Lillian De La Torre (1902–1993)
Author of Dr. Sam Johnson, Detector
About the Author
Disambiguation Notice:
Lillian de la Torre is the pen name of Lillian de la Torre Bueno McCue.
Image credit: bookjacket photo / Knutson Bowers
Series
Works by Lillian De La Torre
Elizabeth Is Missing, or, Truth Triumphant: An Eighteenth Century Mystery (2017) 28 copies, 1 review
The Truth about Belle Gunness: The True Story of Notorious Serial Killer Hell's Belle (1955) 27 copies, 1 review
The 60 Minute Chef 4 copies
Associated Works
The Web She Weaves: An Anthology of Mystery and Suspense Stories by Women (1983) — Contributor — 52 copies, 2 reviews
Chapter and Hearse: Suspense Stories about the World of Books (1985) — Contributor — 48 copies, 1 review
All but Impossible! An Anthology of Locked Room and Impossible Crime Stories by Members of the Mystery Writers of… (1981) — Contributor — 29 copies
Mistresses of Mystery: Two Centuries of Suspense Stories by the Gentle Sex (1973) — Contributor — 28 copies, 1 review
Once Upon a Crime: Historical Mysteries From Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine (1994) — Contributor — 27 copies
To the Queen's Taste: The First Supplement to 101 Years Entertainment Consisting of the Best Stories Published in the… (1946) — Contributor — 24 copies
The Crime of My Life: Favorite Stories by Presidents of the Mystery Writers of America (1984) — Contributor — 11 copies
More Murder on Cue: Stage, Screen & Radio Favorites: Stories from Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine (1990) — Contributor — 11 copies
Tagged
Common Knowledge
- Canonical name
- De La Torre, Lillian
- Legal name
- McCue, Lillian de la Torre Bueno
- Other names
- Bueno, Lillian de la Torre (birth name)
- Birthdate
- 1902
- Date of death
- 1993-09-13
- Gender
- female
- Nationality
- USA
- Birthplace
- Manhattan, New York, USA
- Place of death
- Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA
- Education
- Harvard University (MA)
Columbia University (MA)
New Rochelle College - Organizations
- Mystery Writers of America (president)
- Disambiguation notice
- Lillian de la Torre is the pen name of Lillian de la Torre Bueno McCue.
Members
Reviews
Dr. Sam: Johnson, Detector (IPL Library of Crime… by Lillian De La Torre
Written in the language used in the 18th century, Dr. Sam:Johnson is a Sherlock Holmes type person, except that he actually existed. He was a brilliant man and created the first global dictionary. The fictional cases depicted are solved by Johnson based on careful consideration of the thinkings of the man. Much like Holmes' Watson, Boswell records the meanderings of Johnson.
½
The cleverness of the concept --one of the first significant series of historical mysteries, with Sam Johnson as the detective and Boswell, of course, as his Watson (a parallel already suggested by Sherlock Holmes "I am lost without my Boswell.") -- does not always match the quality of the mysteries themselves. However, the author has a good feeling for 18th century style, unlike many modern "historical" mystery writers..
I was lead to believe that this book would be kind of trashy, but I didn't find it so at all. It appears to be a soberly written account of the whole sordid story of Belle's crimes and the sensational aftermath. The author takes the evidence all together and, in the final pages, puts forth her own surprising theory to explain the inexplicable events. I'm not sure whether I agree with her idea, but it's worth thinking about. This book is as good as any if you want a short but thorough look at the case.… (more)
Dela Torre was one of the pioneers of the historical mystery and obviously has great fun writing not only her stories but her dedication in high 18th century style. feels much more authentic than many later historical mysteries.
Lists
Awards
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Associated Authors
Statistics
- Works
- 14
- Also by
- 32
- Members
- 352
- Popularity
- #67,994
- Rating
- 3.6
- Reviews
- 7
- ISBNs
- 24