When John Buchan wrote The Thirty-nine Steps, he could not have imagined that it would revolutionize suspense fiction. The 1915 novel, which first appeared in serial form, has been hailed as the progenitor of espionage fiction, influencing such masters as Ian Fleming and John LeCarré. Buchan combines the more typical convoluted plot of trying to solve one crime and prevent another with the relatable theme of the innocent man falsely accused. Rather than being a detective like Sherlock Holmes who is dedicated to solving crimes, the protagonist, Richard Hannay, is an Everyman who falls into a bizarre situation and then must solve the mystery, both to avert war and to save himself.

A hero like Hannay, whom trouble finds when he least expects it, appeals to varied readers who have found themselves in such predicaments (although world peace was probably rarely at stake). The novel does not aim for psychological depth or social critique.

In addition, Buchan increases the reader’s interest through presenting picturesque settings and interactions with a variety of characters. The suspense builds because the reader, like Hannay, does not know who he can trust. The initial set-up, in which Hannay decides to trust a stranger who is his neighbor, establishes the dominant theme of suspicion and trust.

The novel succeeds primarily as a set of mysteries. It is a whodunit—who killed Hannay’s neighbor Scudder? It is also a spy novel—will Hannay thwart the theft of state secrets? While some mysteries are solved as it goes along, the big questions stay with the reader: Will Hannay escape his pursuers and clear his name? And, finally, what are those thirty-nine steps?

Buchan succeeds largely by combining a complicated plot and interesting settings with a likable protagonist. The reader can find little fault with Hannay, and though his particular situation is far-fetched, it is easy to identify with someone pursued and blamed for something he did not do. Buchan became a pioneer whose original work effectively created a template for subsequent mystery writers, a formula so successful that, for decades, few deviated significantly from it.