5 h 41 minAudiobook5 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if the ghost is a trick—and someone is counting on your fear?
In A Master of Mysteries, L. T. Meade and Robert Eustace bring John Bell face to face with apparently uncanny events. A house seems haunted. A curse seems to work. Where others see spirits, Bell sees a claim to test. His task is to find a plain cause beneath the fear—and uncover who has reason to create it.
These six detective stories explore ghostly deception, hidden science, and the power of belief. Their central concerns are Bell’s practical method, the machinery that makes strange effects possible, and the fear that villains exploit. Medicine and chemistry offer possibilities that look like magic to the unwary. The tension lies between what people believe and what Bell can establish.
What you’ll discover
- Ghosts put to the test Follow Bell as he treats each apparent haunting as a problem rather than proof.
- Science behind the strange Explore how nature and technique can produce effects that seem to defy explanation.
- Fear becomes a weapon See how belief in a curse gives a deceiver room to act.
- Motives beneath the mystery Look beyond the supposed spirits for people with something to gain.
- Brisk Victorian puzzles Enjoy short cases where uncanny atmosphere meets a determined search for plain causes.
Who will love it
Readers who love puzzles, haunted houses and clever inventions will enjoy it, along with anyone who likes a Victorian sleuth, a lantern in a dark vault and an explanation that clicks into place.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A ghost hunter sleeps in the haunted room
- A family curse hangs on a closed door
- Two signalmen die at the mouth of a tunnel
- A midnight voice calls from an empty lock
- An idol speaks and a niece fears for her life
- A turret room, a sick man and a missed train
Who’s who
- John BellA professional ghost exposer who investigates hauntings through science and tells each case in his own voice.
- EdgcombeBell's lawyer and old friend, who brings him the case of the dead painter at the Castle Inn.
- BindlossThe gruff old landlord of the Castle Inn, who warns his only guests away.
- LizThe frightened granddaughter at the Castle Inn, who begs Bell to leave.
- Allen ClintonThe young heir of Clinton Abbey, torn between his dying father's plea and his engagement to Phyllis.
- Helen ThesigerA brave young woman who fears her cousin's plans for her uncle and for herself.
- Arthur CressleyA mild, rich man home from Australia who wants to restore the family hall.
- WickhamA broad, watchful passenger who befriends Cressley and makes Bell uneasy.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 5 h 41 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 5 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
eBooks and audiobooks open right away. Download EPUB or PDF, or send the book to your Kindle. Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then USD 0.14 a day in your first year on the yearly plan and USD 0.27 a day after, or USD 0.66 a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
Read and hear A Master of Mysteries in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
A Master of Mysteries
by L. T. Meade; Robert Eustace · 1898
Bell poses as a photographer to investigate a painter's death at the Castle Inn.
Easy read5–10 hours to read25 languages
Excellent
- Read or listen
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then USD 0.14 a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
In short
What kind of man sleeps in a room where guests have died? John Bell does.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A ghost hunter sleeps in the haunted room
The book opens with John Bell, a man of private means who has made a profession of clearing haunted houses. He holds that every ghost has a cause, and that science can find it. Six cases show his method, and the first sets the pattern.
The lawyer Edgcombe asks Bell to look into the sudden death of the young painter Archibald Wentworth at the Castle Inn, a lonely stone house on the River Merran. The coroner can name only syncope, which is a polite way of saying the cause is unknown. Posing as a photographer, Bell hears the village gossip, meets Dr. Stanmore, and asks him to raise an alarm if he is not back in three days. At the inn he meets the old landlord Bindloss, his stern wife and a frightened girl named Liz, who begs him not to stay.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
Free gifts
USD 580 in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
USD 170FREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
USD 120FREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
USD 60FREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
USD 60FREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
USD 170FREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about A Master of Mysteries
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is A Master of Mysteries about?
It is a set of six tales about John Bell, a private investigator who exposes fake hauntings.
Who is John Bell in A Master of Mysteries?
Bell is a professional ghost exposer who makes scientific explanations of apparent hauntings his life's work. He tells each tale himself, and he relies on science, nerve and close observation, often putting himself in danger to test a theory.
Is A Master of Mysteries a true story?
A Master of Mysteries gathers six cases involving John Bell, a private ghost exposer who investigates seemingly supernatural events with a clear head and a working knowledge of science.
More by L. T. Meade; Robert Eustace
All 8 booksMore like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
