Murder in the Mill-Race (1952) by E.C.R. Lorac: An Audiobook Review

🔶️ When Dr. and Mrs. Raymond Ferens moved to a rural village called Milham in the Moor of Devon, they were charmed by the picturesque village. But after a while they begin to notice the hidden malice among its people.

🔶️ Sister Monica is the warden of the local children's home. Though everyone praises her very highly - almost like a saint - the Ferens see her as a cruel authoritarian woman with huge influence among the people. But they wisely keep their knowledge to themselves, and not interfere with the children's home affair.

🔶️ Then one day Sister Monica's body was found floating near the mill, with bruises on the back of her head. Neither suicide nor accident were considered possible, and therefore... murder it was. But, who's done it? And why?

🔶️ The local Sergeant finds it difficult at first to deal with the village people, in finding clues or motive. Unanimously they shut their mouths as tightly as clamps; no one seems to know anything, and everyone seems to protect the others. But Chief Inspector MacDonald is undeterred by this show off of "village loyalty". He's an outsider, and he wisely but determinedly uses his authority to dig for facts.

🔶️ The further Inspector MacDonald digs, the more it is revealed that Sister Monica wasn't saintly at all. Dark secrets were enveloping her person, that somebody's honour was threatened.

🔶️ This was my first Lorac's, and I instantly loved her style. She reminds me a little of Agatha Christie's small-village-mystery. Inspector MacDonald becomes my new favorite detective now; his deduction and understanding of psychological aspect of human beings is marvellous, and his way of handling people is uncanny. He has Hercule Poirot's confidence as well as intelligence, but without the latter's (cough) vanity.

🔶️ I always love simplistic mystery in small villages, where everybody knows everything about everyone - there's bound to be hatred, gossips, and jealousy underneath the supposedly peaceful atmosphere. This one is all that. A simple but satisfying read!

Rating: 4,5 / 5

This book counts for British Crime Classics Challenge 2023

For Bingo Card: Death by Drowning
For Monthly Theme: Authors New to Me

The 12.30 from Croydon (1934) by Freeman Wills Croft

🛩 The story opens with little Rose Morley's enthusiasm over her first journey by plane. Her mother has had an accident in France, and her father takes her on the journey, together with her grandpa, who insisted on going along despite his declining health. The flight goes well, and they are all enjoying it. But when the plane arrives in France, they can't wake Andrew Crowther, Rose's grandpa. He's dead!

🛩 The story suddenly switched to a Charles Swinburn, Crowther's nephew who has succeeded his uncle in leading the manufacturing business Crowther has built. It was then that I realized that this is actually an inverted mystery. It's not about whodunnit, but howcatchem. The readers follow the story from the murderer's point of view, instead of the detective's as in most crime stories.

🛩 Charles Swinburn is the murderer. Business is slacking, and he needs money to avoid ruin, and, most importantly, to marry Una Melor, a refined girl he's infatuated to. Crowther had made it clear that he will inherit a lot of money after his uncle died (the money will be divided between Charles and Elsie Morley, Rose's mother), but he can't wait until then. If only....

🛩 We follow Charles' every step and thoughts through the story. How he's disgusted at first at his own thoughts of committing murder, his pleas to get the promised money from his uncle in advance (and rejected), to his decision to take the only possible way he sees - murder - while self-justifying himself. We witness here the machination of mind of an ordinary decent man turn murderer. Fascinating!

🛩 When the decision has been made, the realization is quite simple. Charles meticulously crafts his method; planning the details, thinking over all possibilities, alibi and all. It is a simple murder, really. He just switches off his uncle's bottle of indigestion pills with another in which he has put cyanide inside one pill, placing it near the bottom of other real indigestion pills (to give him enough time to prepare his alibi). When his uncle would take that poisonous pill, he'll die quickly, and everyone will think it a natural death, while Charles is far away from home, taking a holiday on a cruiser.

🛩 As usual, 99% of every genius plan must have at least one setback. In murder, that tiny loophole can ruin the whole plan. And what with perpetual remorse and anxiety, sooner or later a murderer can lose his mind. This story should show every murderer-to-be, that committing murder is really not worth it - whatever it was that one expects to gain!

🛩 It is a very interesting approach to a murder mystery, but I think I much prefer the conventional style. Moreover, this story feels a bit redundant. After having followed the murderer’s detailed action, we must then attend the court, where the case is discussed again; and after that, the police and detectives discuss all the loose ends. Interesting, perhaps, but rather tiresome.

Rating: 3,5 / 5

This book counts for British Crime Classics Challenge 2023

For Bingo Card: Death Onboard: Aircraft
For Monthly Theme: Authors New to Me

Six Books Saturday #1: New-to-Me Crime Writers

#SixBooksSaturday is my new personal monthly bookish meme, inspired by Six Word Saturday, which I've stumbled upon @ Travel with Intent.

I thought it would be fun to list six books of random category/theme, which I'd decide on the spot. It might be six favorite books from my favorite author, or six books I've just added to my TBR. Or, if I find a gorgeous pinkish cover, I might list six pink book covers. Anything is possible according to my whim.

