By now anyone who is paying attention to the explosive revival of vintage detective fiction is familiar with the name E. C. R. Lorac, the pen name of Edith Caroline Rivett (1894–1958). Rivett published more than 70 mysteries under the names E. C. R. Lorac and Carol Carnac. Nearly all of the E.C.R. Lorac titles, about 45 of them, feature Chief Inspector Robert MacDonald, a Scot on the London police force. Some of her books have been reprinted as part of the ever-growing British Library Crime Classics series, and her short stories appear in several British Library anthologies. The publication of a previously unknown Rivett manuscript in April 2022 only heightened interest in Lorac.
The last Inspector MacDonald story, published as Dishonour Among Thieves in London (Collins, 1959) and as The Last Escape in the U.S. (Doubleday, 1959), finds the inspector thinking about retirement and his life after Scotland Yard. After careful consideration he purchases a rundown farm near Lunesdale, a favorite setting of Lorac’s, and sets about rehabilitating it with the on-site assistance of a young couple.
During one working vacation a neighbor asks MacDonald to accompany him to check the buildings of a nearby farm on behalf of its owners, who had removed to town due to their age. While they expected to find spiders, dust, and possibly a snake or two, they were surprised to find the long-dead body of a man at the foot of steep stairs. His identity, how he entered a padlocked building, and why are all questions that MacDonald found himself trying to answer.
This is the slightest of the mysteries by Lorac I have read. Short, less than 200 pages, with few characters, it was easy to see what the outcome would be. Even with the shortfalls of the plot, I still found her glowing description of the countryside and its people worth reading. She writes convincingly, making the isolated farm with no telephone, no running water, and no electricity sound like a haven. I can’t quite view Londoner MacDonald as a sheep farmer but I do understand wanting a complete change sometimes. The hints about his possible plans for the last few years of his police career are interesting and consistent with Lorac’s long-term portrayal of MacDonald.
Recommended for those who want to read the entire MacDonald series. Not a priority for the rest of us.