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Murder Runs In The Family
Lance McCrea was down on his luck, looking for a job and living in a boarding house. His heart was instantly won by a young woman, Freda, who also lived at the boarding house. But a powerful man stood between them. What power did this man have over this young lady? Lance went to find out and stumbled right into a double murder.
285 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1934
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About the author
Hulbert Footner
318 books4 followersFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia -
Hulbert Footner (1879 - 1944) was a Canadian writer of non-fiction and detective fiction.
biography of Hulbert Footner
http://www.geoffreymfootner.com/hulbe...
Hulbert Footner (1879 - 1944) was a Canadian writer of non-fiction and detective fiction.
biography of Hulbert Footner
http://www.geoffreymfootner.com/hulbe...
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
October 13, 2020
You can read this book online here.
Major characters:
Lance McCrea, our protagonist
Jim Beardmore, mill owner
Freda Rollin, Jim Beardmore's secretary, Lance's love interest
Tony Beardmore, Jim's son
Clinton Beardmore, Jim's half-brother
Rainer Stanley, Jim's son-in-law
Peter Bearemore, Jim's late father, a murder victim
Timothy Wilson, Jim's gardener
Professor Sempill, Lance's fellow boarder and friend
Bob Fassett, company gardener
Locale: Connecticut
Synopsis: Lance McCrea has fallen in love at first sight with Freda Rollin, who boards in the same house. Jim's overtures to Freda are rebuffed, as she says she is not free. She appears to have a relationship already with wealthy mill owner Jim Beardmore. Lance and Jim mix it up over Freda.
Lance follows Jim as he picks up a picnic-for-two and goes to his closed-up mansion, Fairfield. Jim enters the library to find Jim dead - but still warm. To his horror, he turns to see a hand reach around the door, grab the key, and shut the door - locking him in with the dead man.
Lance panics as the police approach and runs away, but encounters the murderer in the woods. Police pursue, there is a scuffle, and the murderer kills a policeman, Sgt. Doty. A long chase ensues as Lance evades the police. He is finally caught, but then escapes from the jail. He teams up with company gardener Bob Fassett to infiltrate the Beardmore Linen Mills. The rest of the Beardmore family are running the show with heavy hands; and Lance escapes a murder attempt of being thrown into a vat of acid.
Review: There are a couple of head-scratchers here which linger throughout the book. First, why does Lance run away from the authorities in the first place, as he is innocent? Second, why does he bother to break out of jail - which is, it itself, a crime?
The murder mystery turns into a chase thriller for most of the book. The title hints at the killer, or at least narrows it down. There is a surprise at the end, unrelated to the murder; which gives a satisfying conclusion to the story.
One drawback is the high character count. Everyone who pops into the story is named, thus (in my mind) becoming a suspect, and I had to keep a written list of who is who in case they reappeared later.
Major characters:
Lance McCrea, our protagonist
Jim Beardmore, mill owner
Freda Rollin, Jim Beardmore's secretary, Lance's love interest
Tony Beardmore, Jim's son
Clinton Beardmore, Jim's half-brother
Rainer Stanley, Jim's son-in-law
Peter Bearemore, Jim's late father, a murder victim
Timothy Wilson, Jim's gardener
Professor Sempill, Lance's fellow boarder and friend
Bob Fassett, company gardener
Locale: Connecticut
Synopsis: Lance McCrea has fallen in love at first sight with Freda Rollin, who boards in the same house. Jim's overtures to Freda are rebuffed, as she says she is not free. She appears to have a relationship already with wealthy mill owner Jim Beardmore. Lance and Jim mix it up over Freda.
Lance follows Jim as he picks up a picnic-for-two and goes to his closed-up mansion, Fairfield. Jim enters the library to find Jim dead - but still warm. To his horror, he turns to see a hand reach around the door, grab the key, and shut the door - locking him in with the dead man.
Lance panics as the police approach and runs away, but encounters the murderer in the woods. Police pursue, there is a scuffle, and the murderer kills a policeman, Sgt. Doty. A long chase ensues as Lance evades the police. He is finally caught, but then escapes from the jail. He teams up with company gardener Bob Fassett to infiltrate the Beardmore Linen Mills. The rest of the Beardmore family are running the show with heavy hands; and Lance escapes a murder attempt of being thrown into a vat of acid.
Review: There are a couple of head-scratchers here which linger throughout the book. First, why does Lance run away from the authorities in the first place, as he is innocent? Second, why does he bother to break out of jail - which is, it itself, a crime?
The murder mystery turns into a chase thriller for most of the book. The title hints at the killer, or at least narrows it down. There is a surprise at the end, unrelated to the murder; which gives a satisfying conclusion to the story.
One drawback is the high character count. Everyone who pops into the story is named, thus (in my mind) becoming a suspect, and I had to keep a written list of who is who in case they reappeared later.
March 25, 2020
1934 A good enough read. The plot's uneven, there's the fatally attractive woman whom few can resist, an amazing jail break by the hero which rivals the average parcours du combattant, and a lengthy, somewhat confusing, and generally unnecessary ending. Still, it's Footner
November 3, 2014
Hulbert Footner has a romantic streak a mile-wide at times and this story is no exception. Lance McCrea falls head over heals in love at first sight. He tries to find out why this powerful man has some kind of hold over her. When he faces the man down, he finds he has been murdered. Of course, he is not the murderer but is a prime suspect anyway. The plot is fairly weak. 1. Doing all sorts of things to risk your life for someone who never comes clean until the end is very frustrating and a bit unrealistic. 2. There isn't as much discovering in the way of finding the truth by the Lance.. it's mostly explained all at the end. So, you pretty much watch Lance on the lamb for the most part.
Things in the books favor- very realistic dialogue and a feel for the period that you just don't get... the gritty reality of life in the 1930's. The romantic touch is very common for this time as well.
If you looking for a mystery, this isn't for you. If your looking for suspense/action this is more for you.
Things in the books favor- very realistic dialogue and a feel for the period that you just don't get... the gritty reality of life in the 1930's. The romantic touch is very common for this time as well.
If you looking for a mystery, this isn't for you. If your looking for suspense/action this is more for you.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews