The Trail of the Serpent
Enriched edition. A Victorian Gothic Mystery of Deceit, Obsession, Vengeance, and Dark Secrets in 19th-Century EnglandBy Mary Elizabeth Braddon
Length16h 32m
About this audiobook
In 'The Trail of the Serpent,' Mary Elizabeth Braddon intricately weaves a tale of psychological depth and moral complexity, showcasing the Victorian fascination with crime and morality. This sensational novel combines elements of gothic horror, mystery, and social critique, encapsulated in Braddon's characteristic vivid prose and acute character studies. The narrative follows a series of tragic events tied to the enigmatic figure of a serpent, symbolizing deceit and corruption, as it explores themes of obsession, vengeance, and the darker aspects of human nature, reflecting the societal anxieties of her time. Mary Elizabeth Braddon, a prominent Victorian novelist and a pioneer of the sensation fiction genre, drew inspiration from her own experiences in publishing and the dramatic contexts of 19th-century London. Her background as a writer and editor, coupled with her exposure to the societal issues of her era, informed her nuanced portrayal of women and their struggles, often set against the backdrop of moral dilemmas and the complexities of personal relationships. Braddon's innovative work paved the way for future generations of writers, blending suspense with deep psychological insights. Readers interested in the intricacies of human emotions and the societal constructs of the Victorian period will find 'The Trail of the Serpent' particularly compelling. Braddon's masterful storytelling invites you to reflect on the nature of evil and the boundaries of morality, making this novel an essential read for anyone fascinated by psychological thrillers and historical literature.
In this enriched edition, we have carefully created added value for your reading experience:
- A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes.
- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.
- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing.
- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.
- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life.
- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.
- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 3.6 (829)
Includes Goodreads, LibraryThing
GenreMystery and Thriller, Horror
Length16 hrs 32 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateNov 13, 2022
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1The Trail of the Serpent
2Book the First A Respectable Young Man
3Chapter I The Good Schoolmaster
4Chapter II Good for Nothing
5Chapter III The Usher Washes His Hands
Show all chaptersShow less
6Chapter IV Richard Marwood Lights His Pipe
7Chapter V The Healing Waters
8Chapter VI Two Coroner’s Inquests
9Chapter VII The Dumb Detective a Philanthropist
10Chapter VIII Seven Letters on the Dirty Alphabet
11Chapter IX “Mad, Gentlemen of the Jury”
12Book the Second A Clearance of All Scores
13Chapter I Blind Peter
14Chapter II Like and Unlike
15Chapter III A Golden Secret
16Chapter IV Jim Looks Over the Brink of the Terrible Gulf
17Chapter V Midnight by the Slopperton Clocks
18Chapter VI The Quiet Figure on the Heath
19Chapter VII The Usher Resigns His Situation
20Book the Third A Holy Institution
21Chapter I The Value of an Opera-Glass
22Chapter II Working in the Dark
23Chapter III The Wrong Footstep
24Chapter IV Ocular Demonstration
25Chapter V The King of Spades
