Summary
Summary of The Dark Star
Key ideas
Key idea 1
A childhood toy holds dangerous papers
Little Ruhannah Carew plays with an olive wood box in her missionary family's sitting room. It belonged to Herr Conrad Wilner, a German engineer killed in Turkey, and contains weapons, photographs, plans and a bronze demon called the Yellow Devil. Her father reads aloud from Wilner's diary, bringing secret military work and murder into the quiet home.
The family has kept Wilner's papers from Germany. What seems like a child's collection of wonders carries unfinished business that will reach far beyond the farmhouse.
Key idea 2
Rue dreams beyond the village
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Key idea 3
Brandes offers Rue a way out
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Key idea 4
A betrayal opens another path
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Key idea 5
Rue recognizes names from the diary
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Key idea 6
The box makes Neeland a target
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Key idea 7
Ilse's duty meets a moral limit
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Key idea 8
Paris offers no safe arrival
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Key idea 9
Affection grows beneath the adventure
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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
Readers who love spy adventure, trains and ocean liners, a witty young hero and a gently growing romance, set against the glittering Paris of July 1914 and the first hours of the Great War.
What this book is
The Dark Star is a novel by Robert W. Chambers, set in the summer of 1914, when Europe slides toward war. It follows a poor country girl from upstate New York, a young illustrator who befriends her, and a bronze Mongol demon called the Yellow Devil. Chambers mixes romance, spy adventure and a dash of comedy, and he fills the pages with trains, ocean liners, Paris cafes and sudden danger.
The story begins in a quiet farmhouse, where a child plays with a wonder box left by a murdered German engineer. Inside lie daggers, photographs, a diary and a locked set of military plans. Years later those plans matter to governments, and the girl and the young artist are pulled into a chase that runs from Brookhollow to Paris.
You get a fast, witty adventure with a warm love story at its heart, plus a vivid picture of the last days before the guns begin. Let us start with the box itself, and with the child who loves it.
In this summary
- 1A child, a box and a diaryFree
- 2A poor girl dreams of drawing
- 3A smooth stranger offers a way out
- 4A wedding that may not be one
- 5A street fight and a flight into the night
- 6Letters from a growing girl
- 7The woman in the empty house
- 8Spies at sea and bombs in a stateroom
- 9Paris, a stolen box and a first morning of war
- 10What the book is really about
Key point 1 of 10
A child, a box and a diary
The book opens in the sitting room of a poor missionary family. Little Ruhannah Carew plays with the olive wood box that belonged to Herr Conrad Wilner, a German engineer who died in Turkey. Inside are Kurdish daggers, old revolvers, photographs, linen scrolls covered in plans, and a bronze demon called Erlik, the Yellow Devil.
Her father, the Reverend Wilbour Carew, walks on crutches after a massacre at his mission in Trebizond. Each time she plays, he tells her how Wilner died in a mob at Gallipoli. Then he reads aloud from the dead man's diary.
The diary tells of Wilner's secret work drawing forts for the Kaiser, of a sultan who trusts nobody, and of poisoned coffee. It also tells of a young girl who was strangled and thrown into the water in a sack, and who had a sister named Naia.
The diary ends only moments before Wilner's death. The Carews have kept his papers from Germany, because they believe Germany sided with the Sultan against the missions. That choice will matter much later.
The opening sets up the whole book in miniature. It gives you the box, the demon, the diary and the names that will return, all inside a cozy family scene.
That’s 1 of 10 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 Rue decide to sail alone to Paris?
Right. “She decides to sail alone to Paris and study art.”Not quite. “She decides to sail alone to Paris and study art.”
What mission does the Princess give Neeland?
Right. “The note asks Neeland to fetch the olive wood box from Brookhollow and bring it to Paris in person.”Not quite. “The note asks Neeland to fetch the olive wood box from Brookhollow and bring it to Paris in person.”
What makes Ilse Dumont more than a straightforward enemy?
Right. “Ilse Dumont serves her country but will not let a man die, and the Princess serves hers but cannot bring herself to use a girl she loves.”Not quite. “Ilse Dumont serves her country but will not let a man die, and the Princess serves hers but cannot bring herself to use a girl she loves.”
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 113,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 7 h 35 min
- Listening time12 h 35 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 11 other languages
Questions about The Dark Star
What is The Dark Star by Robert W. Chambers about?
It follows Rue Carew, a poor girl from upstate New York, and the illustrator Jim Neeland as they are drawn into a spy chase over a box of German fortress plans, ending in Paris as the First World War begins.
Who is the Yellow Devil in The Dark Star?
The Yellow Devil is an old bronze figure of Erlik, a Mongol demon and Prince of Darkness. It sits in the olive wood box, and characters say that trouble follows it wherever it goes.
Is The Dark Star a true story?
No, it is a novel. It was written during the First World War and uses real events of 1914, such as the murder of the archduke and the outbreak of war, as the background for invented characters.
Who is Ilse Dumont in The Dark Star?
Ilse Dumont is a German born singer and spy working for Turkey. Neeland nicknames her Scheherazade after their first meeting. She tries to take the box, yet she also saves his life more than once.
Is The Dark Star easy to follow?
Yes, the plot moves along with clear scenes, short chapters and plenty of humor. Each part has a clear setting, such as a farmhouse, a train, a liner or a Paris street, which keeps the story easy to follow.
