The Secret Agent by CONRAD, Joseph (1857-1924)

London: Methuen and Co., 1907. [Landmark Spy novel] FIRST EDITION. Octavo (20 x 14cm), pp.[viii]; 442; [1], imprint; [1], blank; [40], advertisement catalogue dated September 1907. Bound in publisher's burgundy coloured cloth with gilt titles to the spine. Edges of text block toned/browned, binding a little sunned to the spine. A very good copy of a Conrad high spot. A bleak and darkly comic story of spies, terrorists, anarchists and agents provocateurs plotting and counter-plotting in the back streets of London in the early 20th century. It is considered one of the first modern novels to deal with the subjects of terrorism and espionage and is a cornerstone of detection and spy fiction. The novel formed the basis for Alfred Hitchcock's 1936 film, 'Sabotage', and was remade in 1996 (as 'The Secret Agent') starring Bob Hoskins, Patricia Arquette and Gérard Depardieu. Wise: A Conrad Library, p.12. Queen's Quorum. Hubin: Crime Fiction IV, p332.