Fell Murder

By: E.C.R. Lorac

Narrated by: Kris Dyer

First published in 1944, Fell Murder sees E.C.R. Lorac at the height of her considerable powers as a purveyor of well-made and traditional detective fiction. The book presents a fascinating 'return of the prodigal' mystery set in the later stages of the Second World War, amidst the close-knit farmerfolk community of Lancashire's lovely Lune valley. The Garths had farmed their fertile acres for generations.

Garthmere Hall itself was old before Flodden Field, and here hot-tempered Robert Garth, still hale and hearty at 82, ruled his household with a rod of iron. The peaceful dales and fells of the North country provide the setting for this grim story of murder.

©1944 Estate of E.C.R Lorac (P)2020 Soundings

Lancaster murder

Really lovely performance of a book I had read before. Atmosphere and character development topped by excellent writing. recommended

Detective Macdonald appears and it comes to life

Good book, I enjoyed the description of nature, the farm animals, the people. Detective Macdonald made it engaging and interesting

War Time Countryside Mystery

If you like descriptions of people and place with your mystery, especially respectful depictions of farmers, this is a delight. If you don't, you will find this to be slow. I loved it.

Nice cozy mystery

A ‘nice’ golden age mystery. I enjoyed the narrator’s performance best. The storyline was good but dragged on a bit in the middle. The book focused a lot on the land and the atmosphere of the times which I found interesting. I was tempted to skip ahead a few times but stuck it out. It did not have the twists and turns of typical golden age mysteries or what is characterized in some of e.c.r. Lorac’s later books. I figured out who the culprit was early in the story and after a while became impatient to get to the detecting to find out how the culprit would eventually be revealed. It took a while before CID McDonald came on the scene. But when he did, it became more interesting and the story went more quickly.

An excellent mystery

I really enjoyed this mystery. All of the characters had distinct personalities, and I enjoyed the historical setting of rural WWII England. The performance was excellent, and it was easy to tell which character was speaking, even though there were several places where the conversation didn't note who was speaking. I also enjoyed the "small community" feel where everyone knows everyone else. Definitely worth listening to if you enjoy historical mystery.