
Nestled on a gentle hill beside a sparkling mountain river, the Blencarrow household offers a picture‑perfect slice of country life. The modest yet handsome house overlooks a patchwork of gardens, a distant lake, and the red‑tiled roofs of a nearby village, while its drawing‑room windows frame ever‑changing light on the water. Inside, the widowed Mrs. Blencarrow runs a quiet, well‑ordered home with five children, hosting pleasant dinner parties and lively dances that reflect her dignified yet warm hospitality.
Beneath the genteel surface, however, murmurs linger about the lady’s past. Visitors from farther afield sense an unreadable depth in her eyes, prompting the locals to whisper of a “history” that might conceal secrets. When a curious stranger arrives, drawn by the serene setting and the subtle intrigue, the household’s calm routine begins to stir, hinting that not all is as tranquil as it seems.
Language
en
Duration
~2 hours (133K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Chuck Greif and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This book was produced from images made available by the HathiTrust Digital Library.)
Release date
2020-02-22
Rights
Public domain in the USA.

1828–1897
A hugely popular Victorian novelist and critic, she wrote with remarkable range and speed, turning out fiction, essays, biographies, and supernatural tales across a long career. Her work often brings everyday family life into vivid focus while also making room for mystery, history, and sharp social observation.
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