Story summary
Samenvatting van Het masker
- 8 min. leestijd
- 7 parts
- Binnenkort te beluisteren
A starving gambler in the South African veld meets a man with his own face, and a million dollars in diamonds.
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Het masker in het kort
Samenvatting: 8 min leestijd
- Leestijd
- Ongeveer 4 h 5 min3 h 15 min fast, 4 h 50 min slow
- Lengte
- 57.800 woorden
- Bibliotheekniveau
- Makkelijk short sentences, plain words
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Het masker in short
The Mask follows a prosperous New York couple, Kenneth and Helen Traynor, from a loving breakfast table to the edge of ruin. Kenneth sails to South Africa to bring home diamonds worth more than a million dollars. His old nurse tells him he once had a twin with a scar on his left index finger, and a sly valet listens at the door.
What Het masker is about
A starving gambler in the South African veld meets a man with his own face, and a million dollars in diamonds hangs between them. That is the spark of The Mask, a crime novel by Arthur Hornblow, set in Edwardian New York and the diamond fields of Africa.
The people are drawn in bold lines, from good hearts to cold schemers to one wife whose instinct is sharper than any evidence. You get a fast tale of money, speed and a haunting question: what if the person you love is not the person standing in front of you?
Voor wie is het?. You will enjoy this book if you like fast crime stories with hidden twins, scheming villains, diamond fortunes and a young detective on the trail, all set in glittering early twentieth century New York.
The story in 7 parts
Key idea 1 · free to read
A Breakfast, a Diamond, and a Dread
The story begins in the Traynor house on Gramercy Park. At breakfast, Kenneth Traynor, a Wall Street promoter, reads a dispatch from London. A giant diamond of 1,649 carats has turned up near land his Americo-African Mining Company already owns. Kenneth must sail on the Mauretania the next day and bring the stones home himself. A single stone is worth nearly a million dollars.
His wife Helen cannot eat. She says this trip feels different from his journeys to Mexico and Alaska, and she cannot shake the sense that something dreadful will happen. Kenneth laughs and says he hopes something does, since that is why he is going. If the deal goes through, they will be as rich as Croesus.
Two names enter the talk. Helen cannot stand Signor Keralio, a fencing master whose eyes unsettle her. She also distrusts François, the French valet who will travel with Kenneth. She caught him at Kenneth's desk, reading a private letter. Kenneth decides to take the man along, so that he cannot tell tales.
The danger begins in an ordinary home, with a wife's instinct that something is wrong.
- 2Begin gratis met lezen
A Hero, a Proposal, and Big Ambitions
Hornblow pauses to show what Helen stands to lose.
- 3Begin gratis met lezen
An Old Nurse Brings Startling News
Just before Kenneth leaves, an old woman calls at the house.
- 4Begin gratis met lezen
Farewell on the Dock, a Fencing Master Overplays
The farewell takes place on a grey, windy day beside the Mauretania.
- 5Begin gratis met lezen
Two Faces on the Veld
The scene jumps to the desert near the Vaal River.
- 6Begin gratis met lezen
Parties, Warnings, and a Ship in Flames
Back in New York, Ray's birthday party fills the house with dancers.
- 7Begin gratis met lezen
Identity, Instinct, and How Hornblow Builds Suspense
The first great theme is identity.
Read all 7 key ideas now
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Characters, plot and themes
Main characters
- Kenneth Traynor A tall Wall Street promoter with a white lock in his hair who sails to South Africa to bring home two huge diamonds.
- Helen Traynor Kenneth's devoted wife, who trusts her instincts and fears for her husband and her young daughter Dorothy.
- Ray Helen's lively younger sister, who loves mysteries and jokes about marriage while falling for Wilbur Steell.
- Wilbur Steell A rising New York lawyer and old friend of the family who starts to suspect that something is wrong.
- Signor Keralio A smooth fencing master with a criminal past who wants the diamonds and cannot forgive Helen for refusing him.
- François Kenneth's French valet, a furtive man who once worked for Keralio and listens at doors.
- Handsome Jack A ruined gambler on the diamond fields who is the image of Kenneth and wants what Kenneth has.
- Dick Reynolds A young lawyer with a gift for detective work, set by Steell to follow Keralio.
How it ends (spoiler)
Keralio is shot dead by detectives in the Bronx raid, and Helen is saved along with little Dorothy. The real Kenneth is alive. He was rescued at sea after being beaten for the diamonds, and he has come home from a San Francisco hospital. The impostor, his twin Handsome Jack, shot himself at the club. The two diamonds are found with the counterfeit money, and the couple are reunited.
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Vragen over Het masker
What is The Mask by Arthur Hornblow about?
It is a crime novel about Kenneth Traynor, a New York promoter who goes to South Africa for two giant diamonds. A twin brother he never knew, a scheming fencing master and a loyal wife become tangled in the plot.
Who is Signor Keralio in The Mask?
Signor Keralio is a polished fencing master in New York who is also a criminal in disguise. He is obsessed with Helen Traynor, and he works with the valet François and plots to seize the diamonds.
What does the mask in the title mean?
The mask points to disguise and false identity. People in the book hide behind polished manners, a servant's politeness, blue glasses or a borrowed face, and the story asks how well anyone can see through such a mask.
When is The Mask set and is it a true story?
It is a work of fiction set in the early twentieth century, in an age of steamships, telegrams and fashionable New York. The diamond rush of 1870 on the Vaal River gives the African scenes their background.
Is The Mask easy to follow?
Yes, its plain language, short chapters and frequent cliffhangers make it easy to follow. The plot moves briskly between drawing rooms, a ship, the veld and a Bronx hideout, and each chapter has a clear goal.
Verwijs naar deze uitgave
Hornblow, Arthur. The Mask. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-mask.
Hornblow, A. (2026). The mask. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-mask
Hornblow, Arthur. The Mask. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-mask.
@book{hornblow2026mask,
author = {Hornblow, Arthur},
title = {The Mask},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-mask}
}
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