The Mystery of Tunnel 51

Wallace of the Secret Service #1

by Alexander Wilson

BOOK 1 in the Wallace of the Secret Service Series. Sir Leonard is not the man to desire fame or notoriety. His chronicler has been forced to fall back on office records and information supplied by various members of the secret service, to tell of the struggles of Wallace and his intelligence officers and their battles against the Soviet Union, terrorism and subversion in the British Empire, Nazi Germany and the tentacles of global organised crime.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Thriller

350 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1928

About the author

Alexander Wilson was an English writer, spy and MI6 officer.

Under his own name and the pseudonyms of Geoffrey Spencer, Gregory Wilson, and Michael Chesney, he penned 24 novels between 1928 and 1940. He wrote a further four unpublished novels and his last spy short story was published in a Faber & Faber collection My Best Spy Story in 1955.

Wilson was a bigamist; only after his death was it discovered that he had four wives, six sons, and one daughter. The 2018 miniseries Mrs Wilson tells the story from the point of view of his third wife, Alison (portrayed by Alexander and Alison's granddaughter: Ruth Wilson).

Librarian note: There are several authors with the name Alexander Wilson

Reviews

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alexander Wilson was an English writer and a spy with MI6. He lived from 1893 - 1963 and authored, amongst other books, a spy thriller series featuring Chief of the Intelligence Department, Sir Leonard Wallace. Of his 20+ novels, 9 featured Wallace. The Mystery of Tunnel 51 was the first book and was originally published in 1928.

The story starts in India, in Simla, where Maj Elliot arrives with a package of Top Secret documents for the Viceroy of India. Unfortunately he has just missed the Viceroy, who had returned to New Delhi. Elliot is a target of Russian spies and eventually murdered as he and a companion travel by train to Delhi, in Tunnel 51. When the Viceroy's personal secretary arrives in Delhi with the documents, it is discovered that in fact all he had were blank sheets of paper. Questions arise. How was Elliot murdered in the train? And what happened to the documents? The Viceroy decides that along with the police investigation, he needs help from Britain's spy chief, Leonard Wallace.

This begins an excellent adventure. Wallace, along with his competent, faithful Maj. Brien and his assistant, Batty, head off by plane to India and begin an investigation into the crimes and an effort to stop the Russian spies from disrupting the British rule in India. They will travel from one end of India to the other as they chase the stolen documents and ace Russian spy and arch enemy, Levinsky.

It's a fascinating story and Wallace and his companions are excellent characters. It's neat seeing how all this is done back in the 1920's; plane travel and all of the other things. It's neat getting a picture of India in that time as well. It's an entertaining, action-packed adventure with all the appropriate life-threatening situations through which Wallace and his team must navigate with an ultimately satisfying ending. The Devil's Cocktail sits on my bookshelf awaiting my attention. (4.0 stars)

[Tina Tamman · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author was recommended to me because I write spy biographies and hadn't read anything by Alexander Wilson. Not this particular book though, so maybe my lack of enthusiasm is due to my own poor choice. I chose the book because a review said it was largely about Russian bolshevik propaganda in India and this made it sound just right for me. However, I didn't enjoy it much. Having said that, I had no trouble turning the pages, but there was a fair amount of irritation as I went along.
The period is of course fascinating. First published in 1928, the novel must have been written in the 1920s and is mostly set in today's India, Pakistan and Iran. Wilson's hero, Lord Leonard Wallace, is of the generation and background where he doesn't blanch whatever is thrown at him while tending to apologise before shooting. In a way charming, in a way irritating because it slows down action and makes the villains look particularly black and the British particularly noble. My own biography-writing has taught me that most people are neither all bad nor all good and attempts at balancing the good and bad in a human being is what often makes for an interesting read.
Can't say I can recommend this book. It was written at the time when travel by aeroplane was just for a few and the countries mentioned seemed exotic to most readers.

[Aaron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite the 'boys own' adventure.
The writing style is of it's time (1928) which may not be to everyone's taste.
Alexander Wilson is quite the character himself according the recent TV program "Mrs. Wilson"

[Mr G Cotterill · Rating 1 out of 5]

Don’t bother

Read this out of curiosity having seen Mrs Wilson on BBC. Not a book for the 21st century, racist language and ideas. Quite juvenile in plot. Reminded me a bit of reading the Victor comic as a child.

