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In crowded New York, precious emeralds draw relentless enemies—and a curse may be the least of the danger.
In Harold MacGrath’s The Drums of Jeopardy, a group of emeralds sits at the heart of a desperate chase. The jewels promise treasure, but they also bring danger that refuses to stay behind. Enemies tied to anarchist and revolutionary movements pursue their quarry into New York, where the struggle to escape turns the city into a place to hide and hunt.
MacGrath keeps the story moving through brisk chapters, sudden threats and narrow escapes. Crowded, loud and full of new arrivals, New York offers cover without any promise of safety. The emeralds are said to carry a curse, adding another shadow to a pursuit already driven by human enemies. This is adventure built around suspense, intrigue and the urgent need to survive.
What you’ll discover
- Emeralds that bring danger Follow precious jewels whose promise of treasure comes tangled with a reputation for a curse.
- A city of pursuit Enter a crowded New York where the same streets offer hiding places and hunting grounds.
- Enemies who keep coming Meet pursuers tied to revolutionary movements who carry old-world threats into an American city.
- Narrow escapes and sudden threats Feel the pressure of brisk scenes that leave safety uncertain and danger close.
- Old-fashioned intrigue Enjoy a plot that puts pursuit, mystery and desperate survival ahead of quiet reflection.
Who will love it
Readers who love fast spy adventures, rooftop chases and fire-escape rescues will enjoy this book. So will anyone drawn to cursed jewels, brave heroines and a warm love story.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- The fog cannot hide Hawksley
- Kitty opens her window to danger
- A story gives the emeralds power
- A rescue reveals Cutty's hidden work
- Karlov cannot crush Gregor's loyalty
- Kitty follows danger into a trap
- The stones reveal what people want
- Love unsettles the people seeking safety
- The chase carries three linked stories
Who’s who
- Kitty ConoverA witty twenty-four-year-old newspaper woman in New York who feeds a stranger and soon finds herself in the middle of a hunt.
- John HawksleyA gifted violinist raised in England who has crossed the world with a pouch of jewels and wants a new life as an American.
- CuttyA fifty-two-year-old war correspondent and secret government agent who loves green stones and promises to protect Kitty.
- Boris KarlovA powerful Russian anarchist with a private grudge who wants the fugitive's death and the two emeralds.
- Stefani GregorA gentle old violinist working as a hotel valet who has long sheltered Hawksley and is now a captive.
- Captain HarrisonAn army surgeon and Cutty's friend who tends the wounded man and helps keep his hiding place secret.
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The Drums of Jeopardy in 25 languages, side by side, paragraph by paragraph, once the book texts are online: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
The Drums of Jeopardy
by Harold MacGrath · 1920
A hunted man with two emeralds at his throat finds shelter, and trouble, in a New York girl's kitchen.
Medium level5–10 hours to read20 languages
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“Hungry, and not a crumb!”
In short
What would you do if a stranger appeared at your kitchen window, hungry, bruised and begging for bread? Kitty Conover, a newspaper woman in New York, hands him eggs, bacon and milk.
The Drums of Jeopardy at a glance
- Reading time
- About 5 h 50 min4 h 40 min fast, 6 h 55 min slow
- Length
- 83,400 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1920by Harold MacGrath
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A fugitive steps off the train into fog
The story opens at half past three on a cold March morning in Albany. A night train drops a few passengers into a fog so thick that the station lamps look like pale stars. One of them is a man in a long black coat and a low derby, carrying a scarred English kitbag.
He believes the fog has finally hidden him. But a short, thickset shadow slips down the platform behind him.
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Details
- First published
- 1920
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 6 h 25 min
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
MacGrath, Harold. The Drums of Jeopardy. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-drums-of-jeopardy.
MacGrath, H. (2026). The drums of jeopardy. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-drums-of-jeopardy (Original work published 1920)
MacGrath, Harold. The Drums of Jeopardy. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-drums-of-jeopardy.
@book{macgrath2026drums,
author = {MacGrath, Harold},
title = {The Drums of Jeopardy},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/the-drums-of-jeopardy},
note = {First published 1920}
}
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What is The Drums of Jeopardy about?
A fugitive crosses the world with a pouch of jewels and lands in New York, where a newspaper woman named Kitty Conover shelters him. A war correspondent who is also a secret agent helps, while an anarchist hunts them all.
What are the drums of jeopardy?
They are two matching emeralds set as drumheads in carved ivory drummers. Cutty describes them as stones with a history of loot and murder, said to bring misfortune. The name draws on that old superstition about cursed gems.
Who is Cutty in the book?
Cutty is a gray-haired war correspondent and Kitty's godfather. He collects drums and polished green stones, speaks many languages, and secretly works for the American government, watching for dangerous foreign agitators in the months after the Great War.
The author
Harold MacGrath
1871–1932 · American novelist and screenwriter
Harold MacGrath (1871–1932) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and screenwriter. He was born in Syracuse, New York, and died there. His novels included The Lure of the Mask (1908), The Place of Honeymoons (1912), and The Drums of Jeopardy (1920). Several of his works were adapted for films.
“Hungry, and not a crumb!”
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