E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

author

E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

1866–1921

Best known for creating the gentleman thief A. J. Raffles, this English writer brought a sly charm to crime fiction and helped shape the modern antihero. His work also ranged widely, from novels and short stories to war writing drawn from personal loss and experience.

30 Audiobooks

The Amateur Cracksman

The Amateur Cracksman

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

Dead Men Tell No Tales

Dead Men Tell No Tales

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

The Amateur Cracksman

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

Raffles: Further Adventures of the Amateur Cracksman

Raffles: Further Adventures of the Amateur Cracksman

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

A Thief in the Night: A Book of Raffles' Adventures

A Thief in the Night: A Book of Raffles' Adventures

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

The Shadow of the Rope

The Shadow of the Rope

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

A Thief in the Night: Further adventures of A. J. Raffles, Cricketer and Cracksman

A Thief in the Night: Further adventures of A. J. Raffles, Cricketer and Cracksman

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

No Hero

No Hero

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

The Crime Doctor

The Crime Doctor

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

Mr. Justice Raffles

Mr. Justice Raffles

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

Witching Hill

Witching Hill

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

Fathers of Men

Fathers of Men

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

The Unbidden Guest

The Unbidden Guest

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

A Bride from the Bush

A Bride from the Bush

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

The Thousandth Woman

The Thousandth Woman

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

The Camera Fiend

The Camera Fiend

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

Some Persons Unknown

Some Persons Unknown

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

Notes of a Camp-Follower on the Western Front

Notes of a Camp-Follower on the Western Front

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

Stingaree

Stingaree

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

Denis Dent: A Novel

Denis Dent: A Novel

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

Peccavi

Peccavi

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

Tiny Luttrell

Tiny Luttrell

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

The Shadow of a Man

The Shadow of a Man

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

At Large

At Large

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

Index of the Project Gutenberg Works of E. W. Hornung

Index of the Project Gutenberg Works of E. W. Hornung

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

Young Blood

Young Blood

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

The Boss of Taroomba

The Boss of Taroomba

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

My Lord Duke

My Lord Duke

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

The Young Guard

The Young Guard

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

The Ballad of Ensign Joy

The Ballad of Ensign Joy

by E. W. (Ernest William) Hornung

About the author

Born in Middlesbrough in 1866, Ernest William Hornung was educated in England and spent a period in Australia as a young man, an experience that fed into some of his early fiction. He went on to build a busy literary career as a novelist and short-story writer, publishing across adventure, mystery, and crime.

Hornung is most warmly remembered for the Raffles stories, beginning with The Amateur Cracksman, which introduced the polished burglar A. J. Raffles and his companion Bunny Manders. The character gave readers a witty, unconventional criminal hero and secured Hornung a lasting place in popular fiction.

His life was marked by close literary ties and deep personal sorrow: he married Constance Doyle, sister of Arthur Conan Doyle, and later wrote about the First World War after the death of his son. He died in 1921, but his Raffles tales in particular have continued to attract readers for more than a century.