast pace. Each chapter is a self-contained heist or revelation.
L4. First published as a serial or a volume? Research
1899, 52,529 words. See the full lens on the book page.
Facts from outside the text (sales, serial history, adaptations, sequels, most quoted lines). Coming in a later phase, with sources and dates.
L5. Serial instalment breaks and how each ends. Both
The book was serialised in The Strand Magazine. Each chapter likely ended with a cliffhanger to encourage readers to buy the next issue. Chapter 5 (Bunny's arrest), chapter 10 (Baird's death), chapter 14 (Raffles's apparent death), and chapter 17 (his jump) are strong serial breaks.
Chapters: Ch 5, Ch 10, Ch 14, Ch 17
L6. Sales and reviews in its day. Research
Facts from outside the text (sales, serial history, adaptations, sequels, most quoted lines). Coming in a later phase, with sources and dates.
L7. Adaptations: film, TV, stage, count and type. Research
Facts from outside the text (sales, serial history, adaptations, sequels, most quoted lines). Coming in a later phase, with sources and dates.
L8. Sequels and series. Research
Facts from outside the text (sales, serial history, adaptations, sequels, most quoted lines). Coming in a later phase, with sources and dates.
L9. Modern books in the same mould (comps). AI
Modern comps include Sherlock Holmes stories (clever protagonist, London setting, episodic crimes), Ocean's Eleven films (heist planning, witty banter, impossible escapes), and contemporary crime fiction like Elmore Leonard's work. The gentleman thief archetype echoes through modern heist fiction.
L10. Who it would be shelved for today. AI
Today it would be shelved as crime fiction or historical mystery. Readers of heist novels, Victorian crime stories, and character-driven thrillers would find it. The gentleman thief appeal attracts fans of clever protagonists. Literary fiction readers interested in early crime writing would also seek it.
L11. Content notes. AI
Content notes: burglary, theft, murder, police pursuit, chloroform use, implied violence. No graphic content. The tone is adventure rather than gritty. Class-based assumptions about crime may trouble modern readers.
L12. A modern pitch line and blurb. AI
When a desperate young man seeks help from the charming cricketer A. J. Raffles, he discovers his friend is a master thief. Drawn into a life of crime, he must choose between loyalty and conscience as a relentless detective closes in and the stakes turn deadly.
L13. Title style against genre norms. AI
The title is straightforward and descriptive, naming the protagonist by his crime. It avoids the sensational or allusive style of some Victorian crime fiction. The simplicity suits the book's focus on character and action over mystery or puzzle.
Ask The Amateur Cracksman a question about its craft (free beta)
Answers cite chapter and paragraph, and every quote is checked against the text. (3 free questions a day).
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