The Ponson Case
An early Freeman Wills Crofts novel from 1921, this is a classic country-house puzzle built around a single stubborn question: how did Sir William Ponson come to be found drowned in the river below his own estate? Accident, suicide, and murder all seem possible, and the family’s tangled loyalties only cloud the picture. Inspector Tanner of Scotland Yard works the case with the sober, methodical care that became Crofts’s signature, picking apart timetables and alibis until the truth has nowhere left to hide. Readers who like their detection unhurried and fair, with every clue laid honestly on the table, are the ones it rewards. A free PDF and EPUB edition is available here.
About the Author
Freeman Wills Crofts (1879-1957) was an Irish-born railway engineer who began writing detective fiction while recovering from a long illness. A founding member of the Detection Club, he became a mainstay of the Golden Age and is best remembered for the methodical Inspector French.
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Listen to The Ponson Case Audiobook Free
Listen to The Ponson Case by Freeman Wills Crofts free online. The full audiobook (8 hr 38 min, 16 chapters, read by volunteer narrators) streams free on this page.
The Ponson Case (1921) is a public domain work.
| # | Chapter | Length | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mystery at Luce Manor | 41:10 | |
| 2 | A Sinister Suggestion | 24:52 | |
| 3 | Hoaxed? | 29:28 | |
| 4 | Inspector Tanner Grows Suspicious | 36:00 | |
| 5 | Inspector Tanner Becomes Convinced | 34:35 | |
| 6 | What Cosgrove Had to Tell | 22:33 | |
| 7 | Cosgrove’s Trip North | 35:14 | |
| 8 | Tanner Finds Himself Duped | 28:23 | |
| 9 | Lois Drew Takes a Hand | 32:05 | |
| 10 | A Woman’s Wit | 35:45 | |
| 11 | A Fresh Start | 26:36 | |
| 12 | A Stern Chase | 49:17 | |
| 13 | Blackmail? | 46:03 | |
| 14 | A Dramatic Discovery | 37:44 | |
| 15 | In the Luce Manor Boathouse | 34:51 | |
| 16 | Conclusion | 3:49 |
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