The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1906-04-28
Like a Comic Opera F1ot.

The story of the princess Olga L. q
tale of a man and a maid, as most romances
are, with a great deal of arduous adventure
laid out for them by the inventive genius
Of the author, Erwin Wardman. The man
was strong and resourceful and valiant,
a natural ruler of men, a trained master OF
modern scientific methods for controlling
the forces of nature. The maid was fair
and winsome and fearless, q princess OF
royal blood with the fierce pride and am
bition Of her race and the heart Of q woman.
They met by chance-the usual way ar
ranged by authors. The story Of their
wooing Is turbulent, episode and ingenious.
1t is a curious mixture Of modern engineer
ing and finance and medieval intrigue
and tradition. In short it Is a Cross between
the %romanticism Of The Prisoner Of Zenda'
and the realism OF the Captain Of In
dustryS schools of fiction, with an opera
bouffe scheme and a plot Of the latest steel
construction. 1t is consistently absurd and
extravaganza from start TO finish with an
underlying tone of gentle irony and mild
satire.
The scene is laid in a toy kingdom in an
isolated corner Of the world called 1Cre-
vonia'-a kingdom governed nominally
by an hereditary ruler, but with its affairs
actually administered by the great banking
houses of the world as the affairs Of most
petty kingdoms are. To the throne of
this comic opera monarchy there are four
claimants-and the maid is one Of them.
For the administration of it's affairs and
the Management Of the succession the man
is sent out by the banking houses. The
maid is the Princess Olga-the man is an
Irna-;oan an0ipaaV With n moFvallOIa
command OF French and Of military tactics.
There are bound to be r~uctions and riots.
plots and c~ounterplots. The man Is shot
and stabbed and nearly dies Of fever. but
always rallies at the crucial moment. The
maid gets a hurt in her heart that nothing
can cure except to give up her pride, re-
nounce her traditions, forfeit her chance
to the throne and go away with the man
she loves just as everybody knew abe
would all the time. The princess was only
a woman in spite Of her rank and her tenn
per. The man was a good fellow and a
first GLASS engineer, lin spite of the silly swash-
buckling things he was made to pretend to
do.
1t is a clean story, with nothing to offend
In situation or suggestion. Next to the
blameless hero and the fearless heroine the
motor car plays about the most important
part in the succession Of extraordinary
condolences and ingeniously contrived
intrigues that make up the tale OF the
princess Olga" (Harpers)
Politics the Theme OF MIR. vesey's Tale.
Henry Arthur Vesey's Castle Of Lies
Appletons) Is a oleverly conceived and
brilliantly executed story OF intrigue based
upon political conditions in a part Of Europe
sufficiently remote to render unfamiliarity
with actual conditions an important fac
tor of success. There is as usual in tales OF
this type a woman at the bottom OF it-a
Macedonian Christian of fascinating charm
and fanatic enthusiasm. For the sake OF
her country the woman Toasted with princes
that she might learn their secrets, fat
tered her enemies that she might betray
them, ensnared good men and true in her
plots and schemes, to their dishonor Inc
undoing. In the international fracas an
American, who enters the story under a
cloud at the beginning m of with the
laurels at the finish.
The Castle Of Lies" is an isolated chateau
in Switzerland with secret stairways and
massive towers and all the convenienoes
for mysterious happenings-turret cham
bers where one might hide a dead am
bassador or imprison a living enemy. To
anticipate the trend Of the tale, TO unravel
the intricate plot would lessen the interest
of the book in which the readers attention
is attracted by the curious completely OF
the plot weaving rather than by the charm
of the narrative or any special novelty or
skill of characterization.