The Double Florin

The Double Florin is a 1924 thriller novel by John Rhode, the pen name of the British writer Cecil Street. Like H.C. McNeile's Bulldog Drummond and Agatha Christie's The Secret Adversary the plot revolves around a Bolshevik conspiracy to destroy capitalism and western democracy. The title refers to the Double florin coin.

It was his second published novel and anticipated the introduction of his best-known character Dr. Priestley in his following book The Paddington Mystery. The conspiracy is being directed by Professor Sanderson, a brilliant mathematician. Sanderson is not himself a communist, but is manipulating the organisation to try and create a new order based on pure reason.

Synopsis
A young English aristocrat Lord Robert Mountmichael is recruited by LIDO, a secret organisation formed by international financiers to battle the forces of disorder. He eventually exposes the Professor as the mastermind behind the plot to destroy Britain's social system as a prelude to world collapse, while falling in love with his daughter Joan. After exposing Sanderson's true motivation, the professor is shot dead by one of his fanatical henchman.