Cover of The Daffodil Mystery

The Daffodil Mystery

  • Free to read
  • 5 hours to read
  • 37 chapters
  • Reading level: 6th grade

"The Daffodil Mystery" by Edgar Wallace is a mystery novel likely written in the early 20th century. The book centers around Thornton Lyne, a wealthy store proprietor and poet, whose life takes a tragic turn when he is found murdered in Hyde Park. The story intertwines themes of deception, social status, and complex human relationships, particularly focusing on the enigmatic Odette Rider, who works under Lyne and becomes embroiled in the swirling suspicions surrounding his death. At the start of the narrative, we meet Odette Rider, a strong-willed young woman, who finds herself rejecting Thornton Lyne's unwanted advances amidst a tense conversation in his office. Lyne's frustrated and sinister thoughts follow her departure, hinting at his potential cruelty and obsession. As the storyline unfolds, it introduces several characters, including the detective Jack Tarling and the dubious Mr. Milburgh, all contributing to the intricate web of intrigue surrounding Lyne's demise. The opening chapters lay the groundwork for a tale of ambition, betrayal, and the search for truth, as various players navigate the ramifications of the murder and the secrets that run deeper than they initially appear.

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  • Detective and mystery stories

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Chapter I

AN OFFER REJECTED

"I am afraid I don't understand you, Mr. Lyne."

Odette Rider looked gravely at the young man who lolled against his open desk. Her clear skin was tinted with the faintest pink, and there was in the sober depths of those grey eyes of hers a light which would have warned a man less satisfied with his own genius and power of persuasion than Thornton Lyne.

He was not looking at her face. His eyes were running approvingly over her perfect figure, noting the straightness of the back, the fine poise of the head, the shapeliness of the slender hands.

He pushed back his long black hair from his forehead and smiled. It pleased him to believe that his face was cast in an intellectual mould, and that the somewhat unhealthy pastiness of his skin might be described as the "pallor of thought."

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Contents

Show all 37 chapters
  1. Chapter I
  2. Chapter II
  3. Chapter III
  4. Chapter IV
  5. Chapter V
  6. Chapter VI
  7. Chapter VII
  8. Chapter VIII
  9. Chapter IX
  10. Chapter X
  11. Chapter XI: "Thornton Lyne Is Dead."
  12. Chapter XII
  13. Chapter XIII
  14. Chapter XIV
  15. Chapter XV
  16. Chapter XVI
  17. Chapter XVII
  18. Chapter XVIII
  19. Chapter XIX
  20. Chapter XX
  21. Chapter XXI
  22. Chapter XXII
  23. Chapter XXIII
  24. Chapter XXIV
  25. Chapter XXV
  26. Chapter XXVI
  27. Chapter XXVII
  28. Chapter XXVIII
  29. Chapter XXIX
  30. Chapter XXX
  31. Chapter XXXI
  32. Chapter XXXII
  33. Chapter XXXIII
  34. Chapter XXXIV
  35. Chapter XXXV
  36. Chapter XXXVI
  37. Chapter XXXVII

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About this edition

This free edition of The Daffodil Mystery by Edgar Wallace comes from Project Gutenberg eBook #20912, released 2007-03-26. It is in the public domain in the United States, so you can read it here in full at no cost, on any phone, tablet or computer. Genre: Crime, Thrillers and Mystery, Novels, British Literature.

Summary provided by Project Gutenberg (automatically generated).

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