[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-detail-115828-en":3,"doc-seo-115828-105":30,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":92},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",{"doc_id":7,"user_id":8,"nickname":9,"user_avatar":10,"doc_module":4,"category_id":11,"category_name":12,"doc_title":13,"doc_description":14,"doc_content":15,"file_id":16,"file_url":17,"file_type":18,"file_size":19,"view_count":20,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":11,"is_downloadable":11,"audit_status":11,"page_count":21,"language":22,"language_code":23,"site_id":24,"html_lang":23,"table_of_contents":25,"faqs":26,"seo_title":27,"seo_description":14,"update_tm":28,"read_time":29},115828,549768072016,"River Wang","https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_155a257f0dc6eb9ab79c44ca47cae57d",1,"Story & Novel","THE LONDON RECKONING - Chapter One","A grieving widow, Nancy Tremayne, confronts the sudden death of her husband, Leo, at a London funeral in January 1958. While the burial rites unfold, she wrestles with disjointed memories and the unsettling feeling of being newly alone, even as familiar faces from Leo’s art world gather in force. As weather turns and mourners close in, an old mentor arrives with urgent counsel, redirecting Nancy’s next steps and hinting that the loss may ripple far beyond the graveside.","Table of Contents  \nTitle Page  \nCopyright Information  \nOther Books in this Series  \nChapter One  \nChapter Two  \nChapter Three  \nChapter Four  \nChapter Five  \nChapter Six  \nChapter Seven  \nChapter Eight  \nChapter Nine  \nChapter Ten  \nChapter Eleven  \nChapter Twelve  \nChapter Thirteen  \nChapter Fourteen  \nChapter Fifteen  \nChapter Sixteen  \nChapter Seventeen  \nChapter Eighteen  \nChapter Nineteen  \nFREE COPY OF THE DANGEROUS PROMISE Other Books by Merryn Allingham  \nAbout the Author  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \nTHE LONDON RECKONING  \nMerryn Allingham  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \nTHE LONDON RECKONING  \nThis novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author ’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.  \nFirst published in Great Britain 2021 by The Verrall Press  \nCover art: Berni Stevens Book Cover Design Copyright © Merryn Allingham  \nMerryn Allingham asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.  \nAll rights reserved. No part of the publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers.  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \nOther Books in this Series  \nThe Dangerous Promise (2020)  \nVenetian Vendetta (2020)  \nCaribbean Evil (2020)  \nCornish Requiem (2021) Rio Revenge (2021)  \n[OceanofPDF.com](OceanofPDF.com)  \nChapter One  \nLondon, January, 1958  \nMan that is born of woman hath but a short time to live…he fleeth as it were a shadow…thou knowest, Lord, the secrets of our hearts…  \nStanding by the graveside, Nancy Tremayne allowed the words to flow—over, above, around her. A torrent of words, disjointed, ungraspable. Her mind tried to catch at the phrases, hold on to them as though they might tether her to a world made newly strange. The secrets of her heart? She hardly knew them any more, not with the husband, who had loved and protected her, lying only feet away.  \nThe coffin of polished mahogany was being lifted by six bearers onto a canvas webbing. Could Leo really be in there? She gazed blindly at the men standing either side of the gaping hole. Perran, she knew Perran, if not the others. Leo ’s brother had arrived at Cavendish Street last night in almost as big a daze as Nancy. How could this have happened, they ’d said to each other, hunched over the fire Mrs Brindley, the housekeeper, had made for them. How could it have happened to a man not yet fifty years old?  \nPerry looked old, Nancy thought dispassionately, his face haggard, his figure stooped. Leo ’s death had decimated him. And who was that beside Perry, taking the strain of the holding straps as the coffin began its journey down into the grave? Leo ’s temporary assistant? Yes, it was Dominic Gray. Temporary because her husband had never truly accepted that Archie had left. Losing Archie Jago had been a major blow and though Gray always appeared to be as efficient as he was smart—his regulation black raincoat cut more sharply than most—her husband had never settled into the relationship. In the circumstances, it was good of Dominic to take on the role of bearer.  \nWe therefore commit his body to the ground; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust; in sure and certain hope of the Resurrection to eternal life, through our Lord Jesus Christ.  \nThe sound of earth hitting wood brought Nancy out of her trance. Her stomach was so tightly knotted she could hardly breathe. This was it.  \nThis was really happening. Leo was dead. Gone. And she was once more alone in the world.  \nShe felt a hand at her elbow and turned to see Mrs Brindley ’s concerned face. The woman had never made Nancy feel welcome at Cavendish Street, not from the moment she ’d walked through its front door, nor through the years she ’d been married to Leo. These last few days, ho","cbCaiv6jBJd9KK6V","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaiv6jBJd9KK6V","pdf",848962,9,127,"English","en",105,"# Chapter One\n## London, January 1958\n## Graveside service and Nancy’s reflections\n## Mourners, congregation, and art-world connections\n## Connie’s arrival and guidance","[{\"question\":\"Who is Nancy Tremayne and what happens at the start of Chapter One?\",\"answer\":\"Nancy Tremayne stands by her husband Leo’s graveside during a funeral in London in January 1958, confronting the shock that he is dead.\"},{\"question\":\"How does Nancy react to Leo’s death?\",\"answer\":\"Nancy feels disoriented and emotionally overwhelmed, struggling to process that Leo has gone and that she is once again alone.\"},{\"question\":\"Who arrives at the funeral and what advice does she give Nancy?\",\"answer\":\"Connie, Nancy’s mentor from her art restoration apprenticeship, arrives and urges Nancy not to rush back to work, asking her to take her time and call when ready.\"}]","THE LONDON RECKONING - Chapter One | PDF",1785477170,196,{"code":4,"msg":31,"data":32},"ok",{"site_id":24,"language":23,"slug":33,"title":13,"keywords":34,"description":14,"schema_data":35,"social_meta":87,"head_meta":89,"extra_data":91,"updated_unix":28},"the-london-reckoning-chapter-one","",{"@graph":36,"@context":86},[37,54,69],{"@type":38,"itemListElement":39},"BreadcrumbList",[40,44,48,51],{"item":41,"name":42,"@type":43,"position":11},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":45,"name":46,"@type":43,"position":47},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":49,"name":12,"@type":43,"position":50},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/story-novel/",3,{"item":52,"name":13,"@type":43,"position":53},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/the-london-reckoning-chapter-one/115828/",4,{"url":52,"name":13,"@type":55,"author":56,"headline":13,"publisher":58,"fileFormat":61,"inLanguage":23,"description":14,"dateModified":62,"datePublished":63,"encodingFormat":61,"isAccessibleForFree":64,"interactionStatistic":65},"DigitalDocument",{"name":9,"@type":57},"Person",{"url":41,"name":59,"@type":60},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-08-23","2026-07-31",true,{"@type":66,"interactionType":67,"userInteractionCount":20},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":68},"ViewAction",{"@type":70,"mainEntity":71},"FAQPage",[72,78,82],{"name":73,"@type":74,"acceptedAnswer":75},"Who is Nancy Tremayne and what happens at the start of Chapter One?","Question",{"text":76,"@type":77},"Nancy Tremayne stands by her husband Leo’s graveside during a funeral in London in January 1958, confronting the shock that he is dead.","Answer",{"name":79,"@type":74,"acceptedAnswer":80},"How does Nancy react to Leo’s death?",{"text":81,"@type":77},"Nancy feels disoriented and emotionally overwhelmed, struggling to process that Leo has gone and that she is once again alone.",{"name":83,"@type":74,"acceptedAnswer":84},"Who arrives at the funeral and what advice does she give Nancy?",{"text":85,"@type":77},"Connie, Nancy’s mentor from her art restoration apprenticeship, arrives and urges Nancy not to rush back to work, asking her to take her time and call when ready.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":52,"og:type":88,"og:title":13,"og:site_name":59,"og:description":14},"article",{"robots":90,"canonical":52},"index,follow",{"doc_id":7,"site_id":24},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":93},[94,97,101,105,110,115,120,125,129,132,136],{"id":11,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":12,"show_sort_weight":95,"slug":96},90,"story-novel",{"id":47,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":98,"show_sort_weight":99,"slug":100},"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":53,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":102,"show_sort_weight":103,"slug":104},"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":106,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":107,"show_sort_weight":108,"slug":109},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":111,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":112,"show_sort_weight":113,"slug":114},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":116,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":117,"show_sort_weight":118,"slug":119},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":121,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":122,"show_sort_weight":123,"slug":124},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":20,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":126,"show_sort_weight":127,"slug":128},"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":127,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":130,"show_sort_weight":127,"slug":131},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":133,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":134,"show_sort_weight":133,"slug":135},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":137,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":46,"category_name":138,"show_sort_weight":106,"slug":139},19,"General","general"]