Source: Purchased
Description: 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 brutal snowstorm strands the unhappy guests, the party receives a most unwelcome visitor: death. Now the brilliant inspector Roderick Alleyn must step in to decipher who at the party is capable of cold-blooded murder...
Genre: Mystery - Classic
Why I Picked This Book: I'm slowly reading my way through the Ngaio Marsh books and this was the next one on my shelf.
My Impression: While this is technically an Inspector Alleyn book he really doesn't show up until the last quarter. Before that it is just the guest list of a house party designed to be absolutely awful with guests who all hate each other, a famous playwright who is a bit of an outsider, and a host who is joyfully pulling the strings. Until things take a much more serious tone.
Why I Picked This Book: I'm slowly reading my way through the Ngaio Marsh books and this was the next one on my shelf.
My Impression: While this is technically an Inspector Alleyn book he really doesn't show up until the last quarter. Before that it is just the guest list of a house party designed to be absolutely awful with guests who all hate each other, a famous playwright who is a bit of an outsider, and a host who is joyfully pulling the strings. Until things take a much more serious tone.
This was a good and enjoyable mystery. The victim was a surprise and there seems to be no opportunity for anyone to have been the killer. The dancing footman is in fact pivotal to the investigation which is kind of fun. I love an isolated house party mystery and in this one not only are they in an out of the way house but they are trapped by a blizzard and generally miserable weather. I did guess a little bit of the how but there were still a lot of surprises in the unraveling. Alleyn has a nice presence - just enough to put all the pieces together but not so much where he becomes the focus of the story.
I've found Marsh to be a bit inconsistent but this book and the previous book (Overture to Death) I read by her have both been so much fun. I'm looking forward to reading more from her.
Would I Read More of this Series/Author? Absolutely! I'm looking forward to my next book by her and getting the rest of the Marsh books I don't have.
Would I Recommend this Book? Yes! It's a fun classic mystery.
Would I Recommend this Book? Yes! It's a fun classic mystery.
I would love to start reading her books again. A classic!
ReplyDeleteAfter reading The Queens Of Crime, I've thought about trying some of this author's books. I've known of her, but she's not one I've read up to this point. We shall see.
ReplyDeleteI haven't read this author.
ReplyDeleteAnne - Books of My Heart
I really need to read more Insoector Alleyn.
ReplyDelete