Mr. Petre

Hilaire Belloc's Mr. Petre is a satirical mystery of finance, identity, and social panic, beginning in a forward-looking world of eased travel and altered customs before plunging into the private collapse of a man returning to England from America. Middle-aged, outwardly composed, and faintly American in manner, John K. Petre arrives with practical worries and then discovers something far worse: his memory has fallen away, leaving him able to navigate modern life but unable to recall his past, his name, or even the bond between himself and his own identity. At a grand London hotel, Petre's blankness is masked by the staff's startling reverence, while reporters and opportunists circle the famous name as if it were a financial weapon. As he buys clothes, avoids exposure, and receives a tantalizing call from Celia Cyril and a note from Mrs. Cyril, he is drawn deeper into a social mystery that may reveal both his history and his disgrace. Meanwhile, his hidden influence distorts business and politics alike, from the Paddenham Site scheme and the huge sums it unleashes to speculation over American Rotors, as Terrard, bankers, and society all misread the strangely indifferent man who may control everything. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.