[Sammi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Despite the obvious problems (‘20s-style writing & general attitudes etc. along with little or no editing), I quite enjoyed this story. I doubt I’ll read any more Wallace, or Wilson for that matter, but this one certainly gives an insight into the author’s mind & of the times…

[Cathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Spy genre is a relatively new fave of mine but the name of this author didn't twig my memory until I got home. Wilson was a serial bigamist, spy novelist and career agent in the Secret Intelligence Service. His bigamy was uncovered by his wife upon his death in 1963 (stellar series on PBS called Mrs. Wilson).
As for this novel, good in the sense of action-packed, socially unacceptable by today's standards, and very much a tall tale, with Wallace being a super superman, he's the guy who fixes and survives everything. Amusing turnabout for all the he-men in this novel that it is Sir Leonard Wallace's wife holding the gun on a very bad man and saving the day. Would I read the next in the series? No. This one was enough.

[Dave Watt · Rating 3 out of 5]

As many reviewers have said, this book is firmly rooted in the language and culture of 1920’s imperial England. I decided to have a go at Alexander Wilson after the BBC’s film Mrs.Wilson. The tone of the book certainly hints at a Walter Mitty view of the world where anybody white and English are assumed to be a jolly good sport and Russians, Jews and coloured people are not! Of course there are exceptions, and the revealing of these exceptions form a significant element of the mystery of the books.

This particular book revolves around India at the time of year when the bureaucrats were decamping from Simla back to Delhi. It includes the railway and as far as I can tell is reasonably good in such details - something which, for me, improves readability and helps getting involved with the plot. The book is a page turner, though mostly predictable. Any surprises tend to be annoying in their simplicity and deus ex machina touches, rather than subtle and clever, hence only a generous 3 stars.

I was intrigued to see if I could tell if Wilson had been involved with secret intelligence as he asserts in the Mrs. Wilson story, so I was a bit geeky checking his observational skills. A couple of hints that his research was not first hand was the details of the ‘railcar’ at Simla and the Handley Page transport aircraft that featured throughout the book. Wilson describes the whirling propeller in front of the pilot, but I can’t find a single engined transport of that era by Handley Page that could accommodate a crew of two and fourteen passengers! He was probably referring to a three engined W8 or W9 as operated by Imperial Airways at the time but not with RAF roundels as described but quite possibly with RAF crew. So, was his research gleaned from libraries and newspapers or was Alexander Wilson really the spy he always claimed to be?

[Annabel Frazer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sadly, this is a Did Not Finish for me. It's an espionage thriller written in the 1920s, which ought to be perfect for someone like me who grew up on Buchan. But unfortunately it's of a rather lower literary standard than even Buchan's weaker efforts. It starts off all right, with a British soldier travelling through India with an urgent mission to complete and being murdered on route on a 'motor-rail' in a tunnel. This unusual murder setting ought to make for a promising whodunit but it all seems to go wrong when the authorities send for Sir Leonard Wallace, head of the British Secret Service, to solve the mystery.

Unfortunately, Sir Leonard's life is just way too jolly. He's got a darling wife called Molly reminiscent of a Sapper heroine and a son who is a 'merry little fellow'. He has a best friend called Billy who he works with. They forthwith decide to charter a plane direct to India and off they go, full of vim and jollity and promising their wives that they won't be parted for long because Molly and Phyllis can simply sail to India in one of Her Majesty's government boats and they can all meet up there. What larks!

It's a disconcerting change of tone from what was quite a dark opening and simply doesn't feel serious enough for the thriller/espionage genre. Even Biggles has more gravitas than this pair. Sir Leonard and Billy also irk me by noticing suspicious-looking characters in the street who turn out to be working for the villains - a favourite detecting technique of the 1930s thriller hero.

In short, after a good start, it went downhill pretty quickly, hence the Did Not Finish.

[Linda Amos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Russian spies are working in India to try and turn the Indian people against British rule. Major Elliott returns from a visit to distant parts with a series of maps showing the weak spots in the Empire's Indian frontier. The Russians would like to get their hands on these maps. After several attempts on Elliott's life in an effort to get the maps the enemy succeed. But how was it done? Sir Leonard Wallace is sent for. His indolent appearance and manner hide a mind like a steel trap but will he succeed in running the similar keen minds of the Russians to ground?
Yes, the language is dated as is the style of the story - they were written about 80 years ago. I thoroughly enjoyed this first one in the series and will read the rest.
A point of interest - the author was an MI6 officer. He was a bigamist being married to four wives and had several children. The Mrs Watson TV drama was based on his third wife and how she found out about his life.

