"Murder by Matchlight" is a fine mystery work by E.C.R. Lorac. There are only, to date, three titles by the author being republished albeit she was a prolific mystery writer of her time. E.C.R. Lorac was an extremely capable mystery writer. The three books, including "Murder by Matchlight," all offer different surprises and distinct elements for readers of the genre. "Murder by Matchlight," however, is a slight disappointment somewhat.

I loved ALL the characters, the premise, the intriguing murder case and the historical backdrop. Set during the war time London, a scoundrel was murdered during blackout. Two witnesses and people remotely related to the blighter were being investigated in order to establish the possible links to the deceased. Many odd coincidences, persistent sleuth works, and manipulating psychological games led the inspector to put the missing pieces together. An exciting plot, a true page turner until the very last chapter. The outcome of the case and the execution of the murder were huge letdowns. When the construction of the plot was extremely puzzling, my hope for the wow ending was just as high. 90% of the book was well written, just the last 10% left me unsatisfied.

It's a book that worth more than a 3.5-star rating but not yet a 4. Considering the author managed to keep my mind occupied for majority of the time, and I adored the historical tidbit about the war time London, I still recommend this title to fans who love mystery oldies. The major redeeming quality, however, was the impeccable creations of the characters. A most vivid set of witnesses, suspects, officers and so forth made "Murder by Matchlight" a delightful read.