The villagers of Little Hangleton still called it 'The Riddle House', even though it had been many years since the Riddle family had lived there. It stood on a hill overlooking the village, some of its windows boarded, tiles missing from its roof, and ivy spreading unchecked over its face. Once a fine-looking manor and easily the largest and grandest building for miles around, the Riddle house was now damp, derelict and unoccupied.