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There seems to be a lot of enthusiasm for E.C.R. Lorac in the group, so I thought she deserved her own thread!

She is one of the many great authors being republished by British Library Crime Classics, and now ebooks of some of her titles are also being issued by other publishers.

Which Lorac titles have you read so far?

So far we have read one Lorac title as a group, Fell Murder, and another one from her Robert Macdonald series, Bats in the Belfry, looks as if it is likely to win our October poll (still a few days to go!)

I've only read Fell Murder so far, but am now under way with Crossed Skis: An Alpine Mystery a title she issued under another pseudonym, Carol Carnac, another one reprinted by BLCC - enjoying it a lot so far. Part of it is set in a ski resort and part in London...

I've just read Murder in the Mill-Race and really enjoyed it. As with Fell Murder, she really describes the setting well, but without getting bogged down in pages of description.

I like the fact that the books work well as standalone stories, also that Macdonald is a likeable detective but we're not burdened with pages of his homelife and romantic struggles - he just turns up and does the job.

Pamela, I'm a sucker for detectives' romances and home lives, but I do agree not every series needs these, and it's also great to have a series which works well as standalones!

Judy wrote: "Pamela, I'm a sucker for detectives' romances and home lives, but I do agree not every series needs these, and it's also great to have a series which works well as standalones!"

I agree, having a variety of approaches makes for more interesting reading. I don't mind a secondary storyline around the main character, but I sometimes feel that some authors get too involved in their characters' story and don't come up with a decent mystery.

Pamela wrote: "I've just read Murder in the Mill-Race and really enjoyed it. As with Fell Murder, she really describes the setting well, but without getting bogged down in pages of..."

Yes! That’s what I like, with her descriptions of locales and characters, her books often feel like a novel as much as mystery.

So far, I’ve read Fire in the Thatch: A Devon Mystery, Murder by Matchlight, Bats in the Belfry: A London Mystery, Fell Murder and Murder in the Mill-Race with inspector Macdonald. I also listened to a short story on Scribd without Macdonald, A Bit of Wire-Pulling. Enjoyed every one - thanks to this group for introducing me to her, I was exploring nominations for a monthly read poll when I found her!

I discovered her only a few days ago through a GR friend. I've found four of her books in Inspector MacDonald series. Thinking of beginning one tonight. :)

Which one are you going to start with, Piyangie?

Judy wrote: "Which one are you going to start with, Piyangie?"

It is Bats in the Belfry, Judy. Read only two chapters, but I get a feeling I'll enjoy her. Already having a spooky feeling. :)

Piyangie wrote: "Judy wrote: "Which one are you going to start with, Piyangie?"

It is Bats in the Belfry, Judy. Read only two chapters, but I get a feeling I'll enjoy her. Already having a spooky f..."

That one looks like being our group read here in October, as it is currently winning the monthly poll - so you will be well placed to join in the discussion. :)

The Carol Carnac book I'm reading has a different Inspector, Julian Rivers - so far he seems pleasant but hasn't come in very much.

I see from the Carol Carnac ŷ������ page that, as Carnac, she wrote 15 books in the Julian Rivers series, as well as 6 with another detective, Inspector Ryvet (almost the same as her own real name, Edith Caroline Rivett!).

PS, So, with the 46 Robert Macdonald books, I make that 67 books under her two names - and I see from her ŷ������ bio she actually had two more pseudonyms too, although there don't seem to be any books listed on GR under those names, Carol Rivett and Mary le Bourne!

Plenty to be going on with anyway - hopefully more of them will come back into print.

Judy wrote: "That one looks like being our group read here in October, as it is currently winning the monthly poll - so you will be well placed to join in the discussion. :) ..."

Oh, I didn't realize that. Yes, certainly I'll join in with the discussion. I thought of reading the four books I found on Scribd in order :) :). That is the reason for trying Bats in the Belfry which is the 13th in the Inspector MacDonald series. :)

The Mary le Bourne name is making me wonder if she visited Marylebone station a lot...