I will post Six Books Saturday on the last Saturday of each month. If you're interested, you are, of course, welcomed to join me. There's no rule, really. You can post six anything about books with your own theme, and leave your link in the comment, so I can read you posts. Or you can share the posts in Twitter (I still call it that) with hashtag #SixBooksSaturday, and don't forget to tag me!

This month I pick a theme which is correlated with this month's British Classics Crime Challenge theme, which is Authors New to Me.

Here is my first Six Books Saturday:

NEW-TO-ME CRIME WRITERS I've read so far this year, whose books I'm excited to read more

(in no particular order)

Christianna Brand

(my first read: Heads You Lose)

Dolores Hitchens

(my first read: The Cat Saw Murder)

Stuart Palmer

(my first read: The Penguin Pool Murder)

E.C.R. Lorac

(my first read: The Murder in the Mill-Race – review yet to come)

Merryn Allingham

(my first read: The Bookshop Murder)

Robin Forsythe

(my first read: The Pleasure Cruise Mystery)

Have you read these writers? Which one is your favorite?

 

The Pleasure Cruise Mystery (1933) by Robin Forsythe

⛴ Algernon Vereker is lucky to have Manuel Ricardo as his best friend. When Vereker's feeling down after bad criticism of his latest painting, Ricardo suggested a pleasure cruise holiday. Well, his suggestion is not fully unselfish, because he hoped Vereker would pay for his ticket as well!

⛴ Just when Vereker begins to feel bored on board the cruise, mysterious things happen. A woman called Beryl Mesado, his cabin neighbor, seems to avoid being seen in public. She makes an appearance at dinner, but it's quite a distance from Vereker's table, that he can't see her face. She wears a pale blue dress and a diamond necklace with butterfly clap. On board with this elusive woman is a maid/companion and the Colvins (sister and brother-in-law).

⛴ At his cabin Vereker hears conversation between Beryl and Colvin. Beryl insists that Colvin must do "the job" quickly despite of the "risks". At this Vereker's boredom vanishes, and his sleuthing mode is on!

⛴ On the fatal night, Vereker hears Beryl's exclaimation that Maureen's necklace is gone. Who's Maureen? Then a rattle sounds inside Vereker's cabin, which he can't find the source. At midnight, Ricardo wakes him up as he'd found a woman's body on the deck, wearing pale blue evening dress, but without the diamond necklace. Her knuckles were bruised inside her chamois gloves (which doesn't match her evening outfit), and Vereker notices that her shoes are of bigger sizes. The Colvins admit that Beryl had had bad heart condition, and that must have been the cause of her death. But was it?

⛴ Later on Vereker found the diamond necklace with butterfly clasp on his cabin! So, that's where the rattle sound came from! But Colvin said the missing necklace is of white and cinnamon diamonds. Are there two missing necklaces, then? And was it burglary and murder?

⛴ This is a very complex and complicated murder mystery. Besides the Colvins, the other suspects consist of Dias, an acquaintance of the family, and a wealthy young girl, a Miss Penteado, Ricardo's crush. The murder method is the most unusual I've ever known. It's like when Forsythe saw the device, he thought, "Ha! That can cause death if one isn't careful!", and used it for his next novel.

⛴ All in all, it's a fun read. I loved the holiday vibes onboard the cruiser. I also loved the witty banters between Vereker and Ricardo; and the mystery itself is really puzzling. The only setback is the redundancy whenever Vereker told Inspector Heather or Ricardo of how the case has been progressing, or their discussing over the solution. Other than that, it's a witty, highly entertaining mystery with unusual but ingenious plot. Many thanks to Dean Street Press for re-printing this Golden Age Mystery!

Rating: 4 / 5

This book counts for British Crime Classics Challenge 2023

For Bingo Card: Mystery Set on Boat/Ship
For Monthly Theme: Authors New to Me

Shelf Control #4: A Fete Worse Than Death by Lesley J. Taaffe

Shelf Control is a weekly feature created by Lisa at Bookshelf Fantasies, and celebrates the books waiting to be read on your TBR piles/mountains. Since early January 2023, Shelf Control has moved base to Literary Potpourri.

If you're a regular reader of this blog, you must have noticed that lately my readings are mostly of e-books and audiobooks, which I get from either Scribd or Google Playbook. In this episode of Shelf Control I am featuring an e-book from my "Saved" shelf at Scribd:

A Fete Worse Than Death (and other small church matters) by Lesley J. Taaffe

Summary from Amazon:
"Pastor Michael of Ainsworth Baptist Church has taken several months away from his duties to enjoy a well-earned Sabbatical and so Sister Marjory Steeple, stalwart of the church, upholder of traditional values and all that is seemly and decent, has taken it upon herself to write regular letters to Pastor Michael to keep him up to date regarding what is going on during his absence. Sister Marjory also takes the opportunity in her correspondence to make helpful suggestions as to how the good pastor might best improve the running of the church upon his return, and finds it unexpectedly therapeutic to off-load some of her own personal problems at the same time. These problems mainly revolve around her non-church going husband, George, and his unnerving obsession with his own funeral arrangements, their wayward son Christopher, and a bluff old cousin called Murgatroyd Thrip who is diligently (and against all the odds) following his calling to be a maverick missionary in far flung corners of the world.
Strangely enough Pastor Michael does not seem to appreciate Sister Marjory's selfless sacrifices and insightful suggestions quite as he should."


