Le fauteuil hanté

by Gaston Leroux

"Le fauteuil hanté" by Gaston Leroux is a detective novel published in 1909. Under the dome of the French Academy, a sinister pattern emerges: each candidate elected to fill Monseigneur d'Abbeville's vacant seat dies while delivering the traditional tribute speech to their predecessor. As superstitious fear grips the Academy and potential successors flee, an unlikely candidate appears—a simple antiques dealer who dares to claim the cursed chair.