Summary
Summary of Four Square Jane
Key ideas
Key idea 1
A bold thief faces Scotland Yard
Four Square Jane follows a thief known to the public only by a nickname. She robs the rich openly enough to attract attention, yet the police cannot seem to catch her. Her boldness sets the terms of the contest: one sharp mind against the force of Scotland Yard.
Edgar Wallace builds these linked crime stories around that chase. Jane plays by her own rules, the public cheers her on, and her schemes leave her pursuers searching for a way to close the gap.
Key idea 2
Her hidden identity drives the mystery
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Key idea 3
Careful police meet a clever opponent
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Key idea 4
Jane steals by her own code
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Key idea 5
Each short chase builds the contest
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Key idea 6
Cleverness matters more than violence
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The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
Read the rest freeWho it’s for
You will love this if you enjoy a clever thief, a calm detective and a puzzle that keeps its answer to the last page, or if drawing rooms, disguises and quick, witty talk are your idea of a good evening.
What this book is
Four Square Jane is a crime story by Edgar Wallace, the British writer whose thrillers filled the bookstalls of his day. It follows a thief nobody can catch. After every theft she leaves a small printed label behind, marked with four squares and the letter J, and the police have named her after it. She robs the rich, she fools the clever, and she sends part of her loot to hospitals. Against her stands Peter Dawes of Scotland Yard, a calm man who loves a puzzle more than a prize.
In these pages you meet a sudden fever, a stolen painting that never leaves its room, a wedding that falls apart at the altar, and a murder that does not fit the thief's habits. You also get a sharp picture of a London of financiers, lords and ladies, where money buys favours and a good name can be bought as well. Let us begin at a house party in Buckinghamshire, where a banker hires a lady detective and gets more than he bargained for.
In this summary
- 1A house party and a convenient feverFree
- 2A hospital receives a stolen armlet
- 3Dawes studies the thief and loses a painting
- 4A rich girl, a will and a wedding
- 5Murder at the office on St James's Street
- 6Justice, disguise and the sting of the puzzle
Key point 1 of 6
A house party and a convenient fever
Joe Lewinstein is a financier who rose from nothing and wants the right people to owe him favours. He is giving a ball and shooting party at Adchester Manor House in Buckinghamshire, and rain pours down on his prize lawns. His wife Miriam worries about something else. A burglar called Four Square Jane has been emptying the jewel boxes of the wealthy, and she leaves a small label behind with four squares and the letter J. Lord Belchester lost his wife's emeralds to her only a month after buying them.
Joe answers the danger by hiring a detective. A young woman arrives calling herself Miss Caroline Smith, a lady detective from the Ross agency, with rimless glasses, a soft southern drawl and a smile that comes and goes. She asks to go where she likes in the house and refuses to dine with the guests, since a dinner partner would only distract her. She tells Lewinstein not to find anything she does strange, because she has set her heart on catching Four Square Jane. Mrs Lewinstein, listening from the doorway, plainly does not approve of pretty lady detectives.
At dinner the table sparkles. Lady Ovingham, a pale woman who puts her money into diamonds, wears bracelets from wrist to elbow. Near the end of the meal the butler whispers that the young lady has been taken ill after a cup of tea. Lewinstein finds her shivering under an eiderdown and begging for a doctor. The village doctor is away in London, but a young man named Setheridge has just come to the door to borrow petrol, and he agrees to look at her.
His verdict is scarlet fever. Lewinstein is horrified, for the house is full of aristocrats, so the two men agree to move the girl out quietly. An ambulance will come at three in the morning, when the guests are asleep. Lewinstein checks the sickroom three times and feels very pleased with himself. Meanwhile a slim figure is already moving along the dark guest corridor, and what Lewinstein finds on the floor outside his wife's door shows him how cleverly he has been handled.
That’s 1 of 6 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
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Check yourself
Why does Jane's unknown identity matter to the stories?
Right. “Because she stays out of reach, every story can start with a fresh puzzle.”Not quite. “Because she stays out of reach, every story can start with a fresh puzzle.”
How does Jane gain an advantage over the police?
Right. “Jane studies the same ground and finds the gap that they missed.”Not quite. “Jane studies the same ground and finds the gap that they missed.”
What distinguishes Jane's choice of victims?
Right. “Her victims are meant to be wealthy people who can bear the loss, and the stories lean toward readers who enjoy seeing the comfortable shaken.”Not quite. “Her victims are meant to be wealthy people who can bear the loss, and the stories lean toward readers who enjoy seeing the comfortable shaken.”
Questions about Four Square Jane
What is Four Square Jane about?
It is a crime story about a lady thief who robs wealthy men and leaves a label marked with four squares and the letter J. Peter Dawes of Scotland Yard tries to find out who she is and why she strikes.
Who is Four Square Jane in the book?
She is the mysterious thief whose name comes from her calling card. Few people have seen her face, because she appears in disguise and veiled. Her identity is the central puzzle that Peter Dawes tries to solve.
Who is Peter Dawes?
Peter Dawes is a chief superintendent at Scotland Yard, calm and fond of unusual crimes. He studies the thief's methods closely, admires her cleverness and tries to guess her next target before she strikes.
Why does Four Square Jane give money to hospitals?
Many of her victims made their money by dishonest means, and she sends part of the proceeds to hospitals and charities. The police at first see this as a quixotic wish to help the poor at the expense of the grossly rich.
Is Four Square Jane easy to read?
Its chapters are short and its scenes move fast, built mostly from dialogue and clear clues. Each theft is a small puzzle with a neat answer, so the book suits an evening of easy, lively reading.
