Artists in Crime: Amazon.ca: Books

Product Description

Ingram

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 intrigue and acid-etched temperament of an artist's colony. Called in to investigate, Scotland Yard's Inspector Roderick Alleyn finds his own passions unexpectedly stirred by the fiesty painter Agatha Troy--brilliant artist and suspected murderess. First published in 1938.

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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 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)

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, July 19 2000

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

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 July 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