Release date is 2026-05-17

Al Haines

"The trail of the White Knight" by Bruce Graeme is a novel written in the early 20th century. Set during the Hungarian Soviet Republic, it follows a mysterious avenger known as the White Knight and his English lieutenant Arnold Terhune as they challenge the Red terror with audacious rescues of persecuted families. The tale blends personal grief with political intrigue, drawing in households like the Bakocz and the Kiss while ruthless new rulers hunt the insurgent hero.

The opening of The trail of the White Knight begins with an idyllic Budapest romance between Geoffrey Templeton and Zita, cut short by war and the rise of Bolshevism; Geoffrey returns to a terror-stricken city and finds Zita dead beside her murdered father, a white knight chess piece in her hand. The scene shifts to Budapest’s streets, where brutal enforcers like Wenzel and Garami boast as rumors spread of a rescuer who leaves a white knight token. Terhune, an Englishman serving this enigmatic figure, secretly visits the Bakocz family and vows the Count’s salvation. He then infiltrates the prison, drugs the guards, fells Wenzel, and engineers a clever switch that frees the Count while leaving a corpse decoy—and the White Knight’s signature piece—behind. At the Soviet council, Bela Kun and Szamuelly rage as Wenzel vanishes, another white knight found in his room. The narrative then turns to Castle Gisella, where the scholar Imre Kiss and his daughter Elizabeth learn of the Communist takeover and, despite Elizabeth’s defiance, see their servants waver and a mob led by city Reds seize and desecrate their home. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Originally published: London: George G. Harrap & Co. Ltd., 1920