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(This is the first of the Dr Nikola novels; "Dr Nikola" is the next) Richard Hatteras, having made his fortune in Australia, sets off for England in search of his father's people. On the boat he falls in love with Sylvia Wetherell, daughter of the Colonial Secretary, but her father forbids their courtship. In England, Hatteras becomes unwittingly enmeshed in the plans of the mysterious Dr Nikola to pursue some private vendetta against the elder Wetherall, setting off a chase halfway around the world to save the woman he loves.