Researching Lunesdale and the Lake District

Friday was a beautiful day, and the weather was ideal for a trip with two research objectives in mind. First, I aimed to gather more material for a forthcoming introduction to a novel in the British Library Crime Classics series by Carol Rivett, better known as E.C.R. Lorac (although the book in question will be one of those she wrote under another name, Carol Carnac). I was lucky enough to talk to someone who actually knew Carol Rivett in the years up to the author's death in 1958. It was a fascinating conversation. What's more, I've acquired an original manuscript by the author for the Detection Club's archives, held at Gladstone's Library. Developing the archives is a very long-term project, but one which I believe is hugely worthwhile. It's so easy for writers and their work, even fine writers and great books, to disappear from the public consciousness. The aim of the archives is to preserve a wide range of items of crime fiction heritage, and to make them accessible to members of the public.

My kind and generous hosts also made me a present of two works of art from their Rivett inheritance, as well as showing me a number of fascinating items in their possession. Carol was a gifted artist, and above is an example of a Christmas card, depicting an interior scene from her home in Aughton, which she designed and sent in 1956.

We met in the small village of Gressingham in picturesque Lunesdale, close to Aughton, where Carol Rivett lived for the last fifteen or sixteen years of her life. The next leg of my journey took me to Ulverston. I've been researching the next Lake District Mystery for some time, and I wanted to absorb myself again in some of the countryside (just outside the national park in this case) which provides part of the background for the book.

Earlier this year, while taking part in a talk at Ulverston Library, I met a fellow crime writer, Zosia Wand, who lives in the town. Zosia is the author of Trust Me and The Accusation, and is also a successful writer for radio, coach of writers, and playwright. She's lived in Ulverston for some years, and kindly took me on a tour which encompassed both the Hoad Monument (a lighthouse-like tower on top of a hill) and Conishead Priory (above photo), now a charming Buddhist retreat, with woodland walks to the shore. The views of Morecambe Bay were absolutely magnificent.

I was so inspired by these sights that instead of setting off home straight away, I made the most of the sunshine by driving further along the coast, as far as Roa Island on the tip of the Furness peninsula, with views of Piel Island, which I visited four years ago - yes, I've been thinking about this new novel for four years! And whilst roaming, I came upon the ideal setting for the opening scenes. All in all, truly rewarding trip.

Exploring Lorac Country

Last week I spent a fascinating day exploring the area where Carol Rivett, alias E.C.R. Lorac and Carol Carnac, lived for the last fifteen years or so of her life. This is Lunesdale in north Lancashire, an area that is - in comparison at least to the much-visited hot spots of the Lake District - somewhat off the beaten track, yet a very appealing area of the English countryside. The photo above is of Crook O'Lune - which supplied the title for one of Lorac's novels.

My guide was someone who actually knew Carol Rivett well, and who features as a minor character in one of her books. I learned a great deal from her, not least that Carol was a strong-minded woman with many talents. I had the chance to admire some of her artwork, embroidery, and calligraphy; she was also an accomplished musician, who taught the piano prior to the Second World War. I also learned something I hadn't realised before, that her output included a novel for children called Island Spell.

Carol moved to Lunesdale during the war, in the early 1940s, to be close to her sister Maud and her brother-in-law. The family was very close; there was a third sister, Gladys, and although she lived in London, all three sisters are buried in  the churchyard at Aughton (pronounced "Afton", and not to be confused with Aughton near Ormskirk) where Carol lived. We went on a pilgrimage there, and also to the neighbouring houses where Carol and her in-laws lived.

Whilst walking around the area - some of the narrow and bumpy rural lanes are not ideal for driving! - by chance we bumped into someone who lives in another house nearby which features in one of the Lorac books. She put a lot of her experiences (and people she knew) into her books, and it was a pleasure to be able to see them for myself. It's a lovely part of the world, and I can see why she was happy to live there. And I wondered what she would have made of the enthusiasm which has greeted the British Library's recent reprints of her work - with another title, Fell Murder, which is set in Lunesdale, due out next month.

Forgotten Book - The Theft of the Iron Dogs

The Theft of the Iron Dogs is one of the more intriguing titles for a crime novel. The book was written by E.C.R. Lorac, and first published by Collins Crime Club in 1946. It's one of a number of her novels set in the north west of England - Lunesdale. This is an area to which she relocated, and where spent most of her later years. Her love of the area comes through very strongly in the narrative.

The period atmosphere is equally strong. The book opens in September, and the early paragraphs begin with a description of harvesting time in the dairy farming district, where "the war effort had not been concerned with the nervous energy required by resistance to bombs or doodles or rockets; it had been the strain of sustained physical effort."

We are introduced to a farmer called Giles Hoggett, of Wenningby, and one rainy day he decides to go fishing. He takes a look at a summer cottage, only to find that two iron dogs are missing from the fireplace, as well as a complete reel of salmon line, a strong chain and hook, a clothes-line - and a large sack. It doesn't take much of a detective's instinct to figure out that someone has set about sinking something in the river Lune. And the experienced detective fan will have no doubt about what that something might be...

Yes, it's another murder mystery case for Chief Inspector Robert Macdonald of Scotland Yard. Madonald has already developed a love of the Lunesdale landscape and lifestyle, and he sets about untangling a neatly contrived mystery. Lorac's writing is characteristically under-stated, and so is her detective. I imagine that this reflects her own personality. In her quiet way, she was a highly professional writer, and although those who crave melodrama should probably look elsewhere, this book is another example of her capable mystery-making. I'm so glad that, thanks to the British Library's Crime Classic series, she has come back into public view.