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jlasch's review against another edition
3.0
I have read other Ngaio Marsh novels, but never read her first, so the "Type A" personality took over and compelled me to start at the beginning of her Chief Inspector-Detective Roderick Alleyn mystery series. This typical British murder mystery novel was definitely not one of her better efforts, so I was glad I was introduced to Alleyn in a later novel when his character was much more developed (and interesting!)
qalminator's review against another edition
3.0
Not as good as early Agatha Christie, but enjoyable enough if you're in the mood for a murder mystery.
The biggest oddity is the attempts to write accents phonetically, with varying degrees of success. The inherent problem with this is that your audience may or may not share your accent and pronunciation of such words, so it may be more confusing than anything else. Case in point: "presoom". Presumably this is to indicate that it's an "ooh" sound rather than the more British "yoo", but it made me wonder about the 's' as well. If we're going phonetic, the regular pronunciation that I know would replace the 's' with a 'z'. Is lack of replacement to indicate that it's pronounced the usual way, or that the speaker actually pronounces it as a 'sss' sound? I have no idea.
The biggest oddity is the attempts to write accents phonetically, with varying degrees of success. The inherent problem with this is that your audience may or may not share your accent and pronunciation of such words, so it may be more confusing than anything else. Case in point: "presoom". Presumably this is to indicate that it's an "ooh" sound rather than the more British "yoo", but it made me wonder about the 's' as well. If we're going phonetic, the regular pronunciation that I know would replace the 's' with a 'z'. Is lack of replacement to indicate that it's pronounced the usual way, or that the speaker actually pronounces it as a 'sss' sound? I have no idea.
jeo224's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
4.0
I read some Ngaio Marsh novels when in college and enjoyed them - I decided to be a bit more organized. This is the first of the Roderick Allen mysteries. An enjoyable read centering on a house party playing the game of murder - still a popular pastime. Some scenes are a bit dated, and there is terminology which is frustrating (and a part of the time period when it was written) - but again, enjoyable and a good fast plot.
beentsy's review against another edition
3.0
Does exactly what it says on the label - proper English manor house mystery.
I rather like Allen. I may read one or two more to see how his character fleshes out.
I rather like Allen. I may read one or two more to see how his character fleshes out.
michael5000's review against another edition
4.0
Well-made period light entertainment. It's always lovely to find you like the early installments of a vast sprawling series. It's like money in the bank.
eososray's review against another edition
3.0
Having started this series with books #6 and #7, I decided to go back and read from the beginning. I like Roderick Alleyn, he's a fun and quirky character, and the series has been fun and easy so far.
I was not that partial to the international communist conspiracy part but I loved Nigel and his girlfriend. I found the tale a bit haphazard in the telling, first we're here and then we're off on another tangent, one moment Alleyn is funny, the other he's serious, with no rhyme or reason I can figure out. But it's a pretty classic whodunit starting in an English country house that satisfies my need for an Agatha replacement.
I was not that partial to the international communist conspiracy part but I loved Nigel and his girlfriend. I found the tale a bit haphazard in the telling, first we're here and then we're off on another tangent, one moment Alleyn is funny, the other he's serious, with no rhyme or reason I can figure out. But it's a pretty classic whodunit starting in an English country house that satisfies my need for an Agatha replacement.
pinecone_mushroom's review against another edition
4.0
I know the formula for Detective Alleyn books and love it. This particular book, however, was over the top. The dramatic scene in London near the end was too much.
slipperose's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Similar to Agatha Christie, and from the same time period. Nothing to write home about, but I’ve read my way through everything she wrote already, so I think I’ll give another Ngaio Marsh a try.