Kidnapped
Robert Louis Stevenson
Kidnapped
FictionAdventureMysteryClassicsHistorical Fiction
37 chapters·8h 18m listening
3.79from 69,214 ratingson Goodreads
"Kidnapped" by Robert Louis Stevenson is a historical fiction adventure novel first published in 1886. Seventeen-year-old David Balfour's life takes a dark turn when his uncle betrays him, leading to his kidnapping and forced voyage to colonial servitude. After a shipwreck reunites him with Alan Breck Stewart, a fugitive Jacobite, the two become unlikely companions fleeing through the dangerous Scottish Highlands. Set against the turbulent backdrop of 18th-century Scotland, their journey intertwines with real historical events, including a notorious murder that threatens both their lives.
Contains spoilers for the entire book
- Themes
- Atmosphere
About the book
First serialized in 1886, Kidnapped is narrated by David Balfour, a young Lowlander who sets out in 1751 to claim his inheritance from his miserly uncle Ebenezer. Instead he is tricked aboard a ship bound for the Carolinas, where he is to be sold into servitude, and his escape throws him together with Alan Breck Stewart, a proud and quick-tempered Jacobite. Robert Louis Stevenson sends the two across the Scottish Highlands in flight from redcoats after a real killing of 1752, the Appin murder, in which both fall under suspicion. Their uneasy friendship, between a cautious Whig and a reckless Highlander, gives the adventure its heart, and Stevenson continued David’s story in Catriona.
Characters
David Balfour — Narrator
A young orphan who goes to claim his inheritance and is drawn into danger in the Scottish Highlands.
Alan Breck Stewart — Companion
A proud Jacobite soldier whose courage and quarrelsome loyalty bind him to David.
Ebenezer Balfour — David's uncle
The suspicious, miserly owner of the House of Shaws, reluctant to acknowledge his nephew's claims.
Captain Hoseason — Ship's captain
The master of the Covenant, whose commercial dealings place David at his mercy.
Mr. Rankeillor — Lawyer
A perceptive lawyer whose knowledge of the Balfour family offers David a possible means of redress.
About the author
Robert Louis Stevenson (1850–1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist and travel writer who abandoned the family trade of lighthouse engineering, then the law, for writing, and spent his life moving in search of a climate his lungs could bear. He wrote the first draft of Jekyll and Hyde in a few days after dreaming it, burned it when his wife objected to it, and wrote it again. He settled finally in Samoa, took the islanders' side against the colonial administration, and died there at forty-four. His books include Treasure Island, Kidnapped and A Child's Garden of Verses.