The Ace of Knaves

infobox Book |
name = The Ace of Knaves
also The Saint in Action
title_orig =
translator =


image_caption = Early 1980s reprint edition, with alternate title
author = Leslie Charteris
cover_artist =
country = United Kingdom
language = English
series = The Saint
genre = Mystery, Novellas
publisher = Hodder and Stoughton
release_date = 1937
media_type = Print (Hardback & Paperback)
pages =
isbn = NA
preceded_by = Saint Overboard
followed_by = Thieves' Picnic

"The Ace of Knaves" is a collection of three mystery novellas by Leslie Charteris, first published in the United Kingdom in 1937 by Hodder and Stoughton, and in the United States by The Crime Club. This book continues the adventures of Charteris' creation, Simon Templar, alias The Saint. Later editions of the book were retitled "The Saint in Action". The adventures in this book mark the return of Templar's longtime girlfriend and partner Patricia Holm and his nemesis, Chief Inspector Claud Eustace Teal since "The Saint Goes On".

tories

The book consisted of the following stories:

#The Spanish War - A 10 pound debt turns into a mystery involving $30,000 in bearer bonds, a dead body, and a connection to the (then-current) Spanish Civil War.
#The Unlicensed Victuallers - When Templar and his crew pursue a liquor-smuggling racket, their mission becomes complicated when they discover a beautiful blonde is somehow caught up in it and Templar becomes concerned that she is somehow connected to a murder.
#The Beauty Specialist - The Saint is suspected of being "The Z-Man", a mysterious figure who is blackmailing a trio of movie starlets. It's up to Simon and Patricia Holm to protect the women until the blackmailer's real identity is revealed.