26Chapter VI A Glass of Wine
27Chapter VII The Last Act of Lucretia Borgia
28Chapter VIII Bad Dreams and a Worse Waking
29Chapter IX A Marriage in High Life
30Chapter X Animal Magnetism
31Book the Fourth Napoleon the Great
32Chapter I The Boy from Slopperton
33Chapter II Mr. Augustus Darley and Mr. Joseph Peters Go Out Fishing
34Chapter III The Emperor Bids Adieu to Elba
35Chapter IV Joy and Happiness for Everybody
36Chapter V The Cherokees Take an Oath
37Chapter VI Mr. Peters Relates How He Thought He had a Clue, and How He Lost It
38Book the Fifth The Dumb Detective
39Chapter I The Count De Marolles at Home
40Chapter II Mr. Peters Sees a Ghost
41Chapter III The Cherokees Mark Their Man
42Chapter IV The Captain, the Chemist, and the Lascar
43Chapter V The New Milkman in Park Lane
44Chapter VI Signor Mosquetti Relates an Adventure
45Chapter VII The Golden Secret is Told, and the Golden Bowl is Broken
46Chapter VIII One Step Further on the Right Track
47Chapter IX Captain Lansdown Overhears a Conversation Which Appears to Interest Him
48Book the Sixth On the Track
49Chapter I Father and Son
50Chapter II Raymond De Marolles Shows Himself Better Than All Bow Street
MARY ELIZABETH BRADDON Ultimate Collection: Mystery Novels, Victorian Romances & Supernatural Tales (Annotated)Mary Elizabeth Braddon513h 13m$2 · $0.00
Lady Audley's Secret & Aurora Floyd (Annotated)Mary Elizabeth Braddon38h 15m4.4 (15)$2 · $0.00
The Christmas Hirelings (Annotated)Mary Elizabeth Braddon5h 3m4.3 (12)$3 · $0.00
Lady Audley's Secret (Annotated)Mary Elizabeth Braddon17h 45m3.9 (34.4K)$2 · $0.00
BRITISH MURDER MYSTERIES: The Greatest Thrillers of Mary Elizabeth Braddon (Annotated)Mary Elizabeth Braddon136h 21m$2 · $0.00
Aurora Floyd (Annotated)Mary Elizabeth Braddon21h 31m3.8 (1.8K)$2 · $0.00
The Complete Works of Mary Elizabeth BraddonMary Elizabeth Braddon513h 46m4.6 (63)$1 · $0.00
The Christmas HirelingsMary Elizabeth Braddon4h 56m3.7 (7.2K)$1 · $0.00
British Murder Mysteries - The Mary Elizabeth Braddon CollectionMary Elizabeth Braddon136h 3m4.3 (39)$2 · $0.00
The Trail of the Serpent (Detective Mystery)Mary Elizabeth Braddon17h 6m3.6 (1K)$1 · $0.00
Henry Dunbar (Mystery Classics Series)Mary Elizabeth Braddon18h 22m3.9 (618)$1 · $0.00
The Christmas Hirelings (Children's Book)Mary Elizabeth Braddon4h 54m3.9 (7.2K)$2 · $0.00
The Trail of the Serpent (Annotated)Mary Elizabeth Braddon17h 20m3.8 (933)$1.99 · $0.00
The Doctor's Wife (Annotated)Mary Elizabeth Braddon18h 41m3.8 (2.2K)$1.99 · $0.00
Wyllard's Weird (Annotated)Mary Elizabeth Braddon19h 24m4.3 (10)$1.99 · $0.00
Henry Dunbar (Annotated)Mary Elizabeth Braddon18h 30m3.8 (415)$1.99 · $0.00
The Complete Works of Mary Elizabeth BraddonMary Elizabeth Braddon513h 55m4.6 (67)$2 · $0.00
Lady Audley's SecretMary Elizabeth Braddon14h 43m$6 · $0.00
Dead Love Has ChainsMary Elizabeth Braddon4h 42m3.4 (52)$12 · $0.00
The New Human Revolution, vol. 1Daisaku Ikeda7h 46m4.7 (669)$12 · $0.00
The ReunionJana Deleon6h 31m4.6 (1.6K)$26 · $0.00
To Hold and ProtectSandra Owens7h 59m4.6 (1.1K)$8 · $0.00
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (Complete Edition)Arthur Conan Doyle12h 28m4.6 (286.7K)$2 · $0.00
Farewell My Lovely (Annotated)Raymond Chandler10h 37m4.6 (1.2K)$2 · $0.00
The Labyrinth of the SpiritsCarlos Ruiz Zafon27h 55m4.5 (77.2K)$53 · $0.00
Olympic Mountain PursuitJodie Bailey5h 55m4.6 (638)$12 · $0.00
Glen AffricKarine Giebel22h 51m4.5 (3.2K)$46 · $0.00
Deadly Badlands PursuitSharee Stover5h 53m4.6 (361)$12 · $0.00
