The Thirty-Nine Steps cover art

The Thirty-Nine Steps

 Preview

Get 30 days of Standard free

£5.99/mo after trial. Cancel monthly.
Try for £0.00
More purchase options
Buy Now for £10.62

Buy Now for £10.62

About this listen

Exclusively from Audible

An espionage thriller that has been called the first great spy novel, it has sustained its popularity, being embraced by each new generation.

The first in a series of five audiobooks it features the spy Richard Hannay, an action hero with a stiff upper lip who gets caught up in a dangerous race against a plot by German spies to destroy the British war effort.

When Richard Hannay offers sanctuary to an American agent seeking his help in stopping a political assassination, he takes the first step on a trail of peril, murder, and espionage. Days later the agent's murdered body turns up in Hannay's flat, making him the prime suspect.

Knowing he's next he goes into hiding in Scotland, but in his possession is the American agent's little black book that holds the key to the conspiracy. On the run from both the police and members of a mysterious organisation that will stop at nothing to keep their secrets hidden, the book has become one of the most influential chase books, adopted by many, including Hollywood, but with an unrivalled tension.

The novel has been the basis for many adaptations although most have departed from the text. Most famous is Alfred Hitchcock's classic film The 39 Steps released in 1935.

Narrator Biography

Robert Powell received his first starring role in The Italian Job (1969) and is best known for the title role in the television series Jesus of Nazareth (1977). He received Best Actor awards for his performances in Imperativ (1982) and Harlequin (1980). His television career has included appearing in BBC One's Holby City (2005-2011) and the "science-fact" drama Doomwatch (1970) as well as starring alongside Jasper Carrott in the sitcom The Detectives (1993-1997). He has a distinctive voice that has narrated documentaries including World War II in HD Colour, Hitler's Bodyguard, The Story of the Third Reich and Secrets of World War II. In 2013 he narrated the dramatic television series The Bible. He has narrated many fictional and historical audiobooks including Rebecca's Tale, The Well-Beloved and The Thirty-Nine Steps.

Public Domain (P)2014 Audible, Inc. Action & Adventure Classics Mystery Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Espionage Exciting Funny Suspense War Fiction
All stars
Most relevant
a ripping yarn taking you across britain from the centre of london to the highlands of scotland, the description of the innkeeper and the politician are a real delight and it leave you in suspense right to the very end

the thirty nine steps

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Some may find this 1915-penned adventure yarn too dated and unbelievable, but I love Buchan's spare, tight writing style which drives the story along. Robert Powell brings just the right world-weary, risk-anything tone to the central character of Richard Hannay, the mining engineer who flees to Scotland after the murder in his flat of an English spy, only to be chased by both the police and murderous German spies. Powell is also completely convincing in his handling of the diverse characters that Hannay meets on his adventures, making for a wonderfully engaging audiobook.

Alas this Audible version has noticeable drops in volume for quite lengthy passages. I'd knock a star off for that, but Powell's reading is so terrific that I'll put up with the sound faults for the sheer pleasure of hearing this recording.

Sublime reading but with sound faults

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
There have been many movies, of varying quality, and at least two dramatised radio versions, probably better than any screen adaptations, but this audio-book takes us back to the original and still the best version, where 39 steps really do mean 39 steps, and the menace of German agents in the years up to the outbreak of war is palpable. No playing around with deep cover master spies with missing fingers; here the German mastermind is not only a master chameleon but one who can hood his eyes as only an agent of the Kaiser could ever do. Listen to the our hero's rapid disgust with Edwardian London, watch in your mind's eye as he thinks on the hoof, whether trying to get away from the murder scene unnoticed or trying to get as far away as possible by train lines and drover roads over the Galloway hills. A tale of daring do, this remains all the more exciting as our hero is making it up as he goes along, his experiences in Africa providing far less in the way of survival skills than we might expect. His dealings with road menders, inn keepers, and cads of the highest order demonstrate his honest ordinariness. At every turn his desire not just to survive but to find out what the Germans are trying to do that is so important they will do almost anything to capture him keeps the listener engaged. Though these times may be almost a hundred years ago, this is still a modern world of railways and telephones, and more particularly of short-sighted xenophobia that ignores the real threats to Britain and its way of life, all of which retains a certain currency even today. So, listen to this original version, particularly if you have little interest in music hall memory men, preferring your 39 Steps to be about spies thwarted at the very last by an ordinary person cast up amidst extraordinary times. It's almost as good as Geoffrey Household's more intense Rogue Male, another loner on the run from German agents 25 year later.

Forget Hitchcock return to Buchan

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

It is so much better than any of the distorted films made of the book.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Thirty-Nine Steps?

I would look for more by author and certainly look out for the narrator.

Have you listened to any of Robert Powell’s other performances? How does this one compare?

Excellent narrator.Does not intrude actor type over emphasis or irritating over dramatic performance. Id listen to him again anytime, reading the phone book if you like.

If you made a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Stay true to the book.

Any additional comments?

As thrilling as I remember when I read it at school. Timeless. Accept the few non PC comments as a sign of the time it was written and be thankful that we've moved on.

Excellent - a masterclass in writing.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The story is so well known there is little to add but Powell is a superb Narrator and brings the yarn to life.

Wonderfully narrated

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews