#ecr lorac

[living400lbs]

"The entrance of Elizabeth Leigh brought Grenville to his feet with a whoop of joy. “Angel!” he exclaimed fervently, but Elizabeth only made a face at him.

“I don’t approve of coming to see comparatively young men in their own rooms,” she announced haughtily. “Not on moral grounds, but because it gives them swelled head. However, my club’s no place for a good talk. There’s always some long-chinned spinster listening in from behind a pillar, and restaurants are the same, so I just came here."

- from Bats In The Belfry by E.C.R. Lorac, written in 1936.

[frimleyblogger]

The Case Of The Faithful Heart

A shaggy dog tale with a surprising and rewarding twist at the end as Anthony Bathurst undertakes a private investigation in a piece of #CrimeFiction from Brian Flynn, reissued by @DeanStPress #amreading

In memoriam, Rupert Heath – the man who helped ignite my love for Golden Age Detective Fiction. Exegit monumentum aere perennius Requiescat in pacem. A review of The Case of the Faithful Heart by Brian Flynn – 230213 There are some fascinating themes in The Case of the Faithful Heart, originally published in 1939 and now reissued by Dean Street Press. It must be a tad disconcerting to open…

[traveltherightroad]

because I don't have a microblog anymore but I'm possessed with the ever-present need to talk about things, here are my June books

Crook o'Lune by ECR Lorac

Incredibly atmospheric murder mystery, with a stolid and unassuming but still intriguing detective -- just a regular old police detective guy, no fancy frills about him. This was set in the highlands of Scotland with sheep farming and little villages' ancient history and weather and hiking and postwar as the atmosphere. I like ECR Lorac as a new-to-me "classic" detective fiction writer. There's always something just a little bit amiss about the crimes themselves, and I think it's something to do with the craft but I still can't put my finger on it, so I keep reading them to try and hone in more and more.

The Summer Book by Tove Jansson

oh my WORD, 10 out of 10. This book fundamentally changed how I view myself and womanhood in a really subtle but important way. On the surface it's just a nice little novella about a grandmother and her grandchild on a small island (based on Jansson's childhood). But whoaaaaa is it much more than that!

The Road from Belhaven by Margo Livesey

I'm not quite sure, still, what to think of this book. It's a story of a girl who can see little glimpses into the future, but that's not really what the story is based around -- it's about the choices you make, and the repercussions of choices, and family ties, and destiny... but kind of in a mid way.

Death of Jezebel by Christianna Brand

Another new-to-me detective book! I liked this one a lot. Nice and convoluted locked room mystery and a really good cast of characters, even if a little one-dimensional. Stories from the past surfacing in the present, funny costumes, British dry wit, great.

Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann

Don't get me wrong, the content of this book is horrifying. On so so so many levels. Horrifying white people making horrifying choices and killing plenty of innocent Native Americans. But unfortunately it was not written as well as I'd hoped, as well as I'd wanted it to be after the reputation it has had over the length of time since the movie came out.

Between Two Kingdoms by Suleika Jaouad

Moving memoir about a woman who got acute myeloid leukemia at the age of ~20. Especially moving to me, the wife of a cancer patient who got chronic myeloid leukemia at the age of 27. Lots of it really relatable and horrifying in equal parts. Meditations on death and mortality and yet somehow not too depressing.

Disappearing Earth by Julia Phillips

Two girls go missing; what happens to the community they've left behind? Set in a really remote part of Russia's far east, the Kamchatka peninsula, this book was equal parts horrifying and enthralling. Not your typical "thriller" but thrilling nonetheless. I think I got a recommendation to read it from an NPR best books list (although I could be wrong about that).

Current reads I started or read some of in June but haven't finished yet: To Kill A Mockingbird (along with Close Reads); Dracula (with Dracula Daily), Kristin Lavransdatter: The Cross, book 3 (along with Close Reads)

[cineastesview]

REVIEW: Two-Way Murder

In a quiet country town near the coast, on a foggy night, the villagers gather for the annual ball at The Fordings. Much has changed in th decade following the Second World War, but this is a tradition that continues. Even in the face of the anniversary of the disappearance of Rosemary Reeve. She was last seen after last year’s ball, running into the mist along the cliff path. Young Dilys Maine,…

[vermiculated]

mistakesville, @sea-changed

The Missing Page - Cat Sebastian

Death in the Stocks - Georgette Heyer

Crossed Skis - Carol Carnac

The Bone Key - Sarah Monette

Murder in the Mill-Race - ECR Lorac

Eileen - Ottessa Mosfegh

In a Lonely Place - Dorothy B Hughes

She Who Became the Sun - Shelley Parker-Chan

Rum Punch - Elmore Leonard

The Power of the Dog - Thomas Savage

52 Pickup - Elmore Leonard

The Girl Who Died - Ragnar Jonasson trans Victoria Cribb

what I did do is watch five seasons of Justified, I:

That's a lot of damage.

Not like Tim hasn't considered it before.

“Shit. I'm sorry.”

Tim's a heel. He should have kept his mouth shut and let Crowder unburden himself at his own leisure.

what I did do is watch five seasons of Justified, II:

“Not averse,” Raylan repeats, like drawing breath. Since he was last here and only saw one way out, Raylan really hasn’t thought about Boyd much. He was self-reliant, contained, and good in a crowd. He’d have friends, girls, guys who could show him a good time. No one needed to worry about Boyd, and he’d done well with it. Raylan only thinks about anything to worry about it; Boyd doesn’t need his worrying. And everything has worked out for Boyd: a job, a goofy modern car, the respect he’d wanted. Usually people had to be real fuckups to have anyone in Harlan remember their names: Boyd was practically famous for being a teacher, based on what Raylan had learned. “Yeah, since you got all,” Boyd waves a hand, “handsome, I thought I might not be averse.”

what I did do is watch five seasons of Justified, III, widows peak variation:

Bruce has been grey for decades: Jason’s finally caught up to him in the last year. He looks. Well. It’s like they used to be: Bruce solving crime, Jason keeping an eye on Bruce. Nothing about his appearance has ever really explained anything about who he is and it doesn’t now. The tip of his nose is a little blunted, maybe his ears stick out more. “I thought you would be interested. It’s from deep space, uninhabited.” Bruce holds out the ring on the flat of his palm, much in the same way he once described holding a sugar cube out to a horse.

ongoing Eighth House petty cruelties:

Jeremy is sharp-jawed, like a dog bred for hunting as depicted in a tapestry, bloodless features. Blue-gold, red into taupe, black fraying into grey. The thread decays over time, even under archival conditions. These are problems which admit no solutions: even death is not a victory over the grave. Owen would tear his heart out in the marketplace. At least it is identifiable on first pass: what’s a liver supposed to look like?

He could ask Ben. Ben wouldn’t know: Ben would let him check. He could be wrong, knowledgeably so; Ben lies with his body.

“Just me.”

comics moviefic which takes place in CONNECTICUT, Abe/John:

John's face is resolute, his profile picked out against the dark. His nose slopes like a wind-burnt massif.

“You asked for it?”

“I knew that Hellboy asked for me to leave; I asked to come back. My, uh, my sister-in-law, she's, well. Her brother's a deputy United States Attorney. It was a favor.”

Abe watches John. A connexion, they'd have said.

[quoteoftheweekblog]

QUOTE OF THE WEEK 13/6/22 - JAMES JOYCE (AND ‘ULYSSES’)

‘ … master Courtenay … in his own chamber … ‘ (Joyce, 1992, p.418).

REFERENCE

Joyce, J. (1992 [1922] ) ‘Ulysses’. London: Vintage. *****

‘ … master Courtenay - Col. Arthur H. Courtenay (b.1852), soldier and barrister, master of the High Court of Justice in Ireland, King’s Bench Division, 1904.’ (Gifford and Siedman, 2008).

REFERENCE

Gifford, D. and Siedman, R.J. (2008) 'Ulysses Annotated’. Revised and Expanded Edition. Available at: https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=fE9mkomQHEQC&pg=PA347&lpg=PA347&dq=master+courtenay+ulysses&source=bl&ots=HMGHFvr7yw&sig=ACfU3U1IxIpSCLCjfLuEijbVpPkVrBIV0g&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi4yez8gqj4AhWLd8AKHROtCvcQ6AF6BAg2EAM#v=onepage&q=master%20courtenay%20ulysses&f=false (Accessed 13 June 2022). 

*****

SEE ALSO

‘How grand are we this morning.’ (Joyce, 1992, p.147).

*****

TO MY FRIEND IN PROPS AT THE SHINFIELD PLAYERS IN READING

FOR THE COSTUME

*****

*****

XXXX

THE COURTENAYS

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/686941481032957952/quote-of-the-week-13622-james-joyce

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/632770138139197440/quote-of-the-week-2919-ecr-lorac-he-was

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/151385053039/quote-of-the-week-31016-lucy-courtenay-this

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/150632643769/quote-of-the-week-29816-english-heritage-at

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/149021667099/quote-of-the-week-15816-agatha-christie

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/136605626344/quote-of-the-week-4116-hilary-mantel

*****

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY ‘ULYSSES’ - JAMES JOYCE 

100

(AS HARD AS READING IT)

*****

FOR BLOOMSDAY 16 JUNE

https://www.ireland.com/en-gb/things-to-do/events/bloomsday-festival/

*****

CONGRATULATIONS 2022

A. A. MILNE - HAPPY BIRTHDAY - 140

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/673632775448985600/quote-of-the-week-17122-jane-fallon-i-hate

‘THE WASTE LAND’ - T.S. ELIOT - HAPPY ANNIVERSARY - 100

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/680522124957466624/quote-of-the-week-4422-ts-eliot-and

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/674272563943342080/quote-of-the-week-24122-ann-cleeves-and-ts

VIRGINIA WOOLF - HAPPY BIRTHDAY - 140

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/674272563943342080/quote-of-the-week-24122-ann-cleeves-and-ts

JAMES JOYCE - HAPPY BIRTHDAY - 140

‘ULYSSES’ - JAMES JOYCE - HAPPY ANNIVERSARY - 100

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/686941481032957952/quote-of-the-week-13622-james-joyce-master

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/678099403964383232/httpsragingfluffwordpresscom20180303snow-i

‘THE BEAUTIFUL AND DAMNED’ - F. SCOTT FITZGERALD - HAPPY ANNIVERSARY -100

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/678686834123063296/httpswwwtheguardiancombooks2022mar02shirl

JACK KEROUAC - HAPPY BIRTHDAY - 100

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/678686834123063296/httpswwwtheguardiancombooks2022mar02shirl

‘MIDDLEMARCH’ - GEORGE ELIOT - HAPPY ANNIVERSARY - 150

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/679884155142684672/quote-of-the-week-28322-georges-simenon-if

‘THE ENCHANTED APRIL’ - ELIZBETH VON ARNIM - HAPPY ANNIVERSARY - 100

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/680522124957466624/quote-of-the-week-4422-ts-eliot-and

KINGSLY AMIS - HAPPY BIRTHDAY - 100

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/681793059689840640/quote-of-the-week-18422-rumaan-alam-and

‘THE VELVETEEN RABBIT’ - MARGERY WILLIAMS  - HAPPY ANNIVERSARY - 100

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/681793059689840640/quote-of-the-week-18422-rumaan-alam-and

‘THE GARDEN PARTY’ - KATHARINE MANSFIELD - HAPPY ANNIVERSARY - 100

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/686254057511370752/quote-of-the-week-6622-sali-hughes-and-the

*****

QUOTE OF THE WEEK 2011 - 2021

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/references

FROM THE ARCHIVE

https://quoteoftheweekblog.tumblr.com/post/632770138139197440/quote-of-the-week-2919-ecr-lorac-he-was

*****

[coffee-and-biscotti]

jehanjoueuse lol

[living400lbs]

“You asked me—quite rightly—what time I left Grenville yesterday evening. I told you a few minutes after six. If you were having the place watched, you knew what time I left.”

“Yes,” agreed Macdonald. “Our man agreed with you. Six five he made it. After which you mounted a number thirteen bus in the Strand, which got held up when the Fascisti tried to demonstrate in Trafalgar Square at six thirty-five. You arrived home at seven three. The moral of which seems to be that it is quicker to walk than to go by bus in London during the rush hours.”

- from Bats In The Belfry by E.C.R Lorac

Some things are eternal...like traffic.

[frimleyblogger]

Crook O’Lune

A lyrical and pastoral homage to a beautiful part of #Lancashire with the odd murder thrown in. Womderful #CrimeFiction from ECR Lorac, reissued by @BL_Publishing #amreading

A review of Crook O’Lune by ECR Lorac What a wonderful book this is, the 38th in Lorac’s Robert Macdonald series, originally published in 1953 and reissued as part of the British Library Crime Classics series. It is less of a crime mystery and more of a love letter to the beautiful countryside around the river Lune in north Lancashire. Lorac’s title is well chosen and nuanced, referencing the…

[frimleyblogger]

Fire In The Thatch

An excellent Robert Macdonald story from E R C Lorac, reissued by @BL_publishing #CrimeFiction #amreading

A review of Fire in the Thatch by ECR Lorac – 230411 Edith Caroline Rivett, who wrote under the nom de plume of E C R Lorac, is one of my favourite Golden Age detective writers. More of her works are being rescued from obscurity, although some of the versions that are available on Kindle are often full of annoying typos. Fortunately, the inestimable British Library Crime Classics series is doing…

[frimleyblogger]

Death Of An Author

This gripping tale is the first ECR Lorac reissue of 2023. With grateful thanks to @BL_Publishing #CrimeFiction #amreading

A review of Death of an Author by E C R Lorac – 230209 A new reissue of one of ECR Lorac’s rarest books is a moment to celebrate, especially as it comes with the imprimatur of quality in production as part of the excellent British Library Crime Classics series. Originally published in 1935, it has been out of print for decades but given the renaissance in the author’s popularity, it is a timely…

[frimleyblogger]

Murder By Matchlight

Another wonderfully atmospheric piece of #CrimeFiction from ECR Lorac, reissued by @BL_Publishing #amreading

A review of Murder by Matchlight by E C R Lorac Published in 1945 and reissued as part of the excellent British Library Crime Classics series, this is Lorac’s twenty-sixth novel to feature Chief Inspector Robert Macdonald of the Yard and an excellent one it is too. Cleverly written, it keeps the suspense going until the end, the plot twists and turns, and although Lorac is careful to play fairly…

[frimleyblogger]

Checkmate To Murder

Checkmate To Murder - a fine reissue from #BritishLibraryCrimeClassics from an undeservedly obscure writer of #CrimeFiction

Checkmate to Murder – E C R Lorac Edith Caroline Rivett was a prolific author whose career spanned from 1931 until her death in 1959, before languishing in obscurity, only for British Library Crime Classics to begin the long job of reissuing her works to be rediscovered by a modern readership. A long job it is too, as she wrote forty-eight murder mysteries under the nom de plume of E C R Lorac…

[frimleyblogger]

Post After Post-Mortem

A welcome revival of a long forgotten piece of classic #CrimeFiction from E C R Lorac, reissued by @BL_Publishing #amreading

A review of Post after Post-Mortem by E C R Lorac One of the literary world’s most intriguing questions is why some writers are remembered long after they had finished writing while others, equally worthy, fall into unwarranted obscurity. Edith Caroline Rivett, who wrote under the nom de plume of ECR Lorac, falls into the latter category, wholly unjustifiably, and it is one of the pleasures of…

[coffee-and-biscotti]

My brother has a huge library apparently, and I was curious. Now I can't stop reading.