It is funny that such a good writer would pick such terrible pseudonyms!

Judy wrote: "PS, So, with the 46 Robert Macdonald books, I make that 67 books under her two names - and I see from her ŷ������ bio she actually had two more pseudonyms too, although there don't seem to be any..."

Thanks for this, I was only aware of two names! She was quite prolific, wasn’t she?

Abigail wrote: "It is funny that such a good writer would pick such terrible pseudonyms!"

Lol! I don’t know, I think I’d feel quite odd trying to pick a pseudonym- like I was playing at spies, or something! I’d probably just be bland and go with my maiden name - and nowadays, with internet searches, that wouldn’t protect your privacy for long, would it?

Piyangie wrote: "Judy wrote: "That one looks like being our group read here in October, as it is currently winning the monthly poll - so you will be well placed to join in the discussion. :) ..."

Oh, I didn't real..."

That’s what I was trying to do, read in order! I’m the same with series- but luckily, with the rather random rerelease of her titles, each can be read as a stand-alone.

One pseudonym strategy, if you want your real identity not to be discovered, is to pick a super-common name--it defeats searches! Though you should try to make sure the name isn't currently in use by another author.

I don't hold with weird pseudonyms like Lorac or cutesy one like Mary le Bourne. If privacy isn't your primary aim, the pseudonym should blend well in the reader's mind with the style or genre of book. For instance, I write historical fiction set in England, and my surname would be jarring with that type of book.

I just looked up the Mary le Bourne name and found this piece on Martin Edwards' blog - there is a murder mystery manuscript she wrote under that name, Two-Way Murder, which is still unpublished!



If anyone is feeling rich, it's still for sale and yours for a mere £5,000:


I wonder if a publisher will eventually take this one up? They have plenty of her published works to go through first, though!

Susan in NC wrote: "That’s what I was trying to do, read in order! I’m the same with series- but luckily, with the rather random rerelease of her titles, each can be read as a stand-alone. ..."

It tends to be hard to read BLCC authors in order, as I think they tend to release a few titles by an author and do a lot of promotion before publishing more. I do suspect we will continue to see other publishers picking up more Lorac too, though, as her popularity seems to be growing.

Abigail wrote: "One pseudonym strategy, if you want your real identity not to be discovered, is to pick a super-common name--it defeats searches! Though you should try to make sure the name isn't currently in use ..."

Interesting,thanks! Hadn’t thought of that, makes sense.

Judy wrote: "Susan in NC wrote: "That’s what I was trying to do, read in order! I’m the same with series- but luckily, with the rather random rerelease of her titles, each can be read as a stand-alone. ..."

It..."

I agree, I’ve seen a few ebooks on Scribd that are new titles to me.

I really enjoyed Crossed Skis: An Alpine Mystery and would recommend it. A nice cooling read in the current hot weather in the UK (which now seems to be breaking somewhat!)

Thanks Judy, good to know it’s worth a read. Glad you’re cooling down a bit - do you all have air conditioning usually, or is it just not necessary in most places?

Thanks Susan! I've never met anyone in the UK who has air conditioning at home - we do in many shops and offices, but of course a lot of people are working at home at the moment!

PS But we do have fans - I've got a lovely fan blowing cool air at me at the moment :)

I feel for you, Judy--where I live very few people have air-conditioning either (San Francisco Bay area) and we're having a heat wave too. One that's supposed to last at least a week! I'm trying the fan-blowing-on-wet-hair strategy.

To be honest our heatwave has actually pretty much finished for now, although it is still a bit sticky - but I do feel for you, Abigail!

You remind me that all things do come to an end eventually, Judy! 👍

We have a movable air conditioner in our bedroom, but not throughout the house.

Judy wrote: "PS But we do have fans - I've got a lovely fan blowing cool air at me at the moment :)"

Oh, thank goodness! I’m from Chicago originally, so used to four seasons, with hot summers, but growing up, we often had just window AC units for the hottest nights, or fans to stay cool. But summers get REALLY hot and humid here in NC! I have family further south in SC and Florida, even hotter- I can’t imagine summers for all of us without AC.

