the legacy story

 Continuing the campaign to declutter the house, I am ploughing through shelves, drawers, cupboards. A lot of stuff is mine, but there is also a lot that has been inherited - my mother's wedding china, a Georgian rummer that was my grandfather's, tools that belonged to my dad, books, small items of jewelry, ornaments. 

It occurred to me while sorting all this stuff that many readers enjoy a 'legacy' story. I do myself - reading them and writing them. And they come in a wide variety from a basic premise. An inheritance. 

The big ticket item is obviously property. Although most of us know that there is no way that a mysterious unknown uncle is suddenly going to leave us a mansion, and that the odds of it actually happening IRL to anyone else are probably pretty steep, it is still an attractive day dream 

What if ...

I was thinking of the possibilities.

The inheritance that is not a mystery - a protagonist who knows they will inherit. This usually involves  keeping up a family home or business, with a lot of themes of responsibility and duty. A protagonist torn between expectation and following their own dreams?

That unexpected inheritance. All sorts of mysteries here, across the spectrum from romance to crime.  Finding out about the person who made the will, finding out about the property itself - it can be a cottage or a stately home, an historic mansion or  the modern equivalent of Sleeping Beauty's castle. A Gothic ruin ...

Lots of fun here. the life changing effect on the protagonist being only the start of the story. They have to decide to live there, or at the very least to visit. No fun if the place is put straight on the market, sight unseen. Often it comes when the hero/heroine is at a cross roads in their life. Decisions, decisions.  It perhaps means learning new skills like estate management (thinking historical here - usually involving an unexpected title as well). As with the expected inheritance it also can carry previously unknown responsibilities. It might involve a location the protagonist has never experienced before - lots of 'fish out of water' potential.

Then there is the mystery of the mystery 'Why me?' 

It's not surprising that it is a popular plot device. 

And no - I haven't found the deeds to a castle in the highlands amongst my grandmother's collection of Victorian novels. 

Not yet, anyway.