A classic example of early detective fiction by Lawrence L. Lynch (pseudonym Emma Murdock Van Deventer), The Last Stroke combines a tightly plotted mystery with character-driven suspense characteristic of the genre’s period style. The story begins with the sudden disappearance of a respected schoolmaster, Mr Brierly, in a small lakeside town, prompting alarm among his pupils and colleagues. When his body is later discovered near the lake shore, suspicion falls on whether it was an accident, suicide, or murder, and a formal investigation involving villagers and officials follows, with clues and interviews eventually uncovering the truth.