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Fu Manchu #7
The Trail of Fu-Manchu
The Sleeping Venus
It appeared to be a life-size porcelain figure, carefully painted and of incredible beauty. Yet it masked the treacherous work of a master of terror!
Frozen on the carved altar, as cold as the clay she was arranged to represent, dr. Petrie's beautiful daughter, Fleurette, slept as one dead.
While somewhere in the fog strewn corners of London, her fiancée, Alan sterling, and the fearless commissioner Nayland Smith raced against magic and time to unravel the threads of her mysterious disappearance. Each step bringing them closer to death on--The Trail of Fu Manchu!
It appeared to be a life-size porcelain figure, carefully painted and of incredible beauty. Yet it masked the treacherous work of a master of terror!
Frozen on the carved altar, as cold as the clay she was arranged to represent, dr. Petrie's beautiful daughter, Fleurette, slept as one dead.
While somewhere in the fog strewn corners of London, her fiancée, Alan sterling, and the fearless commissioner Nayland Smith raced against magic and time to unravel the threads of her mysterious disappearance. Each step bringing them closer to death on--The Trail of Fu Manchu!
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1934
8 people are currently reading
165 people want to read
About the author
Sax Rohmer
494 books125 followersAKA Arthur Sarsfield Ward (real name); Michael Furey.
Arthur Henry Sarsfield Ward (15 February 1883 - 1 June 1959), better known as Sax Rohmer, was a prolific English novelist. He is best remembered for his series of novels featuring the master criminal Dr. Fu Manchu.
Born in Birmingham to a working class family, Rohmer initially pursued a career as a civil servant before concentrating on writing full-time.
He worked as a poet, songwriter, and comedy sketch writer in Music Hall before creating the Sax Rohmer persona and pursuing a career writing weird fiction.
Like his contemporaries Algernon Blackwood and Arthur Machen, Rohmer claimed membership to one of the factions of the qabbalistic Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. Rohmer also claimed ties to the Rosicrucians, but the validity of his claims has been questioned. His physician and family friend, Dr. R. Watson Councell may have been his only legitimate connection to such organizations. It is believed that Rohmer may have exaggerated his association in order to boost his literary reputation as an occult writer.
His first published work came in 1903, when the short story The Mysterious Mummy was sold to Pearson's Weekly. He gradually transitioned from writing for Music Hall performers to concentrating on short stories and serials for magazine publication. In 1909 he married Rose Elizabeth Knox.
He published his first novel Pause! anonymously in 1910. After penning Little Tich in 1911 (as ghostwriter for the Music Hall entertainer) he issued the first Fu Manchu novel, The Mystery of Dr. Fu-Manchu, was serialized from October 1912 - June 1913. It was an immediate success with its fast-paced story of Denis Nayland Smith and Dr. Petrie facing the worldwide conspiracy of the 'Yellow Peril'. The Fu Manchu stories, together with his more conventional detective series characters—Paul Harley, Gaston Max, Red Kerry, Morris Klaw, and The Crime Magnet—made Rohmer one of the most successful and well-paid authors of the 1920s and 1930s.
Rohmer also wrote several novels of supernatural horror, including Brood of the Witch-Queen. Rohmer was very poor at managing his wealth, however, and made several disastrous business decisions that hampered him throughout his career. His final success came with a series of novels featuring a female variation on Fu Manchu, Sumuru.
After World War II, the Rohmers moved to New York only returning to London shortly before his death. Rohmer died in 1959 due to an outbreak of influenza ("Asian Flu").
There were thirteen books in the Fu Manchu series in all (not counting the posthumous The Wrath of Fu Manchu. The Sumuru series consist of five books.
His wife published her own mystery novel, Bianca in Black in 1954 under the pen name, Elizabeth Sax Rohmer. Some editions of the book mistakenly credit her as Rohmer's daughter. Elizabeth Sax Rohmer and Cay Van Ash, her husband's former assistant, wrote a biography of the author, Master of Villainy, published in 1972.
Arthur Henry Sarsfield Ward (15 February 1883 - 1 June 1959), better known as Sax Rohmer, was a prolific English novelist. He is best remembered for his series of novels featuring the master criminal Dr. Fu Manchu.
Born in Birmingham to a working class family, Rohmer initially pursued a career as a civil servant before concentrating on writing full-time.
He worked as a poet, songwriter, and comedy sketch writer in Music Hall before creating the Sax Rohmer persona and pursuing a career writing weird fiction.
