Introduction

This early work by Richard Austin Freeman was originally published in the early 20th century and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction.

''The Submarine Boat'' is one of Freeman's novels written under the name Clifford Ashdown.

About the Author and the Work

The first story featuring his well-known protagonist Dr. Thorndyke - a medico-legal forensic investigator - was published in 1907, and although Freeman's early works were seen as simple homages to his contemporary, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, he quickly developed his own style: The "inverted detective story", in which the identity of the criminal is shown from the beginning, and the story then describes the detective's attempt to solve the mystery.