Description

On a crisp February morning, the passengers of a French steamship notice a sleek silver contraption slicing through the sky at impossible speed. The machine, a compact aircraft of gleaming aluminum, resembles a giant dragonfly and carries three determined men: the inventive John Raffles, his close friend Charly Brand, and their loyal driver James Henderson. Their creation, humorously nicknamed the “Devil of the Air,” ignites curiosity and a hint of danger among the onlookers.

The trio steers the craft southward, skimming the French coast, over the Mediterranean, and toward the blazing heat of Africa. Inside, they manage a modest kitchen powered by the aircraft’s electric engine, sharing hot chocolate while navigating with instruments that measure speed, altitude, and barometric pressure. As the silhouette of Alexandria appears on the horizon, a silent promise hangs in the air—one that ties their daring flight to the mysterious fate of Eleonore Manoury, a woman whose story begins to unfold beneath the clouds.

Details