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A Very Dangerous Pursuit

Brief Description
Adventure can be a deadly business. It began in the manner of all the very best adventures: in a coffee house. When one Richard Hannay—intrepid, inquisitive, and on the hunt for intrigue—encounters an old acquaintance in Constantinople, he has an inkling that something thrilling is afoot.... Read More
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Adventure can be a deadly business.

An unforgettable debut novel from the bestselling author, director and comedian

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

Adventure can be a deadly business.

It began in the manner of all the very best adventures: in a coffee house.

When one Richard Hannay—intrepid, inquisitive, and on the hunt for intrigue—encounters an old acquaintance in Constantinople, he has an inkling that something thrilling is afoot.

Charged with an item of great mystery and import—a washbag, no less!—he soon finds himself in a very dangerous pursuit: from the luxurious confines of the Orient Express to the decks of the Titanic herself, all with the very fate of Europe in his care.

Can he slip the net of Count Schwabing, whose long arm stretches from Berlin to the Bosphorus? And what of Madame Zara, the cabaret enchantress—does she play at affection, deception, or something far more deadly?

In over his head, often a step—or thirty-nine—behind, but absolutely, resolutely determined to save the day, Hannay is about to embark on an escapade that will test his wits, his courage, and his ability to keep hold of a blasted washbag.

Series: The Richard Hannay Adventures

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  • The Island of Sheep
    The Island of Sheep is the fifth, last, and most unusual of the Hannay books. Having returned once again to a quiet life at Fosse Manor, Hannay's life is shaken a final time when the son of an old acquaintance from Africa asks for his help in finishing a feud that goes back thirty years to a hilltop in Rhodesia....
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  • New Release
    A Very Dangerous Pursuit
    Adventure can be a deadly business. It began in the manner of all the very best adventures: in a coffee house. When one Richard Hannay—intrepid, inquisitive, and on the hunt for intrigue—encounters an old acquaintance in Constantinople, he has an inkling that something thrilling is afoot. Charged with an item of great mystery and import—a washbag, no less!—he soon finds...
    Paperback
    $2899
    Elsewhere:
    $3699
    In Stock
    Ships today
  • The Thirty-Nine Steps
    Recently returned from South Africa, adventurer Richard Hannay is bored with life. After a chance encounter with an American who informs him of an assassination plot and is then promptly murdered in Hannay's London flat, he becomes the obvious suspect and is forced to go on the run. He heads north to his native Scotland, fleeing the police and his...
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  • The Three Hostages
    After distinguished service in the First World War, Richard Hannay settles into peaceful domesticity with his wife Mary and their young son. However, news comes to him of three kidnappings. With no more than a few tantalisingly cryptic lines of verse as clues, he is soon on the trail of Dominick Medina—a charismatic polymath but a man 'utterly and consumedly...
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  • Greenmantle
    Richard Hannay is tasked to investigate rumours of an uprising in the Muslim world. He embarks on a hair-raising journey through German-occupied Europe to meet up with his old friend Sandy Arbuthnot in Constantinople. There, they must thwart the Germans' plans to use religion to help them win the war. Set during World War I, Greenmantle is a powerful meditation...
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  • Mr. Standfast
    Mr. Standfast is the third of five Richard Hannay thrillers. Brigadier-General Richard Hannay is recalled from active service on the Western Front and tasked with a secret mission to catch a dangerous German agent who is at large in Britain. Travelling incognito, he infiltrates a community of conscientious objectors with the aim of ferreting out the spy. During this adventure,...
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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780008747466

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 21 May 2026

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: HarperCollins

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 21.0mm

Width: 153.0mm

Height: 234.0mm

Weight: 270g

Pages: 384

About the Author

Ben Miller is a bestselling author, actor and director. He has written several blockbuster books for children, including The Day I Fell Into a Fairytale and Once Upon a Legend. A Very Dangerous Pursuit is his first adult novel.

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    He’ll Huff and He’ll Puff and You’ll Laugh the House Down! A hilarious fairytale mash-up through the eyes of the big bad wolf as you’ve never seen him before! Perfect for fans of Shrek! Thrown out of the pack for being a weakling, Laurence the Wolf is down on his luck. He knows he’s strong, and brave, and cool, but...
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  • Once Upon a Legend
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  • The Boy Who Made the World Disappear
    Turn the page, share the adventure in an out-of-this-world story from million-copy selling author, Ben Miller. 'Fabulous' Sunday Express Harrison tries his best to be good. He doesn’t steal, he always shares with his sister, and he never cheats at board games. However, Harrison also has a BIG flaw: he can't control his temper! So when he’s given a black...
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  • Diary of a Big Bad Wolf
    Once upon a time was only the start... welcome to the Fairytale Woods! Take a look inside the big bad wolf's hilarious secret diary in this instant bestseller from author, comedian and actor Ben Miller. DIARY OF A PUSS IN BOOTS AVAILABLE OUT NOW 'I need to raise my game again now spring is here, and get back in shape....
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  • The Night I Met Father Christmas
    Come on a magical Christmas Eve journey in Santa's sleigh and meet the man himself, in an enchanting picture book from bestselling author, actor and comedian, Ben Miller, beautifully illustrated by Elisa Paganelli. *OUT NOW!*It was quarter to midnight on Christmas Eve. The lights were out all over the land, and children everywhere were asleep in their beds, dreaming of the...
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  • The Night We Got Stuck in a Story
    Climb into the adventure of your dreams in the latest bestselling adventure from Ben Miller! Lana and Harrison are staying with their grandparents, when they discover their favourite tree to play in is under threat. That night, a magical golden thread leads them up through the hollow of the tree into a storybook land, where wind and rain rage and...
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    Too many popular histories seek to establish heroes, pioneers, and martyrs, but as Huw Lemmey and Ben Miller argue, the past is filled with queer people whose sexualities and/or dastardly deeds have been overlooked. We all remember Oscar Wilde, but who speaks for Bosie? What about those 'bad gays' whose un-exemplary lives reveal more than we might expect? Part-revisionist history,...
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  • The Day I Fell Into a Fairytale
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