The V Plan. - 1941

London: Eyre and Spottiswoode,, 1941. Inscribed with an original sketch, and accompanied by three signed letters First edition, first impression, presentation copy, inscribed by the author with an original drawing on the front endpapers, and signed by him on the dust jacket. The drawing caricatures world leaders (including Hitler, Mussolini, Churchill, Stalin, and Roosevelt) as children playing on a beach with a figure of Death; it is captioned "The world on holiday, Summer 1941" and initialled "GSH". Hutchison's inscription reads: "Dear Mr Downing, Surprise is the first element of success in war: yet, the only time it really manifests itself is in defeat. - I do not think we shall have very long to wait before this is realized. Yours sincerely, Graham Seton Hutchinson. 1st September 1941, Booker Hill Farm, High Wycombe, Bucks." This copy includes three signed letters to the same recipient, one typed and two autograph, mounted on the front free endpaper verso and rear pastedown. The letters discuss the present copy of the book, details of the novel's plot, and its publication history. Hutchison (1890-1946) served in the First World War, finishing as a lieutenant-colonel in the Machine Gun Corps. He was a founding member of the British Legion and wrote a number of books, including biographies of military figures and wartime novels. He worked for the Air Ministry in the Second World War. The present novel was written as a sequel to his spy thriller, The W Plan (1929). Provenance: from the collection of the Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts (1941-2021), with his posthumous bookplate. Octavo. Original red cloth, spine lettered in black. With dust jacket, designed by the author. Book bumped and creased, light foxing to edges and outer leaves; unclipped jacket slightly toned, especially on spine, a couple of spots of soiling, edges lightly worn with some tape repairs to rear panel and verso: a good copy in good jacket.