Abigail wrote: "You remind me that all things do come to an end eventually, Judy! 👍"

Hang in there, Abigail!

I started reading Fell Murder and enjoying it very much. The description of the Lake District brought back some fond memories of my visits there.

That’s one of the things that hooked me on Lorac - her incredible descriptions of scenery really bring a place to life! I’ve never been to England, but she really conjures up places vividly. She writes a solid mystery and I really like Macdonald’s low key approach, too!

I love her books too! Lucky you having seen the Lake District!

Susan in NC wrote: "That’s one of the things that hooked me on Lorac - her incredible descriptions of scenery really bring a place to life! I’ve never been to England, but she really conjures up places vividly. She wr..."

So true, Susan. The setting of this book is a farming community and I already feel bonded with them. :) She is so good. I'm really glad to have come across her.

Michaela wrote: "I love her books too! Lucky you having seen the Lake District!"

I feel very lucky, yes. It is the most beautiful part of England that I've visited.

Piyangie, we had Fell Murder as a recent group read - here are the threads if you want to take a look:

Non-spoiler:
/topic/show/...

Spoiler:
/topic/show/...

Judy wrote: "Piyangie, we had Fell Murder as a recent group read - here are the threads if you want to take a look:

Non-spoiler:
/topic/show/......"

Thanks, Judy. I checked the non-spoiler thread. Susan has done a wonderful summary there. I'll check the spoiler thread once I finish reading.

I read Murder in the Mill-Raceyesterday and thoroughly enjoyed it. I agree that her descriptions of setting and scene are great.

Amazon pitched an E.C.R. Lorac book to me this morning and thanks to this thread I snapped it up (a measly 99 cents). Murder in Vienna, a late entry in her Robert MacDonald series, works for a couple of tasks in this season's challenge. It also ticks a box in my 20th Century women quest. Some owned books will get read soon than others. ;-)

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Amazon pitched an E.C.R. Lorac book to me this morning and thanks to this thread I snapped it up (a measly 99 cents). Murder in Vienna, a late entry in her Robert MacDonald series, ..."

It´s still 99p for those wanting to read it! I snapped it, as I love Lorac, and I live in Vienna! :) Thanks Elizabeth!

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Amazon pitched an E.C.R. Lorac book to me this morning and thanks to this thread I snapped it up (a measly 99 cents). Murder in Vienna, a late entry in her Robert MacDonald series, ..."

I want to get this too. It'll be a wonderful addition to what I've already got of hers. Thanks, Elizabeth.

Michaela wrote: "Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Amazon pitched an E.C.R. Lorac book to me this morning and thanks to this thread I snapped it up (a measly 99 cents). Murder in Vienna, a late entry in he..."

Michaela, you lucky girl! Vienna strikes me as a beautiful city, I’d love to visit some day, I watch the Vienna Philharmonic concerts whenever they are on public television here! I would love to visit the museums, churches, and of course, coffee houses! They look so lovely, a delightful place to enjoy a good book and coffee, or just people watch!

Thank you, Elizabeth - I have Murder in Vienna through my Scribd subscription, hope to get to it soon. They have a couple other Lorac titles I think, that are only reissued in ebook form so far:

Rope’s End, Rogue’s End , and Murderer's Mistake

I also found Death Came Softly. Maybe they are releasing more in digital. That would be a good thing! I quite liked MacDonald in Murder in Vienna and hope to read a lot more of him.

Thanks for that title, Elizabeth- yes, I’d welcome releases in ebooks, if that gets her books back sooner!

Thanks everyone for the links! When you come to Vienna Susan, I´ll guide you! :)

Thanks, Michaela! They always say nobody knows a city like the locals!

I've noticed there is one Lorac title on Kindle on UK Amazon which is listed on the site with her name the wrong way round, as Lorac E.C.R. - Accident by Design, so it doesn't show up on her Amazon author page! It's currently £2.38.