When Richard Hannay is warned of an assassination plot that has potential to take Britain into a war, and then discovers in his flat the murdered body of the American that warned him, he becomes a prime suspect. He flees to the moors of Scotland and a spirited chase begins as he is pursued by the police and the German spies involved with stealing British plans. Buchan's tale unfolds into one of the seminal and most influential 'chase' books, mimicked by many, yet unrivaled in the tension and mystery created by his writing.