Like his contemporaries Algernon Blackwood and Arthur Machen, Rohmer claimed membership to one of the factions of the qabbalistic Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn. Rohmer also claimed ties to the Rosicrucians, but the validity of his claims has been questioned. His physician and family friend, Dr. R. Watson Councell may have been his only legitimate connection to such organizations. It is believed that Rohmer may have exaggerated his association in order to boost his literary reputation as an occult writer.
His first published work came in 1903, when the short story The Mysterious Mummy was sold to Pearson's Weekly. He gradually transitioned from writing for Music Hall performers to concentrating on short stories and serials for magazine publication. In 1909 he married Rose Elizabeth Knox.
He published his first novel Pause! anonymously in 1910. After penning Little Tich in 1911 (as ghostwriter for the Music Hall entertainer) he issued the first Fu Manchu novel, The Mystery of Dr. Fu-Manchu, was serialized from October 1912 - June 1913. It was an immediate success with its fast-paced story of Denis Nayland Smith and Dr. Petrie facing the worldwide conspiracy of the 'Yellow Peril'. The Fu Manchu stories, together with his more conventional detective series characters—Paul Harley, Gaston Max, Red Kerry, Morris Klaw, and The Crime Magnet—made Rohmer one of the most successful and well-paid authors of the 1920s and 1930s.
Rohmer also wrote several novels of supernatural horror, including Brood of the Witch-Queen. Rohmer was very poor at managing his wealth, however, and made several disastrous business decisions that hampered him throughout his career. His final success came with a series of novels featuring a female variation on Fu Manchu, Sumuru.
After World War II, the Rohmers moved to New York only returning to London shortly before his death. Rohmer died in 1959 due to an outbreak of influenza ("Asian Flu").
There were thirteen books in the Fu Manchu series in all (not counting the posthumous The Wrath of Fu Manchu. The Sumuru series consist of five books.
His wife published her own mystery novel, Bianca in Black in 1954 under the pen name, Elizabeth Sax Rohmer. Some editions of the book mistakenly credit her as Rohmer's daughter. Elizabeth Sax Rohmer and Cay Van Ash, her husband's former assistant, wrote a biography of the author, Master of Villainy, published in 1972.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
September 23, 2012
The seventh book finds Fu cornered on the foggy London waterfront and depleted of resources. Ah, but perhaps he's more dangerous than ever. After the proto-Dr. No tale in the bravura "Bride," this retrenchment is among the most satisfying in the series.
April 27, 2019
I thought this one was was even better than the others, which I find all really good too.
March 6, 2021
A fun, exotic, fast read from the world of Fu-Manchu.
June 26, 2018
For a long time I've been curious about the Fu Manchu stories, because the character is so (in)famous and a classic bad guy type. I wasn't exactly sure what to expect, having seen no films or read any of the books, I just had a basic understanding of the bad guy.
Its a very pulp adventure type of novel, with almost a serial-film quality. Each chapter is like a single episode of a show or serial release in a magazine, ending with a cliffhanger or a statement which you can almost hear accompanied by a dramatic musical cue. Dun dun duhhnnnnnn!
Fu Manchu is the main character, but is rarely even in the book. He's more described and feared than depicted, and has weird abilities. He's more than a hundred years old, but in the prime of his life. He can read minds and is faster than anyone around him. And he's trained in various martial arts, making him deadly to face in many ways.
The story covers a British government agent trying to track down and defeat the villainous Fu Manchu, who as of the result of previous stories is now without a lot of resources and is hiding in England, trying to regain his power.
While there are some cultural assumptions about foreigners in general from a British perspective of the time, the writing is not particularly bigoted or racist in particular against Asians or Chinese. There are some misunderstandings but generally the Asian characters are treated with respect and even fear, not contempt or mockery.
The story covers an abduction of a beautiful woman, and is told with unrelenting drama and eerie settings, in a very cinematic manner. They're lurid and a bit overly dramatic, but engaging enough and while I won't hunt down these books to read more (they are not easy to find these days), I wouldn't turn one down, either.
Its a very pulp adventure type of novel, with almost a serial-film quality. Each chapter is like a single episode of a show or serial release in a magazine, ending with a cliffhanger or a statement which you can almost hear accompanied by a dramatic musical cue. Dun dun duhhnnnnnn!
Fu Manchu is the main character, but is rarely even in the book. He's more described and feared than depicted, and has weird abilities. He's more than a hundred years old, but in the prime of his life. He can read minds and is faster than anyone around him. And he's trained in various martial arts, making him deadly to face in many ways.
The story covers a British government agent trying to track down and defeat the villainous Fu Manchu, who as of the result of previous stories is now without a lot of resources and is hiding in England, trying to regain his power.
