Ngaio Marsh. Death of a Peer (1940) (A Surfeit of Lampreys [1941] in the UK) The Lampreys are a charming bunch of aristocratic ne’er-do-wells, with appallingly vague notions of how to spend money (when they’ve got it). They’ve managed to survive on luck. But now they really have run out of money, and Lord Charles’s appeal to his older brother, Lord Wutherwood and Rune, elicits an ill-tempered refusal. A few minutes later Wutherwood falls out of the lift, dying of a nasty skewer in the eye. Alleyn and crew do a nice bit of ‘teckery as usual, but the charm of this novel is the family, and the portrait of their New Zealand friend. She’s a nice girl, pleasantly overwhelmed by London, and an essential witness.
A pleasant entertainment. Marsh always delivers, even when she’s not at the top of her form. **½
Ngaio Marsh. Dead Water. (1963) A boy suffers from warty hands and bullying. A “lady in green” at the spring tells him to wash his hands in the stream. He does so, and his warts disappear. Of course an industry grows up around this event. The owner of the property wants the whole thing shut down, and arrives to enforce her will. A day or so later, one of the promoters is found dead at the spring. Personal as well as business rivalries and entanglements make Alleyn’s job more difficult than usual. Marsh shows us a mix of greed, naive faith, passionate partisanship, cool skepticism, jealousy, and sundry other human failings. Above average for Marsh. It was one of the novels adapted for the TV series starring Patrick Malahide. ***.
Ngaio Marsh. Death in Ecstasy (1936) Nigel Bathgate, with nothing to do, visits the Church of the Sacred Flame, a syncretic cult designed to separate the credulous from their pennies and pounds. He witness the death of a Chosen Virgin at the moment of induction into that blessed state. An early Alleyn, he’s still somewhat too self-consciously facetious. Bathgate acts both as note-taker and reporter. Marsh indulges her talent for satire and social comedy. The motive for murder was money, as it often is. Well done entertainment, with nicely modulated touches of melodrama, and a subtext warning against peculiar creeds. I enjoyed this re-read.
My copy was given me by my Aunt Rosemary. It’s a Penguin printed in 1941, with the green-for-crime cover of a genuine Penguin paperback, and a tea stain. Apparently a well-read copy on thin newsprint, now browning around the edges. On the last page it invites readers to deposit the book at any Post Office for distribution to the armed forces. The back cover is an advert for Pears soap, at 6d a bar. ***
Ngaio Marsh. Enter a Murderer (1935) The second Alleyn mystery. The puzzle is plausibly set and solved. The setting is a theatre company, the murder occurs on stage, Alleyn happens to be in the audience courtesy of Nigel Bathgate, whose friend Frank Gardener plays the lead. Alleyn’s still an imitation of the early Wimsey, but Marsh’s skill at keeping up the narrative pace allows us to be swept along on a pleasant wave of make-believe. I enjoyed this re-read, not least because of the convincing ambience of the theatre. Well done. **½
Ngaio Marsh. Vintage Murder (1937) Alleyn’s in New Zealand, riding the train to Middleton, where the theatre company that’s also on the train will be performing. Once again, Marsh convinces us of the reality of her theatrical setting. The actors, the managers, the stage staff, all ring true. The opening chapter tells of the journey through the New Zealand night. As a set piece, one of the best descriptions of train travel I’ve read.
The murder of the company’s manager and majority owner leads to revelations of past and present rivalries and a few crucial secrets swimming among the red herrings. This is the fifth Alleyn. Marsh has mastered the genre, and shows increasing confidence in her writing. These novels are now historical documents. Comparison with what once was contemporary fiction shows what current attempts at historical fiction usually get it wrong. A pleasurable re-read. ***
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