[Cybercrone · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read in e-pub format.
Written in 1928 when Britain was losing it's grasp on "The Empire". The language, some of it anyways, would surely not be acceptable now. Racism was not accepted as being something wrong.
But despite all that there was a sort of nostalgia about the story that kept me reading.
The story wasn't bad, the plot was fine and the characters were all typical of their time. There were good men and bad men and no wiggle room in the middle. Think of Jimmy Stewart, only more so.

The plot involved getting the head of the British security services to go to India to track down some secure documents involved in stopping the Russian propaganda war there and the consequent murder of one of the diplomats. Think car chases between the factions, at 40 mph!
Of course the good guys won in the end.

[Ruth · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this up after watching Mrs. Wilson on PBS Masterpiece, because goodness was Alexander Wilson BONKERS and it left me curious about his writing. In short, it does not hold up. Its not that this is terribly written, exactly, the prose is fairly serviceable, but I was just...bored. Very bored. Ian Fleming can be QUITE problematic, but at least his books still hold up as engaging reads. This is definitely a snapshot of a very specific pro-British, pro-colonialism POV which has NOT aged well (obviously) and being indulgently overwritten and in desperate need of an editor does not help matters. However, it's interesting to read this as an early example (vis-a-vis the miniseries, as this was pubbed in 1928) of insight into Wilson's psyche.

[Michelle Hickey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having seen the TV series Mrs Wilson I was intrigued about Alexander Wilson so I tracked down this book. I did not have high expectations of it to be honest, however it was surprisingly good. The mystery is well developed and the characters well developed. There is a little Sherlock Holmes and Watson to the Secret Service pair. Set in India in the late colonial period, I found I had to look up many terms which were regionally specific. My only criticism was that it wrapped up very quickly and left some things unresolved.

[Barry Fulton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alexander Wilson's The Mystery of Tunnel 51, published in 1928, was the first of his 24 novels. His biographer writes "that without Wilson it is very unlikely there would have been Bond, Bourne and Smiley." The book is dated, unlikely to be of interest to most unless you've seen the fascinating three-part Masterpiece production of Mrs. Wilson. A professor of English Literature in Lahore in 1935 and an agent with MI6 beginning in 1939, he was found to be a bigamist, rogue, and scoundrel after his death in 1963. He was also a loving father.  

[Leserling Belana · Rating 4 out of 5]

As spy novels go, this wasn't bad, but a bit drawn out for my taste. The narrator was great, which did a great deal for my listening till the very ending. In my language, we'd call it a 'Räuberpistole', which I think is more descriptive than 'tall tale', which I found to be the English equivalent.
The story does seem to be a good portrayal of the English occupation of India at the time, though. No idea about the conspiracy theories, but then Russian spies feature quite heavily in most of the James Bond movies (don't know about Ian Fleming's books), so that's not really unusual.

[Holly Procita · Rating 4 out of 5]

Slow at first but keep going

I was skeptical as I began this book. It picked up and I found myself getting caught up in the plot. There are several twists and turns that I did not see coming. For being a book of another generation I enjoyed it. There were many references to prior adventures so I was surprised to find this was the first book in the series. I will read more of this series.

[Ruth · Rating 2 out of 5]

C1928. FWFTB: India, Russia. Spy, plans, ambush. Most of the reviews seem to mention that it is a novel of its time and that is true. Also, that it was all derring-do which it was. I did get bit bored with the capture, escape, roles reversed, escape and capture again. The word ‘fiend’ is used a lot. For a historical read that wasn’t historical when it was written. It’s not too bad. Recommended to the normal crew.

[Mark Higginbottom · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have just finished this....the first in a series concerning Wallace of the Secret Service....it was a joy to read....very reminiscent of the Golden Age of crime novels being released regularly under the heading British Library Crime Classics.....these types of novels are just so enjoyable to read ...if you enjoy Holmes or Poirot...Marple or Campion then you will love reading this book as i did....am looking forward to reading the rest of the series....😁

[Tracy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Discovered the author because of the telling of his life story and his various secret ‘lives’ and families. Did he believe he lived life as his fictional characters did? I don’t have an answer but the story seems very rooted. in the British belief in empire and right. It was certainly another time and way of thinking.