Crime and Punishment (The Unabridged Garnett Translation) (Annotated)Fyodor Dostoevsky24h 25m4.5 (15.4K)$1.99 · $0.00
Three ComradesErich Maria Remarque15h 50m4.5 (47.3K)$2 · $0.00
AngelAnita Waller10h 30m4.6 (672)$30 · $0.00
The BorderDon Winslow29h 8m4.5 (35.7K)$53 · $0.00
FlashpointCatherine Coulter11h 38m4.5 (11.6K)$29 · $0.00
The Man in the Brown Suit & They Came to BaghdadAgatha Christie15h 43m4.6 (495)$33 · $0.00
Fang Si-Chi's First Love ParadiseYi-Han Lin8h 25m4.5 (4K)$26 · $0.00
The Rose CodeKate Quinn16h 2m4.4 (493.7K)$33 · $0.00
No Woman Left BehindJulie Moffett8h 49m4.5 (3K)$25 · $0.00
CovertJanie Crouch6h 15m4.5 (2K)$12 · $0.00
Cold Case InvestigationNicole Helm5h 30m4.6 (321)$5 · $0.00
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (Complete Edition)Arthur Conan Doyle12h 28m4.6 (286.7K)$2 · $0.00
DRACULA (Annotated)Bram Stoker17h 56m4.5 (6.9K)$1.99 · $0.00
The Picture of Dorian Gray: The Uncensored 13 Chapter Version + The Revised 20 Chapter Version (Annotated)Oscar Wilde16h 12m4.5 (2.8K)$1.99 · $0.00
THE CTHULHU MYTHOS TALES (Annotated)H. P. Lovecraft22h 46m4.5 (16.9K)$2 · $0.00
The Undead PoolKim Harrison16h 13m4.4 (34.6K)$33 · $0.00
Glacier's EdgeR. A. Salvatore13h 44m4.5 (3.4K)$33 · $0.00
Good OmensNeil Gaiman, Terry Pratchett12h 33m4.4 (1.1M)$33 · $0.00
Dark of NightJonathan Maberry, Rachael Lavin4h 59m4.4 (3.8K)$20 · $0.00
The Renegade HunterLynsay Sands10h 7m4.4 (17.3K)$29 · $0.00
Lost GodsBrom14h 50m4.4 (18.5K)$33 · $0.00
The AccusedJana DeLeon6h 32m4.4 (3.9K)$12 · $0.00
Corpus HermeticumHermes Trismegistus3h 43m4.4 (8.6K)$7 · $0.00
LambChristopher Moore15h 22m4.3 (211.3K)$33 · $0.00
CARMILLA (Gothic Classic) (Annotated)Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu4h 2m4.4 (1K)$1.99 · $0.00
The ExorcistWilliam Peter Blatty12h 52m4.3 (285.9K)$8 · $0.00
Lost ValleyWalt Browning7h 47m4.3 (5.4K)$20 · $0.00
Twice TemptedJeaniene Frost8h 17m4.3 (54.8K)$26 · $0.00
1984George Orwell12h 18m4.3 (6M)$25 · $0.00
The Best Tales of Edgar Allan PoeEdgar Allan Poe5h 19m4.4 (2.2K)$1 · $0.00
Hollywood DeadRichard Kadrey9h 22m4.3 (5.5K)$29 · $0.00
You may also like
The Green ArcherEdgar Wallace13h 44m3.8 (1.9K)$1 · $0.00
THE FORSAKEN INN (Gothic Mystery Classic) (Annotated)Anna Katharine Green7h 30m3.7 (1.2K)$2 · $0.00
The Murder on the Links & Murder on the Orient ExpressAgatha Christie12h 37m4.8 (296)$33 · $0.00
Dressed to StealCarolyn Keene3h 18m4.1 (737)$12
Three Blind Mice and Other StoriesAgatha Christie6h 13m4.0 (28K)$24 · $0.00
The Egyptian Cross MysteryEllery Queen11h 39m3.8 (2.1K)$20
Orley FarmAnthony Trollope32h 55m4.0 (3.6K)$2.30
The Memoirs of Sherlock HolmesArthur Conan Doyle8h 31m4.4 (129.2K)$12 · $0.00
Everyone on This Train Is a SuspectBenjamin Stevenson8h 28m3.9 (98.3K)$26 · $0.00
Murder on the Orient ExpressAgatha Christie6h 50m4.3 (1.5M)$24 · $0.00
The Bloomsbury MurderEmily Organ4h 59m4.4 (3.1K)$15
Blood in, Blood outJulia Derek6h 41m4.1 (739) Only with Ultra
Pignon Scorbion & the Barbershop DetectivesRick Bleiweiss9h 29m3.5 (1K)$20
The Graveyard of the HesperidesLindsey Davis11h 41m4.2 (4.1K)$23
FallenKarin Slaughter13h 46m4.3 (133K)$6 · $0.00
The Sentence is DeathAnthony Horowitz8h 36m4.1 (79.7K)$26 · $0.00
Imperfect StrangersStuart Woods9h 44m4.1 (3.9K)$29 · $0.00
Closed CasketSophie Hannah, Agatha Christie10h 11m3.7 (43.6K)$29 · $0.00
The Anatomist’s ApprenticeTessa Harris9h 12m3.6 (10.6K)$20
Everyone in This Bank Is a ThiefBenjamin Stevenson9h 52m3.8 (19.5K)$29 · $0.00