Mr Lepel and the Housekeeper

By: Wilkie Collins

Narrated by: Rob Goll, Amanda Friday

When Mr. Lepel and his friend Mr. Rothsay return from travels abroad, a half-forgotten play witnessed in Italy lingers uneasily in their memories. A subsequent visit to a quiet country estate draws Mr. Lepel into the lives of those around him, as a young woman at the gate becomes the unknowing centre of rival affections. As illness, friendship, and good intentions begin to intersect, events unfold that will test loyalty and conscience, and lead toward consequences no one has foreseen.

Little Novels, published in 1887, is a collection of fourteen short stories by Wilkie Collins. Revised by the author, these stories had appeared in various British and American periodicals over the previous ten years, very often with different titles. They are stand-alone stories dealing with a variety of subjects: love, marriage, the supernatural, class, money, and murder; most of them contain a mystery or twist to the tale which is bound to delight fans of Collins' best-known novels, The Woman in White and The Moonstone.

"Mr. Lepel and the Housekeeper" is the eighth story in the collection. It was originally published as "The Girl at the Gate" in The Spirit of the Times in 1884 and in the English Illustrated Magazine in 1885.

Public Domain (P)2026 Amanda Friday, Rob Goll