
audiobook
John Lott is a modest banking clerk whose quiet routine in North London is shattered by a sudden death that forces him to abandon his comfortable home and head on foot toward Petersham. The vivid, blood‑red twilight and the urgent need to collect his thoughts set a tense mood as he hurries to Oak Lodge, a place tied to a puzzling inheritance. In his mind, ordinary comforts like tea‑cake and his family fade, replaced by a looming sense of duty and danger.
The story unfolds around a legacy of ten thousand pounds left to John by an enigmatic lady, a sum that has drawn the attention of a relentless relative who has coveted his life for fifteen years. As John confronts the legacy’s hidden threats, he must navigate family secrets, a step‑father’s shadowy past, and the moral choices that define his character. The early chapters promise a blend of personal drama and railway‑era intrigue, inviting listeners to follow his fraught journey toward an uncertain resolution.
Language
en
Duration
~52 minutes (50K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by readbueno, Graeme Mackreth and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/American Libraries.)
Release date
2017-06-12
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1862–1960
Best known for vivid stories set on Dartmoor, this remarkably prolific English writer produced novels, plays, poems, and mysteries across a career that lasted for decades. His work is closely tied to the landscapes of Devon, which gave many of his books their strong sense of place.
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