While there are some cultural assumptions about foreigners in general from a British perspective of the time, the writing is not particularly bigoted or racist in particular against Asians or Chinese. There are some misunderstandings but generally the Asian characters are treated with respect and even fear, not contempt or mockery.
The story covers an abduction of a beautiful woman, and is told with unrelenting drama and eerie settings, in a very cinematic manner. They're lurid and a bit overly dramatic, but engaging enough and while I won't hunt down these books to read more (they are not easy to find these days), I wouldn't turn one down, either.
March 22, 2018
Set mere weeks after the end of the previous book, Dr. Fu-Manchu is on the run but still up to his nefarious schemes. He captures Dr. Petrie's daughter Fleurette and takes her to London where Sterling and Nayland Smith track him down. Fu-Manchu is cut off from his Si-Fan resources so he comes up with a quick money making plot; turning lead into gold. Burmese stranglers, British seamen, abandoned mansions, a roaring furnace, explosives, and an underground lair all play a part. Also we get the return of our very old friend John Ki. And Fah Lo Suee falls in love yet again.
Sir Dennis Nayland Smith is his ever super competent self. Alan Sterling is a love struck baboon who does more harm than good, but luckily he disappears half way through and is replaced by the much more level headed Dr. Petrie. The London police figure prominently and are portrayed in a good light. And Fu-Manchu continues his practice of making rare appearances, giving erudite speeches, making miraculous and often unexplained escapes, and even gets in a bit of maniacal laughter. And then the book ends. Dead stop.
Sir Dennis Nayland Smith is his ever super competent self. Alan Sterling is a love struck baboon who does more harm than good, but luckily he disappears half way through and is replaced by the much more level headed Dr. Petrie. The London police figure prominently and are portrayed in a good light. And Fu-Manchu continues his practice of making rare appearances, giving erudite speeches, making miraculous and often unexplained escapes, and even gets in a bit of maniacal laughter. And then the book ends. Dead stop.
Read
December 29, 2022The writing was actually pretty peppy, I can see why this was popular back when. I did get bored about halfway through waiting to meet the infamous Dr or have the plot advance, and gave up on it. I can't review this fairly since I started with book 7, the one that was available from my library, and it starts very in the middle of things. Obviously I'm supposed to know the Dr and his daughter and care about the missing fiancee (she's been off page all this book). It was interesting enough that if I come across book 1 I might try it, although I'm dubious that this series needed to go on so long.
August 6, 2020
What can I say? You either enjoy this sort of supervillain silliness or you don't. I suppose I do, since this one is the third Fu-Manchu I've read. If you can overlook the Asian stereotypes, you'll find a story of imagination and period detail--and lots of silliness!
October 23, 2017
My star gradings are relative to the book, this gets 4/5 because it's a good piece of pulp fiction. A ripping yard in 1930's London.
January 31, 2019
Once again, Fu Manchu TRIES TO TAKE OVER THE WORLD!
October 2, 2021
Like the last time I read a Fu Manchu book there's not much new for me to say, but I will try to boil down my thoughts into something more concise, even if it devolves into a series of gifs.
I can't really remember how much it follows on from the last book, but it doesn't matter. The character of Fleurette was introduced in the prior story but is largely absent here because of her capture. Speaking of characters there was two things I picked up about Nayland Smith and the chief inspector accompanying him. Apparently they're both strung out all the time because their sentences start or end with:
'Nayland Smith snapped'
or:
'Gallaho growled'
Literally most of the book was punctuated with those phrases and if anything is gonna stick in my mind about it then it will be these few lines.
I can't fault it too much because Smith carries the full weight of the plot on his back, and I really felt it when focus was shifted off him to other less important characters. Sterling (who I'm pretty sure was the main guy in the last novel) is a complete blank slate. Now I know it seems like a nitpick considering characterisation is not Rohmer's strong suit, but he literally contributes nothing to the story, despite what his backstory in botany might have you believe. Even the various plods, who are only there for show to make Smith look good, come in sometimes to lend a hand.
Fu Manchu is rarely seen but his scenes outshine even Smith's. He's evil but there's something cordial about him. He treats it as if he's speaking about a business arrangement, and he doesn't go back on his word which you've got to respect. There's a nice moment shared between him and Smith's original partner, Dr. Petrie, which I won't bother to spoil but it's one of the few really interesting parts of the book. That being said it's only a small highlight in what I think is an unremarkable adventure.
I have to be in the right mind to read a Fu Manchu novel, they aren't particularly well told stories, but they are so fun and, like me, if you often struggle to decide on what to read, these will do in a pinch. That is if you can look past their obvious shortcomings.
Can't wait to see what the next book is all about!
