The Mysteries of Udolpho

When Emily St. Aubert is orphaned, she falls under the power of her aunt's new husband, the cold, calculating Signor Montoni, who carries her off to Udolpho, his crumbling fortress in the Apennines. There she finds locked rooms, veiled portraits, music with no musician, and a growing suspicion that Montoni's plans for her fortune, and for her, are darker than anyone will say.

This is the 1794 blockbuster that defined the Gothic novel, the book Jane Austen's heroines stayed up all night devouring in Northanger Abbey. Radcliffe is the great architect of suspense-by-atmosphere: mountain storms, candlelit corridors, terrors suggested and withheld. Long and lush and deliciously ominous, it's a slow burn made for dark evenings and good headphones.

At roughly 291,700 words, The Mysteries of Udolpho runs about 32½ hours at 1x narration speed. That figure is an estimate based on a typical narration pace. The exact length depends on the voice and the playback speed you choose.

The Mysteries of Udolpho is in the public domain, so the complete text is free on Project Gutenberg and LoudReader has the entire Project Gutenberg catalog built in. To listen:

1. Download LoudReader for Mac or iPhone (free, no account).
2. Search for “The Mysteries of Udolpho” in the built-in catalog and add it to your library.
3. Press play. A natural offline voice reads the book while each word highlights on screen, and your place is saved between sessions.

LoudReader reads with natural offline voices, so the whole book works on a plane or underground. It is fully on-device and private, your library never leaves your device. Listening is unlimited on the free tier.