Arthur Kidd, a young solicitor, is sent to a small market town on the Geography of England of England to attend the funeral of Mrs. Alice Drablow, an elderly reclusive widow. On the train, Kidd meets Sam Toovey, a local land owner who is unsettled upon hearing that Kidd is dealing with the Drablow estate. Arriving at Crythin Gifford, Kidd lodges at a local inn where he finds the townspeople reluctant to talk about Mrs. Drablow's dreary home, Eel Marsh House.