Montmorency (novel)
| Author | Eleanor Updale |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Series | Montmorency series |
| Genre | Crime fiction, historical fiction, thriller; children's literature |
| Publisher | Scholastic |
|
Publication date
|
2003 (hardcover) |
| Media type | Print (hard, softcover), Audio |
| Pages | 176 to 240 pp. |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 52621230 |
| LC Class | PZ7.U4447 Mo 2004 |
| Followed by | Montmorency on the Rocks |
Montmorency is a crime novel and thriller set in Victorian era London, written by Eleanor Updale and published by Scholastic in 2003. It inaugurated the Montmorency series featuring a petty thief who turns gentleman and spy, namely Montmorency and his alter ego Scarper.
The U.S. edition was published in 2004 as Montmorency: thief, liar, gentleman? by the Scholastic imprint Orchard Books.
London, England, 1875. The main character falls through a glass roof onto a grinding machine below while fleeing from the police. Doctor Robert Farcett, hoping to prove himself an accomplished doctor by working on the criminal's complex wounds, saves the thief's life by performing surgery on him. Farcett continues to work on the thief after he is imprisoned and given the temporary name "Prisoner 493". The prisoner has no name other than "Montmorency", which was the name on the bag he had when he was captured. He adopts this name and slowly begins to craft a persona to match.
During his sentence, Montmorency becomes a chief exhibit at the Scientific Society. It is at one of these gatherings that Montmorency comes across Sir Joseph Bazalgette, who is the planner and supervisor of the ongoing London sewer project. Montmorency realizes that the sewers are the perfect escape route for his daring robberies. He has high hopes for living as a gentlemen by selling the expensive items he could steal via the sewers. Montmorency realizes that rich people do not normally smell like sewer water or wear ratty clothes, he finds himself in need of an accomplice—a fellow thief with knowledge, capability, and secrecy to perform the robberies. He develops a second identity—Scarper—in order to mask his true identity. Scarper, the thief, poses as a servant to the extravagant and wealthy Montmorency.
Montmorency is released after three years in prison. At this point, all communications between Dr Farcett and Montmorency cease.
Scarper accomplishes many robberies (including burgling Doctor Farcett), and is never caught. During this time, Scarper rents a room in the slums to stash the particularly valuable goods. The place he stays is run by Vi Evans, who later becomes one of Montmorency's close friends. Meanwhile, Montmorency rents a room out at the Marimion Hotel.
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