A man of many parts
Sir: Sinclair McKay gives an excellent introduction to William Le Queux as the forgotten pioneer of the modern spy novel (‘A quantum of respect’, 1 November). Also neglected but of contemporary interest are his strangely prophetic novels of terrorist activity, including The Terror of the Air, which in 1920 describes an unexpected air attack on New York in broad daylight, and the recently reprinted novel The Bomb Makers. A recent biography, William Le Queux, Master of Mystery, reveals him, as well as being a novelist, as a self-proclaimed spy, amateur detective, wireless pioneer and more. Like all successful popular fiction writers he had a finger in every pie and on the pulse of the nation. He deserves to be better known. Chris Patrick
by email
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