Fell Murder is a grim murder-mystery story penned by Lorac. I say “grim” only relating to the murder-mystery. The story isn’t grim, far from it, for Lorac takes us to the beautiful setting in the Northwest England countryside of Lunsdale, situated in the beautiful Lake District. There, we meet a farming community who toil with the land as best as they could; their livelihoods are threatened due to the ongoing World War.
In this beautiful surrounding and the charming farming community, a murder is committed. The local police being weighed down by many duties, the investigation falls to Scotland Yard, and the Chief Inspector MacDonald makes his appearance.
This is a good murder mystery. Though the plot is not overly complicated, the writing is cleverly done to keep the suspense intact. The criminal wasn’t too difficult to guess, nor was the motive. Lorac seem not so much to mind whether the readers would figure out the criminal and the motive, for she doesn’t set baffling clues or red herrings to confuse the reader here. She puts into the story only those necessary to make the story interesting and engaging. Somehow, that contributes to the clarity and precision of her stories.
Again, it is Lorac’s writing what captured me the most. It is so well done that the setting and the characters come to life under her amazing writing. We feel an instant connection to them, and our quest to discover the criminal becomes part of the community and not as an outsider. It is truly remarkable.
Though it had a slow start and the Chief Inspector marked his presence a bit late, I enjoyed it overall.
Rating: 4/5
