Leslie Charteris: The Saint in Miami (1941)

Edition: Hodder & Stoughton, 1964
Review number: 766

The first Saint story to be set during the Second World War takes place in the USA, while that country remains neutral. The main theatres of war didn't really allow Charteris the scope to write the kind of stories that he specialised in, and he later said that he didn't want to diminish any real heroes by the Saint's fictional exploits; this is the reason for taking him halfway across the world.

Nevertheless, the adventure that takes Simon Templar to Miami turns out to be connected with the war, as is quickly apparent when an attempt is made to frame a British submarine in the destruction of American shipping. Like many of the Saint stories set in America, this novel is more like an action thriller than the others, though it is not without its trademark touches of Charteris' humour.