I can't really remember how much it follows on from the last book, but it doesn't matter. The character of Fleurette was introduced in the prior story but is largely absent here because of her capture. Speaking of characters there was two things I picked up about Nayland Smith and the chief inspector accompanying him. Apparently they're both strung out all the time because their sentences start or end with:
'Nayland Smith snapped'
or:
'Gallaho growled'
Literally most of the book was punctuated with those phrases and if anything is gonna stick in my mind about it then it will be these few lines.
I can't fault it too much because Smith carries the full weight of the plot on his back, and I really felt it when focus was shifted off him to other less important characters. Sterling (who I'm pretty sure was the main guy in the last novel) is a complete blank slate. Now I know it seems like a nitpick considering characterisation is not Rohmer's strong suit, but he literally contributes nothing to the story, despite what his backstory in botany might have you believe. Even the various plods, who are only there for show to make Smith look good, come in sometimes to lend a hand.
Fu Manchu is rarely seen but his scenes outshine even Smith's. He's evil but there's something cordial about him. He treats it as if he's speaking about a business arrangement, and he doesn't go back on his word which you've got to respect. There's a nice moment shared between him and Smith's original partner, Dr. Petrie, which I won't bother to spoil but it's one of the few really interesting parts of the book. That being said it's only a small highlight in what I think is an unremarkable adventure.
I have to be in the right mind to read a Fu Manchu novel, they aren't particularly well told stories, but they are so fun and, like me, if you often struggle to decide on what to read, these will do in a pinch. That is if you can look past their obvious shortcomings.
Can't wait to see what the next book is all about!
August 22, 2011
This book, the seventh of 14 in Sax Rohmer's Fu Manchu series, finds the good Dr. in pretty desperate straits following the events of book #6, "The Bride of Fu Manchu." In this installment, he is a hunted man, cut off from his funds, the bulk of his Si-Fan associates, and the elixir vitae that is preserving his life. This book is something of a radical departure from the previous six in that there is no first-person narrator, but at the same time hearkens back to the tone of the first three volumes in the series, in that the action takes place in the Surrey and Limehouse regions of London. Nayland Smith, Dr. Petrie and Alan Sterling are all back, as are Fleurette and Fah Lo Suee. This book introduces the character of Inspector Gallaho from Scotland Yard, as cool and tough an ally as any bunch of Fu fighters could hope for. The story this time concerns Fu Manchu's kidnapping of Fleurette Petrie away from her father. There is also a wonderful side plot in which it is discovered that Fu has been making his own gold, alchemist style, in an abandoned tunnel under the Thames River. The raiding of this factory takes up fully 1/4 of the book, and is a very well done and suspenseful set piece. Multiple narrative strands converge here in bravura manner; a first-person narrative could not have allowed for these wonderful scenes. One of the long-standing characters in the series meets an end here, and it is a shocking moment when it comes.
There are, however, several instances of inconsistency and fuzziness in the book that prevent me from giving it a top grade. For instance, in one scene Smith and Co. visit the doctor who bought Petrie's practice many years before. His name is Dr. Norton. However, in book #3, "The Hand of Fu Manchu," we were told that this man's name was Dr. Murray! Inconsistencies like this can drive an alert reader crazy! There is also no reason why there had to be two completely unrelated characters named Preston in the current novel; it only leads to reader confusion. Also, and this is a small but annoying thing, Rohmer uses words like "settee" and "divan" interchangeably in the same scene, so we never know which he is talking about. But these are quibbles. Minor cavils aside, this is a very suspenseful and memorable entry in the Fu saga.
There are, however, several instances of inconsistency and fuzziness in the book that prevent me from giving it a top grade. For instance, in one scene Smith and Co. visit the doctor who bought Petrie's practice many years before. His name is Dr. Norton. However, in book #3, "The Hand of Fu Manchu," we were told that this man's name was Dr. Murray! Inconsistencies like this can drive an alert reader crazy! There is also no reason why there had to be two completely unrelated characters named Preston in the current novel; it only leads to reader confusion. Also, and this is a small but annoying thing, Rohmer uses words like "settee" and "divan" interchangeably in the same scene, so we never know which he is talking about. But these are quibbles. Minor cavils aside, this is a very suspenseful and memorable entry in the Fu saga.
June 14, 2015
Our old friend, the insidious evil Fu Manchu, returns in "The Trail of Fu Manchu,” the seventh book in Sax Rohmer’s classic mystery series. I confess to really loving this series and the purely, evil, yet intelligent genius known a Dr. Fu Manchu. Right away we must recognize that a few of the Fu Manchu books are a bit "trite" in spots, and at times they certainly have the feel of the "pulp fiction" genre; nevertheless, the series is surprisingly well written. Above all, Sax Romer has gifted us with one the best literary evil geniuses in all of literature, rivaled only by Doyle’s Professor Moriarty, Shakespeare’s Iago or Richard III, or even the biblical Satan.
