The Gold-bug

My Thoughts

This was my first introduction into Poe's use of deductive reasoning and I simply could not put the book down. The story focuses on an eldritch gold beetle discovered on Sullivan's Island, South Carolina, but egresses far beyond the direction expected. Poe's detailed writing allows the acumen of William Legrand to slowly become apparent through profound deduction. At the very start, Poe brilliantly leads you to believe that Mr. Legrand is stricken with some mysterious malady and is in the process of going mad, but it turns out he was keener than previously anticipated.

This is also the oldest story I have read that deals with cryptography in a decent amount of detail. It also made for an exciting adventure as the mystery began to unfold. I almost immediately thought of the book Treasure Island and was not surprised to read that Stevenson was directly inspired by Poe. By the end of the tale, I was looking up how much a million and a half dollars from the 1840s would be worth today. It is almost fifty million dollars!

My Rating

I would give the story a 4 out of 5. It was a great story. It turns out I learned a few things as well, such as who Captain Kidd was and his unfortunate fate.