Murder by Matchlight by E.C.R. Lorac

Murder by Matchlight by E.C.R. Lorac ISBN-13: 9781464210938 Paperback: 264 pages Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press Released: March 5, 2019

Source: ebook review copy from the publisher through NetGalley.

Book Description, Modified from Goodreads:
London, 1945. The capital is shrouded in the darkness of the blackout. During a stroll through Regent's Park, Bruce Mallaig witnesses two men acting suspiciously around a footbridge. In a matter of moments, one of them has been murdered; Mallaig's view of the assailant but a brief glimpse of a ghastly face in the glow of a struck match.

The murderer's noiseless approach and escape seems to defy all logic, and even the victim's identity is quickly thrown into uncertainty. Lorac's shrewd yet personable C.I.D. man MacDonald must set to work once again to unravel this near-impossible mystery.


My Review:
Murder by Matchlight is a mystery originally published in 1945 and set in London, England during World War II. The story included details about what life was like during blackout conditions and with bombs occasionally being dropped. The murderer uses these conditions to nearly get away with the perfect murder, but the detective and his team methodically dug up clues and sorted through suspects. They asked good questions and had a good feel for who was lying and who was telling the truth. Part of the problem was that the dead man was carrying identification papers that belonged to someone who died during a bombing. They must discover who the dead man really is and if someone from his past or present had a reason to kill him.

Like the detective (though he didn't say so until the end), I suspected a certain character fairly early on, though not for a clear reason. Most of the suspects had solid alibis, and some of these alibis were questioned as further clues were uncovered. Several reenactments were necessary to determine how the murder was carried out and who could've done it. The detective and many of the characters were likable, and the story was mildly humorous. There was a fair amount of bad language. There was no sex. Overall, I'd recommend this interesting and clever mystery.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


Excerpt: Read an excerpt using Google Preview.