Astonishingly, this "Inspector Alleyn" mystery was written in 1977, and Inspector Alleyn has a 21 year old son who gets into trouble in the Channel Islands, necessitating the arrival of Rode
Ngaio Marsh wisely set this last novel in her mystery series in the world of theater. It was in this setting that she produced some of her best work, andLight Thickens is among her best. This time, tr
Photo Finish's dead diva, the soprano Isabella Sommita, was so widely loathed that the problem is less a lack of plausible suspects than an embarrassment of options. Though the grand country-house – a
The elderly Emily Pride is pleased to have inherited an island, yet appalled by the "Pixie Falls" spring and its reported miraculous healing properties, and especially the locals’ at
Ngaio Marsh was one of the queens (she has been called the empress) of England’s Golden Age of mystery fiction. And in true Golden Age fashion, her oeuvre opens with, yes, a country-house party betwee
In the movies, it’s known as a “meet cute.” But for Inspector Alleyn and Miss Agatha Troy, it’s more like irritation: On the ship back to England, she finds him tedious and dull; he thinks she’s a boh
The village of South Mardian likes the old ways. This may be 1957, but South M. still features a blacksmith, a village idiot, and an elaborate fertility ritual performed at the winter solstice. There'
Inspector Alleyn’s old school chum, the "Boomer," is now president of the new African nation of Ng’ombwana. On an official visit to London, the Boomer insists that Alleyn handle his
The impresario Peregrine Jay has fulfilled a long-cherished dream: He now owns the Dolphin Theatre, and has restored it to its former glory. To celebrate the re-opening, a no-expenses-spared productio
Ahhh, prussic acid, that hallmark of classic Golden Age mysteries. Did lovely Cara Quoyne get a whiff of the bitter almonds as she raised the goblet to her lips? We’ll never know: With a single sip sh
The party's over when murder makes an entrance... With the notion of bringing together the most bitter of enemies for his own amusement, a bored, mischievous millionaire throws a house party. As a bru
Exit an ambitious actor...The script of the Unicorn Theatre's new play uncannily echoes a quarrel in the star's dressing room. And the stage drama gets all too real when charming Felix Gardener shoot
The art of detection gets clouded by desire.It was a bizarre pose for beautiful model Sonia Gluck-and her last. For in the draperies of her couch lay a fatal dagger, and behind her murder lies all the
The good ship Cape Farewell is steaming out to sea, with a passenger-list and crew fairly littered with the shifty, the twitchy, the peculiar, and the up-to-no-good. Arguably the up-to-no-goodest is a
It’s murder in the little English village, but the two local spinsters, Miss Campanula, the victim, and Miss Prentice, her friend who may have been the intended victim, are not exactly the beloved lit
Ah, the London Debutante Season: Giggles and tea-dances, white dresses and inappropriate romances. And much too much champagne. And, apparently, a blackmailer, which is where Inspector Roderick Alleyn
Colour Scheme is set during World War II at a mud-baths resort in New Zealand run by Colonel Claire. His business is on the brink of being taken over by a local blowhard who may be a Nazi spy. Inspect
The killingly aristocratic Lamprey family exemplifies charm, wit, and a chronic lack of funds. Their only source of hope is the wealthy but unpleasant Lord Wutherwood, and the Lampreys may perhaps be