Friday's Forgotten Books - The Singing Spider

Angus MacVicar (1908-2001) was a Scottish author of crime thrillers, juvenile science fiction and nonfiction. His first novel The Purple Rock was a bestseller, but his career was interrupted by an illness and then service in World War II with the Royal Scots Fusiliers.

He also later turned his hand to screenwriting, and his young-adult sci-fi novel series The Lost Planet was made into televsion and radio versions. (A side note: MacVicar's father was a Presbyterian minister in the Church of Scotland and the author's books often had snippets of Christianity in them, so it's interesting that The Lost Planet was the first science fiction series ever translated to Hebrew, and allegedly had considerable impact on the development of that genre in Israel.)

MacVicar's suspense novel The Singing Spider from 1938 was set against the backdrop of Mussolini and impending war with Italy. It follows young Archie Campbell, an intelligent, scrupulously honest and brave young man who is offered a job as a secret agent by Sir Robert Vanburgh, who is the Secretary for Diplomatic Affairs and also a friend of Archie's dead father. Archie's job is to visit the quiet little fishing port of Bennachie in order to uncover the secret that was discovered by another murdered agent, known as D7—who was also Sir Robert's son.

Archie takes the job hoping to find redemption following a scandalous love affair that left him a broken man and a drunkard, and soon finds himself immersed in the picturesque village of Bennachie playing the not-too-far-off role of a recovering invalid. Archie tries to uncover the identity of the Singing Spider—an Italian spy and master of disguise thought to be behind D7's murder—with the help of an American Professor, a local rogue who's also seeking redemption, and a lovely young minister's daughter. But first Archie has to find out how the Singing Spider is tied to a puzzling phrase that translates as "The Pit of Baal" and the mysterious red lights at the Bennachie stone, an artifact the Professor believes dates back to the ancient Phoenicians.

It's definitely a novel of its time, thematically and stylistically, but there's a good rendering of the Scottish setting that was so similiar to areas MacVicar knew well, and to its characters. There's also a bit of naive sweetness to it that you don't often find in spy-themed suspense novels, no doubt a nod to the author's Presbyterian roots and his young-adult writings. It's definitely a G- or PG+ type of plot. The Singing Spider was made into a radio program for BBC Scotland in 1950, although I doubt any traces of it exist. As a matter of fact, there is very little about the author of this book on the Web, and unless you can find his works at your local library, you may find it difficult to get your hands on them.

Comments

[patti Abbott]

This is truly forgotten. Never heard the name before now.

[J F Norris]

Wow, you dug up a lost nugget here. This is in the library where you work? I wish I could visit this place. The main branch of the Chicago Public Library used to have a slew of really old books but they are starting to discard them and sell them in their used bookstore. For example: every last one of the Carolyn Wells' books that stood on the shelves for years (no one reads her but me, I know) are now gone. [sigh]

[BV Lawson]

This was from the Black Dagger crime series, which I think is the only reason I was able to find it. MacVicar was apparently quite popular for a time in Europe, which makes it puzzling that there is so little info about him or his work on the Web.

[David Jones]

Remember the BBC serial as a child - Saturday mornings! I may be totally wrong but a buzz in my memory seems to recall that the serial's 'signature tune' was 'La Donna E Mobile' - but don't place bets on it!

[BV Lawson]

You have more info on that than I was able to find, David. Just like backlist and out-of-print books are seeing a new life due to eBooks, I keep hoping that all those old radio shows and TV series will pop up on the Web, too. Fingers crossed!

[David Jones]

For your info BV - try www.whirligig-tv.co.uk/radio - mostly snippets but from a large range of radio programmes - you might enjoy?

[Mike Wake]

David - thanks also from me. Gratifying that I'm not the only one for whom La Donna E Mobile will be forever associated with that radio series.