11 h 56 minAudiobook14 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at cost
Audiobook edition · 11 h 56 minPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What happens when the person charged with guiding your heart becomes the one who unsettles it?
Dorriforth, a Catholic priest of firm principle, becomes guardian to Miss Milner after her father's death. She is clever, fashionable and fond of admiration. He values duty; she resists being ruled. In Elizabeth Inchbald's A Simple Story, their shared household becomes a place where affection presses against rules.
As their bond grows beyond formal respect, pride and jealousy put it under strain. Miss Woodley offers comfort, while Mr. Sandford speaks his mind plainly. The danger lies less in villains than in ordinary failings: a wish to be admired, an explanation withheld, a principle held too tightly.
What you’ll discover
- A spirited, difficult heroine Meet Miss Milner, whose charm and resistance to restraint make affection anything but simple.
- Duty against the heart Follow Dorriforth as his responsibility for his ward comes into conflict with his feelings.
- Drama in small gestures Feel tension gather around a conversation, a look, or a door that stays shut.
- The weight of upbringing Explore how harshness and indulgence shape the ways people love and hurt one another.
- Consequences across generations Discover a family drama whose second half asks what the young inherit from earlier choices.
Who will love it
You will enjoy this if you like character-driven stories, sharp drawing-room dialogue, and tales of guardians, vows, and family pride. It suits anyone who loves watching two stubborn hearts argue.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A dying father chooses a priest as guardian
- Miss Milner arrives and unsettles the household
- Suitors, a quarrel, and a command that works
- Sandford, the stern tutor, and a child named Harry
- A challenge, a duel, and a confession that is not true
- A secret love and a separation to Bath
- Lord Elmwood, Miss Fenton, and a love under test
- A daughter who may live in the house but not be seen
- Education, passion, and the cost of a stubborn heart
- How Mrs. Inchbald tells the story
Who’s who
- DorriforthA principled Catholic priest in his thirties who becomes guardian to his friend's daughter and tries to keep both his vows and his temper.
- Miss MilnerA beautiful, witty young heiress who is used to having her own way and who hides a generous, passionate heart.
- Miss WoodleyA plain, cheerful, kindly woman who becomes the heroine's closest friend and keeps her secret.
- Mr. SandfordA stern, learned priest and tutor who dislikes the ward's vanity but proves loyal to those he protects.
- Lord Frederick LawnlyA handsome young nobleman and a persistent admirer who wants to win the heiress.
- Harry RushbrookDorriforth's orphaned nephew, first a child he refuses to see, later a grateful young heir.
- Lady MatildaA gentle, dutiful young woman who is allowed under her father's roof only if she never comes into his sight.
- Viscount MargraveA country nobleman who pursues Matilda and will not accept a refusal.
Formats and delivery
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- Audiobook
- Read by Lucas Linden, complete. It opens once the recording is online.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 14 minutes, to read today.
- Paperback
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- Hardcover
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- Large print paperback
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- Large print hardcover
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A Simple Story
by Elizabeth Inchbald · 1791
A dying father hands his flighty daughter to a Catholic priest, and a guardian's duty starts to feel like love.
Medium level10–20 hours to readEnglish
Excellent
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In short
What happens when a dying man gives his only daughter to the one friend he trusts, and that friend is a priest who has vowed never to marry? In A Simple Story, Mrs.
A Simple Story at a glance
- Reading time
- About 6 h 35 min5 h 15 min fast, 7 h 50 min slow
- Length
- 93,900 words
- Library level
- Medium longer sentences, everyday words
- First published
- 1791by Elizabeth Inchbald
Reading time at 238 words a minute (fast 300, slow 200). How long the classics take to read · Updated
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A dying father chooses a priest as guardian
The story opens at a deathbed. Mr. Milner knows he has only hours left, and he thinks hard about who will protect his eighteen-year-old daughter. He does not trust her fashionable friends, because they are friends only in good weather. He chooses Dorriforth, a Catholic priest who lives in the middle of London and tries to do good there.
Mr. Milner believes this man will protect without controlling. He sets one condition. Dorriforth must never trouble her mind with his own religion, because she was raised in her mother's Protestant faith. Miss Milner is not even at the bedside. A nervous friend kept the news of her father's illness from her at Bath, so she hears of his death before his sickness.
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Which edition is right for me
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas of the whole book in about 14 minutes. A good first look, or a refresher.
Details
- First published
- 1791
- Language
- English
- Reading time
- 7 h 45 min
- Level
- Medium level
Cite this edition
Inchbald, Elizabeth. A Simple Story. Library of Alexandria, 2026, libraryofalexandria.com/products/a-simple-story.
Inchbald, E. (2026). A simple story. Library of Alexandria. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/a-simple-story (Original work published 1791)
Inchbald, Elizabeth. A Simple Story. Library of Alexandria, 2026. https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/a-simple-story.
@book{inchbald2026simple,
author = {Inchbald, Elizabeth},
title = {A Simple Story},
publisher = {Library of Alexandria},
year = {2026},
url = {https://libraryofalexandria.com/products/a-simple-story},
note = {First published 1791}
}
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What is A Simple Story about?
It follows a Catholic priest who becomes guardian to a spirited young heiress after her father's death. Their quarrels, suitors, and hidden feelings fill the first half. The second half follows their daughter, who must live in her father's house without being seen by him.
Who is Dorriforth in A Simple Story?
Dorriforth is a priest of about thirty, trained abroad and living in London, whom Mr. Milner names as guardian of his daughter. He is principled, gentle, and capable of great firmness. Later he inherits the title Lord Elmwood.
Why is the novel called A Simple Story?
The title is modest and a little ironic. The plot is a plain family story told in clear scenes, but it is full of conflicting feelings, duty, pride, and love. Mrs. Inchbald lets the characters do the complicating.
The author
Elizabeth Inchbald
1753–1821 · English novelist and playwright
Elizabeth Inchbald (1753–1821), known as Mrs. Inchbald, was an English novelist, playwright, and actress. She was born in Stanningfield, Suffolk, and later lived in London. Her novels were A Simple Story (1791) and Nature and Art (1796). She also wrote plays for the stage. She died in Kensington.
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