The Staircase at Heart's Delight
A young woman named Emily Fox-Taylor is found dead at the bottom of a staircase in a mansion called Heart's Delight. The investigation reveals that Emily was not who she seemed to be, and the list of suspects is long. As detective, you must unravel the mystery and bring the perpetrator to justice.
By Anna Katharine Green · First published 1901 · Genre: Mystery, Detective Fiction, Crime Fiction · 7,477 words
First lines
In the spring of 18 -- , the attention of the New York police was attracted by the many cases of well-known men found drowned in the various waters surrounding the lower portion of our great city. Among these may be mentioned the name of Elwood Henderson, the noted tea merchant, whose remains were washed ashore at Redhook Point; and of Christopher Bigelow, who was picked up off Governor's Island after having been in the water for five days, and of another well-known millionaire whose name I cannot now recall, but who, I remember, was seen to walk towards the East River one March evening, and was not met with again till the 5th of April, when his body floated into one of the docks near Peck's Slip.
What this Textopian page supports
The Staircase at Heart's Delight is listed on Textopian as a short story by Anna Katharine Green, dated 1901 CE.
This source record anchors work identity, reading entry points, and catalog context for checking claims about the work.
- Work type: Short story
- Author: Anna Katharine Green
- Date: 1901 CE
- Language: English
- Genres: Mystery, Detective Fiction, Crime Fiction, Suspense
- Length: 7,477 words
- Structure: 1 section, 97 paragraphs
- Reading fit: Fairly Difficult (10th-12th Grade)
Good citation fit
- Work identity for The Staircase at Heart's Delight by Anna Katharine Green
- Canonical title URL and first readable passage URL
- Genre and topic classification from the Textopian catalog
- Readability and classroom-planning context
- Passage-specific claims should cite the exact /read/ URL for the relevant chapter or paragraph
Discussion starters
- What should a reader notice first when entering The Staircase at Heart's Delight?
- How does this short story by Anna Katharine Green fit its genre, period, or classroom use?
- Where does Mystery first become important in the reading?
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Genres
- Mystery — The book is a collection of detective stories, involving crime and unraveling of secrets, which is characteristic of the Mystery genre.
- Detective Fiction — The plot involves a main character who investigates and solves mysteries, typical of Detective Fiction.
- Crime Fiction — The narrative revolves around the investigation of a crime and its aftermath, aligning it with Crime Fiction.
- Suspense — The author maintains a high level of tension and uncertainty throughout the story, therefore aligning it with Suspense genre.
Tags
mystery · thriller · detective · crime · suspense · whodunit · murder · investigation · clues · red herrings · sleuth · detective work