I think this would be a charming, humorous read that I'd need to cheer me up after some rough time, or a gory murder mystery. I like the tone of it, and the epistolary style of this lite book. But I'm surprised that it doesn't get reviewed in Amazon, and I couldn't find it in Goodreads either, thought it has been published since 2012. I hope it means that I've found a gem, instead of a junk!

What do you think of this book? Have you heard about it?

The Lonely Hearts Book Club by Lucy Gilmore: An Audiobook Review

💗 Sloane Parker is a librarian who loves her job in a small town. One of the patrons is an old curmudgeon called Arthur McLachlan, whose rudeness is not new to the staffs. Sloane had had her share of rough dealing with him too, but she also enjoys their literary banters.

💗 One day Sloane realized Arthur hasn't visited the library for some time. Worried that something's happened, she visited his house where he lives alone - against the library's rule - and found him really ill. From then on Sloane takes care of Arthur, in disguise of working with Arthur's personal library. In doing that, Sloane sacrifices a lot: her job (she got sacked) and facing the grudge of her fiancé. But she is happy.

💗 Besides Sloane, there is also Maisie, Arthur's nosy but kindhearted neighbor who also cares about him; Greg, Arthur's estranged grandson; Matteo, Sloane's ex-colleague who's hired to be Arthur's health nurse. The four of them gather regularly at Arthur's house to form a book club.

💗 Each member of the book club alternately narrates their story from their own point of views. And through these chapters, we slowly get to know each one of these characters - strength and weaknesses, problems and struggles, hopes and dreams, rejection and loneliness.

💗 I love the premise of this story, which is books. It is books that unite these strangers from various backgrounds. Through books that they discuss, they get to learn about themselves and their mistakes. Through books, they find courage to accept themselves and their loved ones, and to build their own future. Through books also, they cement their loves and friendship, and learn more about human's nature.

💗 Among various book titles mentioned throughout the book, Kazuo Ishiguro's Remains of the Day and L.M. Montgomery's Anne of Green Gables become two most important ones. Remains because it's their first book for the club, and Anne because they use it (by highlighting its passages with different colors - each represented certain person) to express their feelings to one of them. It would certainly be the most valuable gift a bookish person could ever receive, isn't it? Especially if the book happens to be his/her favorite. 

💗 All in all, it is a book about love, friendship, family, forgiveness, and redemption; sweet and heartwarming. And it makes me wanting to re-read Anne of Green Gables! I have listened and enjoyed this story from an audiobook, very well-narrated by Angie Kane. Given that this book is narrated alternately between the characters, audiobook is a perfect way of reading it, and I'm glad I've done that.

Rating: 5 / 5

 

Book Tag: I'll Get Around to It Later

I saw this book tag @ Golden Age of Detective Fiction the other day, and decided to do it for fun. The creator has posted this in 2022, but it's still relevant any time, so, why not?

The rules

• Link back to the original post–this one right here!–so the creator can read your answers and support you.
• Link back to the post of the person who tagged you and thank them.
• You may use the included graphic anywhere in your post, but you don’t have to.
• Fill all seven categories.
• You can either leave this tag open so anyone can do it or tag up to seven people.

 
The categories

📚 A classic book that you have been meaning to read forever but haven’t yet
Frankenstein by Mary Shelley - There's many of these, actually, all is waiting for me to take on. Be patient dear books, I'm just waiting a good reason to pick you next. Maybe next Classics Spin will do?

📚 A book on your shelf that you haven’t read yet
Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt - I almost forgot I own this. Must get to it sometime next year! And I need to sort my TBR out, who knows what gems I might find there!

📚 A book that you got recently that you haven’t read
The Blue Sky by Galsan Tschinag - I featured this book in Blogger-Inspired Wishlist Ep. 6, and have actually bought a copy instantly, but then a sad thing came my way, and I didn't think I'd have the energy to read a sad book, no matter how inspiring or hopeful it is. So, for now, I really need to keep it back on the TBR pile.

📚 A book that you’ve had forever but haven’t read
Casino Royale by Ian Fleming - I think I might have saved this one for too long, and now I'm just not interested anymore. Shame on me, I know! 

📚 A book a friend recommended that you haven’t read
Middlemarch by George Eliot - more than one friend recommended this actually, but it's just not the right time (is there ever a right time? I don't know.. I just don't think I'd be able to tackle that mammoth task of reading it at present).

📚 A book you’re procrastinating on
The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman - I have bought the book, and I've been excited to read this second book of the series after enjoying the first so much, so why do I keep procrastinating? Can I use that excuse of "not the right time" once more?...

📚 The next book on your TBR
Mrs. Harris Goes to Moscow by Paul Galico - I've just "found" this book among my e-book shelf the other day, thanks to Shelf Control meme, and this time I MUST get to read it!


Want to play along? Just consider yourself tagged!