This early work by Richard Austin Freeman was originally published in 1922 and we are now republishing it with a brand new introduction. 'Helen Vardon's Confession' is one of Freeman's novels of crime and mystery. The first story featuring his well-known protagonist Dr. Thorndyke - a medico-legal forensic investigator - was published in 1907, and although Freeman's early works were seen as simple homages to his contemporary, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, he quickly developed his own style: The 'inverted detective story', in which the identity of the criminal is shown from the beginning, and the story then describes the detective's attempt to solve the mystery.

"Helen Vardon's Confession" is a mystery story from a series of detective novels about the adventures of the forensic investigator Dr. Thorndyke. In this case, Dr. Thordyke has to investigate a threat of blackmail, fraud, and death that followed a mysterious conversation about lost trust funds overheard by Helen Vardon.

"The First R. Austin Freeman Megapack" collects 27 mystery tales featuring the forensic sleuth Dr. Thorndyke (and others). Included in this volume are: THE RED THUMB MARK (1907) THE MAN WITH THE NAILED SHOES (1909) THE STRANGER'S LATCHKEY (1909) THE ANTHROPOLOGIST AT LARGE (1909) THE BLUE SEQUIN (1909) THE MOABITE CIPHER (1909) THE MANDARIN'S PEARL (1909) THE ALUMINIUM DAGGER (1909) A MESSAGE FROM THE DEEP SEA (1909) THE EYE OF OSIRIS (1911) THE MYSTERY OF 31 NEW INN (1912) THE CASE OF OSCAR BRODSKI (1912) A CASE OF PREMEDITATION (1912) THE ECHO OF A MUTINY (1912) A WASTREL'S ROMANCE (1912) THE OLD LAG (1912) THE UTTERMOST FARTHING (1914) A SILENT WITNESS (1914) THE GREAT PORTRAIT MYSTERY (1918) THE BRONZE PARROT (1918) POWDER BLUE AND HAWTHORN (1918) THE ATTORNEY'S CONSCIENCE (1918) THE LUCK OF BARNABAS MUDGE (1918) THE MISSING MORTGAGEE (1918) PERCIVAL BLAND'S PROXY (1918) THE CASE OF THE WHITE FOOTPRINTS (1920) HELEN VARDON'S CONFESSION (1922) If you enjoy this volume, please search this ebook store for "Wildside Megapack" to see more entries in the series, collecting great tales of adventure, mystery, science fiction, westerns, ghost stories, and much more. (Sort by publication date to see the most recent additions.)

To every woman there comes a day (and that all too soon) when she receives the first hint that Time, the harvester, has not passed her by unnoticed. The waning of actual youth may have passed with but the faintest regret, if any; regret for the lost bud being merged in the triumph at the glory of the opening blossom. But the waning of womanhood is another matter. Old age has no compensations to offer for those delights that it steals away. At least, that is what I understand from those who know, for I must still speak on the subject from hearsay, having received from Father Time but the very faintest and most delicate hint on the subject.I was sitting at my dressing-table brushing out my hair, which is of a docile habit, though a thought bulky, when amidst the black tress-blacker than it used to be when I was a girl-I noticed a single white hair. It was the first that I had seen, and I looked at it dubiously, picking it out from its fellows to see if it were all white, and noticing how like it was to a thread of glass. Should I pluck it out and pretend that it was never there? Or should I, more thriftily-for a hair is a hair after all, and enough of them will make a wig-should I dye it and hush up its treason?

To every woman there comes a day (and that all too soon) when she receives the first hint that Time, the harvester, has not passed her by unnoticed. The waning of actual youth may have passed with but the faintest regret, if any; regret for the lost bud being merged in the triumph at the glory of the opening blossom. But the waning of womanhood is another matter. Old age has no compensations to offer for those delights that it steals away. At least, that is what I understand from those who know, for I must still speak on the subject from hearsay, having received from Father Time but the very faintest and most delicate hint on the subject.[...]

This puzzling plot is related by two different characters: messenger boy Jasper Gray, who experiences several strange adventures, and Dr Jervis, friend of Dr Thorndyke. Dr Thorndyke is investigating a terrible crime, the solving of which remains elusive because of key facts remaining unknown. He needs the facts to confirm his case: Jasper could complete the blank spaces if only Thorndyke were aware of his existence ........