Artists In Crime: Amazon.ca: Ngaio Marsh: Books

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Review

'Marsh moves into top gear.' Susan Howatch 'The queen of the straight crime novel -- long may she reign!' Sunday Times 'I rate Ngaio Marsh's novels among the best in this genre, having read and re-read them many times over the years.' Joan Hickson 'The finest writer in the English language of the pure, classical puzzle whodunit. Among the crime queens, Ngaio Marsh stands out as an Empress.' The Sun

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One of Ngaio Marsh's most famous murder mysteries, which introduces Inspector Alleyn to his future wife, the irrepressible Agatha Troy. It started as a student exercise, the knife under the drape, the model's pose chalked in place. But before Agatha Troy, artist and instructor, returns to the class, the pose has been re-enacted in earnest: the model is dead, fixed for ever in one of the most dramatic poses Troy has ever seen. It's a difficult case for Chief Detective Inspector Alleyn. How can he believe that the woman he loves is a murderess? And yet no one can be above suspicion...

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Customer Reviews

6 Reviews

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(3)
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Average Customer Review

3.8 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)

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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 1930s Style at Its Best, Oct 13 2003

By	Tracy Davis (California, United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Artists in Crime (Mass Market Paperback)

This novel, which relates the first meeting between Scotland Yard Inspector Roderick Alleyn and the artist Agatha Troy, is both a good mystery and a good picture of what kind of book was popular in the 1930s. After Alleyn and Troy meet on a ship sailing back to England from the South Pacific (and they do not meet well, although he is interested in her), Alleyn is called to investigate a murder at Troy's home conveniently down the road from his mother's. An artist's model has been murdered, and there is literally a cast of suspects who had the motivation to 'do her in', including Troy herself. The plot is pretty procedural, although the identity of the murderer is kept hidden for quite awhile. The great thing is the language and style of the novel: slang terms, endearments, and descriptions of people are wonderfully appropriate to the time in which the novel first appeared. The relationship between Alleyn and his mother could not be written 'straight' today: the 'darlings' and 'mammas' would be a joke in the 21st century, especially since Alleyn is not a young man at this point. Troy and Alleyn's misunderstandings, and the rather melodramatic 'Epilogue in a Garden' is fun to read and would have played well to the original readers; it's full of dramatic tension and yet a little silly at the same time. Better than most modern mysteries.

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Clever Mystery introduces Agatha Troy, Dec 10 2001

By	Gary F. Taylor "GFT" (Biloxi, MS USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Artists in Crime (Mass Market Paperback)

When a beautiful model is murdered in a most unlikely way, Inspector Allen is required to investigate both the crime and the woman of his dreams: noted artist Agatha Troy. Marsh's generally superior skills as a writer are a bit muddy in this novel, but even so her cast of characters--particularly Allen's mother, Troy, and the art students--are colorfully drawn and combined with an unusually clever plot. A must-read for Marsh fans!

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3.0 out of 5 stars A bit disappointed, Jul 19 2000

By	MK Writer "hedwig_owl" (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Artists in Crime (Mass Market Paperback)

I guess that on my quest to read as many Marsh novels as possible, my expectations have grown. While it was fun watching Alleyn falling head over heels in love, neither the plot nor the characters particularly grabbed me. I think the artists all came off a bit as stereotypes, at times downright annoying. Not a bad read, but far from Marsh's best.

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Most recent customer reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Not good enough
Having never read any of Ngaio Marsh's books before I thought I'd try the chronological approach. Apparently this wasn't such a good idea as according to other reviewers her... Read more

Published on Sep 21 2001 by Lilly

3.0 out of 5 stars A Competent Mystery
As a long-standing Marsh fan, I don't rate this one as a favorite, but for those interested in the series, this is the book where Alleyn meets Agatha Troy for the first time. Read more

Published on Jul 15 2000 by Mary T. Bowers

5.0 out of 5 stars A consumate teller of tales
I generally don't read much narrative prose, but I do enjoy a good murder mystery, especially of the old "who dunnit" genre. This is certainly one of those. Read more

Published on Jun 16 2000 by Atheen M. Wilson