On a cold and stormy night in Slopperton-on-the-Sloshy, Richard Marwood returns after a mysterious and long disappearance. While his rich uncle aids him in starting a new life, his reappearance is quickly upended after he is apparently framed for murder. Meanwhile, Jabez North—prodigal son of Slopperton-on-the-Sloshy—schemes to make his fortunes by any means possible. The Trail of the Serpent is M. E. Braddon's first book. Although it initially met with poor sales under its original title of Three Times Dead , it was later revised and re-issued under its current title to much wider recognition, and is now considered to be one of the first British detective novels. M. E. Braddon (died 1915) was a prominent voice of the late 19th and early 20th century. Their work has endured across generations and continues to be read and studied worldwide. As a work of classic literary fiction, The Trail Of The Serpent exemplifies the narrative craft and social insight that defined great storytelling of its era. Literary fiction of this period was characterized by careful attention to character psychology, social milieu, and the moral questions that animated public discourse.