The House of Arden
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This book offers a delightful blend of magic, history, and family drama, perfect for readers who love time-travel adventures and stories about the enduring power of heritage and love.
Edition details
Book Summary
Impoverished siblings Edred and Elfrida Arden inherit a crumbling castle and a magical talking mole, the Mouldiwarp, who sends them on time-traveling adventures through English history. Their quest to find hidden treasure and restore their family's fortune becomes a journey to reunite with their lost father.
Edred and Elfrida Arden, living in poverty with their aunt, learn that Edred has inherited the title Lord Arden and the ruins of Arden Castle. They discover a magical spell and encounter the Mouldiwarp, a talking white mole that is the family crest. The Mouldiwarp grants them the ability to travel through time, sending them to key moments in English history: the Napoleonic era, the Gunpowder Plot, and the court of Henry VIII. In each adventure, they must navigate dangers, solve puzzles, and learn about their family's past. Their ultimate goal is to find a hidden treasure that will restore the Arden fortune. Along the way, they face sibling quarrels that disrupt magic, befriend a mysterious cousin, and uncover the tragic story of a previous Elfrida. The climax reveals their father and uncle are imprisoned in a hidden golden plain; with the Mouldiwarp's help, the children rescue them, reuniting the family and securing the treasure.
Reading guide
Go deeper in The House of Arden
Character guides, themes, chapter companions — plus Character Web, narrative arc, and theme heatmap teasers that unlock fully beside the text in BetterReads.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
This is the dramatic climax because Edred and Elfrida reach an emotional peak of hopeful anticipation, believi…
Elfrida Arden
An Arden girl who feels the century in her bones, Elfrida drags her brother into the family's buried past to hunt a lost treasure.
Edred Arden
The new young Lord Arden, whose trembling first adventure begins when pigeon noises dress him in another age's clothes.
The Mouldiwarp
A white mole of strange powers who answers Arden wishes and sends two children sliding backward through their family's centuries.
Cousin Richard
A kind older cousin whose steady presence gives the young Ardens a grown ally in their search for what the family lost.
Aunt Edith
The aunt who keeps Arden House running, offering the orphans a home while their strange inheritance pulls them elsewhere.
Mrs. Honeysett
The Arden housekeeper whose watchful care over two motherless children makes the old house feel like a home.
Social Class and Impoverishment
The book contrasts the Arden family's glorious past as landed gentry with their present impoverished state, forced to let lodgings, highlighting the decline of aristocracy and the struggle to maintain dignity in reduced circumstances.
Family Heritage and Identity
The children's quest to restore the Arden name and find treasure is driven by a deep connection to their ancestors, with the family crest (the Mouldiwarp) serving as a magical guide and symbol of their lineage.
Magic and Adventure
Time travel, magical creatures (the talking Mouldiwarp), and secret passages enable the children to explore different historical eras, blending fantasy with thrilling escapades.
Loss and Longing
The children mourn their father's presumed death and yearn for his return, a central emotional thread that culminates in a final, desperate journey to rescue him from the past.