The Hollow Needle is one of Maurice Leblanc's best-known novels. In it the famous gentleman-burglar and master of disguises Arsene Lupin finds himself playing an intense game of cat and mouse with the young, surprisingly apt amateur-detective Isidore Beautrelet. Old foes Detective Ganimard and the famous English detective Holmlock Shears (so renamed to avoid copyright infringement) also make appearances. Lupin is chasing the most valuable object he has ever had the opportunity to steal: the Hollow Needle, which hides unfathomable treasure and a secret that the kings of France have been handing down since the time of Julius Caesar