4 h 48 minAudiobook8 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 4 h 48 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if one inventor could outrun every pursuer on land, at sea, and in the sky?
Flames and alarming noises draw attention to the Great Eyrie, a steep, nearly inaccessible mountain in North Carolina. Federal investigator John Strock follows the reports, looking for an explanation. Meanwhile, an astonishing vehicle troubles the authorities. Its speed leaves ordinary pursuit helpless, turning the search into a test of observation and resolve.
In Jules Verne’s The Master of the World, the chase centres on the Terror, a machine that travels on land, on water, underwater, and through the air. Strock tackles the mystery as a police officer, not an inventor. Behind the remarkable machinery lies a harder question: what restrains a genius whose power puts him beyond government control?
What you’ll discover
- A mountain full of questions Follow the investigation toward steep heights where flames and strange noises suggest hidden danger.
- A machine beyond pursuit Discover the Terror, whose command of land, water, and air gives its master extraordinary freedom.
- A police officer’s eye Join Strock as reports, journeys, and careful observation guide his attempts to intercept the unknown traveller.
- Genius without restraint Explore the uneasy gap between an inventor’s technical brilliance and his capacity for responsibility.
- Speed with larger stakes Look beyond the chase to the threat of power that ordinary authorities cannot contain.
Who will love it
Readers who love inventions ahead of their time, detective chases, secret hideouts and daring machines will enjoy this tale. It also suits anyone who likes a mystery solved one clue at a time.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Fire and noise on the Great Eyrie
- A machine too fast to catch
- A threatening letter and a high price
- The Master of the World answers
- The trap at Black Rock Creek
- Prisoner on the Terror, and how the tale is told
Who’s who
- John StrockA chief inspector of the federal police in Washington, who tells the story and cannot rest until he solves a mystery.
- Mr. WardStrock's chief, a calm man of about fifty who gives him each mission and demands that he succeed.
- Elias SmithThe jovial, pipe-smoking mayor of Morganton and a hunter, who helps Strock climb the Great Eyrie and shares his curiosity.
- Arthur WellsA bold local police agent who spots the submarine at Black Rock Creek and guides Strock's party to it.
- John Hart and Nab WalkerTwo trusted detectives from Strock's department who go with him on the hunt and share its dangers.
- The Master of the WorldThe silent, proud captain of the Terror, who refuses every offer and defies every government on earth.
- The old housekeeperStrock's devoted servant, who is sure the devil is behind it all and fears for her master.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 4 h 48 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 8 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
eBooks and audiobooks open right away. Download EPUB or PDF, or send the book to your Kindle. Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then 0,14 USD a day in your first year on the yearly plan and 0,27 USD a day after, or 0,66 USD a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
Read and hear Il padrone del mondo in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Il padrone del mondo
by Jules Verne · 1904
A police inspector hunts a machine that races on roads, skims lakes and dives, and its owner writes back to him.
Medium level2–5 hours to read25 languages
Excellent
- Read or listen
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then 0,14 USD a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
In short
The Master of the World is a science adventure novel by Jules Verne, who died in 1905. It appeared in the early years of the twentieth century and belongs to his late work, when cars, submarines and flying machines were new and the world was wondering what they would bring.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
Fire and noise on the Great Eyrie
Strock begins by telling us that his story is so strange he hardly believes it himself. It opens in the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina, where a rounded, rocky peak called the Great Eyrie stands above the town of Morganton and the village of Pleasant Garden. Birds seem to avoid it. Local people see smoke, cinders and a glow at night, and they hear rumbling from inside.
Fear grows that the peak hides an old volcano. A balloonist named Wilker tries to look into the crater with a telescope, but a wrong wind carries him away to Raleigh. Then, on the night of April the fourth, a sudden uproar sends the people of Pleasant Garden running into the dark. Flames leap above the rock wall at three in the morning, and the whole district panics, though no lava ever flows.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
Free gifts
580 USD in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
170 USDFREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
120 USDFREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
60 USDFREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
60 USDFREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
170 USDFREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about Il padrone del mondo
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is The Master of the World about?
A federal police inspector investigates strange fires on a North Carolina mountain and a mysterious machine that moves with startling speed on land, on the sea and under water. He tries to find its owner, who defies every government.
Who is John Strock?
Strock is a chief inspector in the federal police in Washington. He tells the story himself. He is brave, loyal to his chief Mr. Ward, and so curious that he cannot leave any mystery alone.
What is the Great Eyrie?
The Great Eyrie is a real-sounding rocky peak in the Blue Ridge Mountains near Morganton, North Carolina. Its name suggests a nest for birds of prey, and the people nearby fear it may hide a volcano.
The author
Jules Verne
1828–1905 · French adventure novelist
Jules Verne was a French writer born in Nantes in 1828. He lived in Paris and later in Amiens, where he died in 1905. His novels include Journey to the Centre of the Earth (1864), Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea (1870), and Around the World in Eighty Days (1873).
More by Jules Verne
All 23 booksMore like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
