Locked Doors

Rinehart, Mary Roberts, 1876-1958Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.2

Word count: 94K words
Chapters: 10

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.Locked Doors by Mary Roberts RinehartAuthor: Rinehart, Mary Roberts, 1876-1958,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Mar 3, 2017

Editor's review

Locked Doors is a mystery novel by Mary Roberts Rinehart, available as a public-domain English ebook. Rinehart excelled at mysteries set in domestic settings, turning everyday spaces into scenes of danger, and this book likewise revolves around a closed environment and a puzzle of identity. Its pacing is decidedly old-fashioned, driven by atmosphere, dialogue, and gradually revealed clues rather than graphic violence. For Chinese readers it works best as a sample of early twentieth-century American popular mystery fiction: one can see how techniques later associated with the "closed circle" and the "unreliable narrator" took shape in the hands of an early woman writer. The English is of moderate difficulty, with short sentences, making it suitable for extensive reading. As a public-domain text it has no notes or introduction; readers are advised to accept its slow build-up and read it as a period piece rather than a modern fast-paced thriller.

Who it's for

A good fit for

English-language fiction readers who enjoy classical mystery, closed spaces, and domestic puzzles
Readers curious about early twentieth-century American popular literature and women mystery writers
English learners who need a moderately difficult public-domain text for extensive reading or book-club discussion
Readers interested in Rinehart's work who wish to read her non-series books

Not a good fit for

Readers who prefer modern fast-paced thrillers with strong twists and graphic violence
Beginners whose English reading is not yet strong and who need notes and vocabulary support
Mystery fans who expect rigorous fair-play detection with fair clues and logical deduction

Reading tips

Read the first few chapters to establish the characters and the layout of the setting before the mystery takes hold, so you are not put off by the slow build-up.
Keep a character list recording each figure's relation to the closed setting, to help you follow the clues and shifts of identity.
Read it alongside other works by Rinehart or contemporary American mystery fiction to observe its narrative conventions and period tastes.
If using it for English study, retell the plot in two or three sentences after each chapter, then look up new words, balancing comprehension and vocabulary building.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

Is this book suitable for readers new to mystery fiction?

It can serve as an introduction to classical mystery, but it leans more toward atmosphere and plot momentum than strict fair-play puzzle solving. Readers expecting fair clues and rigorous logical deduction may be disappointed; those who enjoy puzzles in domestic settings and an old-fashioned narrative pace will find it suitable.

How difficult is the English?

Overall it is of moderate difficulty, with fairly simple sentence structures and plenty of dialogue, suitable for readers with some English foundation who want to try a public-domain novel. Period expressions and old-fashioned phrasing appear occasionally; understand them from context rather than looking up every word.

Does this electronic edition include notes or an introduction?

The Project Gutenberg edition generally provides only the text, with no scholarly notes, introduction, or author biography. Readers who want to learn about Rinehart's background and the place of this work should consult other sources and read them alongside the text.

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About the author

Rinehart, Mary Roberts, 1876-1958 Author

Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876–1958) was an American author known for her detective fiction and humorous sketches. The library holds 29 of her works, including The Circular Staircase, The Man in Lower Ten, A Poor Wise Man, The After House, Tish: The Chronicle of Her Escapades and Excursions, Kings, Queens and Pawns: An American Woman at the Front, Tenting To-night, and The Confession. Her detective novels often unfold through female narrators and build suspense from everyday details, creating tension without losing a sense of humor; they have influenced later mystery and detective writing. Public information is limited, so no biographical details are conjectured here, and readers may come to know her narrative style and themes through the works listed above.