[D.M. Fletcher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Time travel

Good on thirties colonial atmosphere and some exciting plotting.
The male characters are authentic and there is plenty of action.
Where the book falls down is its wordiness.
The female characters are a bit cardboard but some of the males ring true.
I managed to finish the book but am not tempted to read any sequels.

[Andrew Gibson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Would have been alright if only....
The hero was not impossibly omniscient and immune to all harm
The sidekicks didn't talk in pidgin "i'm stupid but salt of the earth" phoenetics
The villains had half a plan. make that any plan.

do not buy any others in series.

[Denise Gossow · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great story. It was written in the 1920’s so the hero is larger than life and so very British making it a ripping yarn. Of course it is of it’s time and there is racism but that was how people behaved then.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I watched Mrs. Wilson mini series and decided to read one of Alexander's spy novels. Pretty good story with still upper lip and all.

[Barbara E Cook]

The writing is of its time.

[Les Wilson · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Story could have been very good, however I was tempted to abandon almost from the start. [See below]. However I continued almost to the end, but had to give up. This is almost children's literature. I was reminded of reading stories like this in the 50s, in Boys only weeklies. It should have been given episodes rather than chapters, as for in serials it went round in circles waiting for the next episode. Obviously, rank and position were achieved by family or school and not the ability to do the job.

INITIAL MISSGIVINGS:
Here we have a British Officer by the name of Major Elliott in British India. Carrying some very important plans he does not go to an army barracks or police headquarters put continues on his own to deliver the same plans to the Viceroy at Simla. At Kalka station he is informed that the viceroy for some reason had left Simla for Delhi the day before. What does he do? Take the plans to the viceroy at Delhi [remember the person to whom he is to give these plans]. No! He continues to Summer Hill station, which is the official station of Simla, and on to the Viceregal Lodge.

Here he meets Sir Henry Muir, His Excellency’s Private Secretary. Does he hand them over to be put in a safe or strong box? No! "The plans—?’ ‘Are quite intact and as safe as houses. I carry them in a case under my shirt".
"The plans are complete in every way,’ he said. ‘I went over the same ground two or three times to make certain there could be no mistake. Each pass is marked with full information as to when it is open and when not. All our defences and fortifications are down to the minutest detail. The notes contained on my report are exhaustive and I flatter myself that the map is the most complete that could possibly be drawn." Does he now hand then over for military conveyance? Of course not! He goes to bed carrying the same on his person. Here an attempt to kill him occurs, so he still hangs on to the plans. Next day he is advised to go by car under escort, which he refuses. Preferring to travel by public transport, with the plans on his person. On the first stage of the journey back he is killed [with intelligence like his, I doubt it would be any loss to the British arm]. So it goes on like a Saturday afternoon children’s serial.

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

It became compelling in bits, however the 1920s language and stereotyping was to distracting for me to suspend. A story of its time when Englishmen had a stiff upper lip and took whatever consequence was thrown at them without question. Good element of mystery to test reader but I couldn't tolerate the language to read more on the series.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hum.... written in the 1920s, this first in a series, truly feels almost 100 years old. Set in India with brave, handsome British intelligence agents battling dastardly Soviet agents for control of India....well, you get the drift.

Still, the plot is fun even if far-fetched and the peek into an imagined world of 20th century Raj provides a diversion from disappointments of the early 21st century.

[J. · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Wallace of the Secret Service"!!!!! A ripping yarn set in England's Colony of India in the early Twenties!!! A product of that time and place, capitals and exclamation marks seem to come naturally when describing the novel. It is certainly better than the pulpy adventure tales from "The Boy's Own Paper", but does not transcend the genre' by a great deal. Still, the English Empire is an interesting and romantic place for adventure: wily Bolsheviks, natives, both devious and steadfastly loyal, regular pauses for tiffin, a bath, a whiskey and soda, and a change of clothes, and the baffling refusal to just shoot your opponent when you have the chance. Perhaps, the most absurd moment occurs when Wallace is in his pajamas but has to put on his dressing gown and slippers before he pursues the villain out of doors. Still, an interesting piece of period adventure.

[Derek · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fascinating insight into life in 30's India, when even the hot pursuit of Russian spies must wait until after tiffin. A clever mystery, and then a series of chases and twists until the end.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

For my full review click on the link below:
https://crossexaminingcrime.wordpress...

[Jan Moens · Rating 4 out of 5]

7,5/10