Post After Post-Mortem

De: E.C.R. Lorac

Narrado por: David Thorpe

The Surrays and their five children form a prolific writing machine, with scores of treatises, reviews and crime thrillers published under their family name. Following a convergence of the whole household at their Oxfordshire home, Ruth—the middle sister—decides to spend some weeks there recovering from the pressures of the writing life. Their next return is heralded by the tragic news that Ruth has taken her life after an evening at the Surrays' hosting a set of publishers and writers, one of whom is named as Ruth's literary executor in the will she left behind.

Despite suspicions, the verdict at the inquest is suicide—but when Ruth's brother Richard receives a letter from the deceased which was delayed in the post, he enlists the help of CID Robert Macdonald to investigate what could only be an ingeniously planned murder.

©1936, 2022 The Estate of E.C.R. Lorac, Introduction Martin Edwards (P)2022 Soundings

OFF TO A POOR START

I’m not even five chapters into this and already am having trouble continuing. Is this supposed to be clever and witty? It’s really not. I mean, are we supposed to like this family and find their self-congratulatory banter entertaining? Is the occasional self deprecatory comment peppered in supposed to lend an iota of modesty to this blatantly fictional crew? It doesn’t.. and I do not. While I’m at it, I should add that after three Macdonald novels I’m getting sick and tired of the hero worship. It’s just, well, annoying and too fantastic to be taken seriously, even with a great heap of artistic license granted. At the risk of sounding chauvinistic, it also gives away the author as female. For no male would ever create a character as disgustingly ideal as Macdonald. Indeed no real person would actually even like such a man, quite contrary to how this protagonist is received by male, female, dog, cat, baby, child and plant alike. EVVVVVREYONE loves him. EVVVVVREYONE spends their valuable personal time remarking on him. EVVVVREYONE comes around to him. Even the people who are supposed to dislike him, only do because he is *SOOOO GOOD!”

Ugh. Yuck. This might be the last of her books I listen to. If I can even get through it. It reads like I imagine a Danielle Steel book to read. And that’s not a compliment.

But at your own risk.

Come to think of it, I don’t see how anyone could mistake

Skip this one

Too long, convoluted, and over-clever. Read some of her country novels instead. She’s better with rural settings and farm life.

An excellent collection of fine mysteries

I’ve been listening to these novels one by one without pausing to give a comment. My main excuse is that I intend to listen to each of them again and give them a more informed review. So far I haven’t found a dud and I have a few more to go. I’ve found Martin Edwards intros quite spot on and enjoyed exactly those things which he highlights. I have many hundreds of books in my audible library and these definitely rank amongst my most enjoyed and admired. If you latch onto these gems of fine writing and put aside any self-congratulating, politically-correct inanities you will I hope enjoy them as much as I have.

Great story undone by erratic narration

I love ECR Lorac's books, but the narration does not do this book justice and was so annoying I returned it a few chapters in. There are awkward pauses in the recording and the narrator has a selection of annoying voices. Very disappointed.

Favorite Narrator

I enjoy reading all of Lorac’s books in the Inspector Macdonald series and listen to them multiple times. Except this book. I didn’t like the story line so much and couldn’t connect with the characters. I felt the motive, when revealed in the end to be very senseless even though emotionally complex. It did keep me guessing and has a few well executed plot twists. As always I enjoy how David Thorpe brings the characters to life. He does an excellent job.

Love ECR Lorac and David Thorpe

No better combination of writer and reader. please record more of the British Crime Library Classics.

An enigmatically bound mystery

With many ins and outs, and quite a few characters to keep straight in one’s head, I might recommend you skip the audio and read the written words if able! (I had to rw a number of times to clarify which character was speaking, or to repeat a plot point, but that could be “just me.”)
All these factors which may dampen listening also make the mystery intriguing. Plus, I love the fact it features hand bookbinding, means and method, a hobby of mine which I haven’t seen featured in fiction before now.

MS Lorax aka Carol triumphs again!

Loved it, kept me guessing all along, and I was sad it ended! I hope all of her works get brought back out to us!

Lorac and Macdonald, Twists and Turns

My favorite Lorac thus far. Love the intellectual family milieu and the suspects who are writers and publishers. Narrator slips in and out of voices almost miraculously. Love the detailed plots and charming secondary characters. What a wonderful discovery this line of audiobooks has been for an Agatha Christie fan like myself.

As a detective, Macdonald seems to be the precursor of PD James’s Adam Dalgliesh. Love how we can always count on his intelligence and decency. (If only PD James’s books were re-recorded with a better narrator than the dull female reader most are usually recorded with!!)

Gave up on it

Just couldn't get interested in this family of over-achievers. Wasn't that impressed with Macdonald either.