The Fu Manchu books are well written and, as this one, they start quickly drawing the reader into a web of intrigue. In "The Trail of Fu Manchu,” Fu Manchu is a hunted man, cut off from his monetary funds, the most of his Si-Fan associates, and later, the all important elixir vitae that is literally preserving his life. Still, Fu-Manchu gains the upper hand when he kidnaps Dr. Petrie's wife, Fleurette! Yes, it does appear to be a bit formalistic and the reader may feel he knows what is coming, but there is still a shocking death that you never saw coming. Suddenly, you feel that our Heroes can in fact die – because they do. Real tension here builds as the story races toward its conclusion.
The old-fashioned writing style in "The Trail of Fu Manchu" (as is true in all the Fu Manchu novels) can be a bit distracting until you get used to it, and for some people, the racial stereotyping can be upsetting to many modern readers. However, the book, its style, and even the stereotyping are all a product of the time and place in which it was written – over 100 years ago. Regardless, the Fu Manchu novels are worth the time to discover the great, intellectual (and stereotypical) evil genius who is Fu Manchu. Some editions are currently being re-released in paperback and more are destined for the Kindle as well. If you enjoy the “old masters” as Doyle’s Holmes, Horning’s Raffles (the Gentleman Thief), Christie, and others, you really need to try the Fu Manchu series.
The Fu Manchu books are well written and, as this one, they start quickly drawing the reader into a web of intrigue. In "The Trail of Fu Manchu,” Fu Manchu is a hunted man, cut off from his monetary funds, the most of his Si-Fan associates, and later, the all important elixir vitae that is literally preserving his life. Still, Fu-Manchu gains the upper hand when he kidnaps Dr. Petrie's wife, Fleurette! Yes, it does appear to be a bit formalistic and the reader may feel he knows what is coming, but there is still a shocking death that you never saw coming. Suddenly, you feel that our Heroes can in fact die – because they do. Real tension here builds as the story races toward its conclusion.
The old-fashioned writing style in "The Trail of Fu Manchu" (as is true in all the Fu Manchu novels) can be a bit distracting until you get used to it, and for some people, the racial stereotyping can be upsetting to many modern readers. However, the book, its style, and even the stereotyping are all a product of the time and place in which it was written – over 100 years ago. Regardless, the Fu Manchu novels are worth the time to discover the great, intellectual (and stereotypical) evil genius who is Fu Manchu. Some editions are currently being re-released in paperback and more are destined for the Kindle as well. If you enjoy the “old masters” as Doyle’s Holmes, Horning’s Raffles (the Gentleman Thief), Christie, and others, you really need to try the Fu Manchu series.
April 4, 2014
"'Sir Denis Nayland Smith,' The tones of that implacable voice fell upon Sterling like a cold douche. 'The hour of our parting has come.'" That made me giggle. The horrible, horrible racism was harder to laugh at. Asians are greasy, yellow fiends. Grinning baboons. I only made it through by imagining it as a cheap Republic serial, or picturing Myrna Loy as Fah Lo Suee. Truly, Nayland Smith is hateful, and utterly unlikable. Americans are effeminate cowards. The Brits of lower classes are colorful, and stupid, if loyal to a fault. I found three of these old paperbacks in the trash, and could conceivably read the others at some point, but I'm in no hurry.
September 1, 2016
For this entry, half way through the series, Sax Rohmer decided to change from the 1st person narratives he used in the earlier volumes to the third person and for me not very successfully as it seemed to take a much longer time for the book to come to life. Coming straight after The Bride Of Fu Manchu (which I thought the best so far) this one didn't grip me all that much and although there were some great pulpy moments and an excellent last scene, I felt the book often dragged and lacked focus.
April 7, 2016
This gem from 1934 is exciting and mysterious in the English mystery tradition. Only the nemesis is not Dr Moriarty but the inscrutable terror from the Orient. This "demon" has London as his playground and the English police led by Inspector Nayland Smith attempt to bring him to justice. Rohmer's style is quick with fast paced chapters that read like the cinema serials of yesteryear. Worth a look.
March 25, 2015
Probably one of those instances where picking up a novel well after the series has begun is hardly worthwhile. There are a few notable phrases and images, short passages but overall, it doesn't hold up well at all.
January 24, 2016
reread this SOMETIME in 2009
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews