Reviews

Morte in agguato by Ngaio Marsh

shlee64's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

judyward's review against another edition

3.0

Published in 1942, this book is from one of the "queens" of the golden age of mysteries. A number of highly unpleasant people are invited to a country house weekend. The host knows that everyone at the party has at least one secret and a rivalry with at least one of the other guests. Once everyone has arrived, there is a large snowstorm that isolates the house. Delicious. Of course, a murder is commited and someone in the house is guilty. Double Delicious. Everyone seems to have an alibi, but the the footman who couldn't resist dancing for a minute or two in the hall to a song playing on the wireless in the library might just hold the key to events. Enjoyable.

the_maggieg's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

mbondlamberty's review against another edition

4.0

Very interesting presentation of the case. Alleyn comes in a little Deus ex machina, but shows you enough of the reasoning to explain how he got there so fast.
A few red herrings but not really that much.

1mpossiblealice's review against another edition

3.5

Enjoyed this one - it has some of my favourite aspects - country house, snowed in, murder mystery. It does take quite a long time for the murder to happen and Alleyn doesn't show up until quite far into the book. Some of the characters were interesting, some not that well developed, I did like Mandrake though, who is sort of the protagonist. 
The idea of the host inviting loads of people who all have issues with each other sounds like the premise of a reality show but thankfully they mostly aren't that open about it, at least at first.
I think there are quite obvious clues to the solution, so while I enjoyed this, it's not as good as some of the other Marsh novels I've read. 

dlmoldovan's review against another edition

4.0

I really enjoyed the premise of this story. The characters were really well developed-as usual, and quirky-as usual. And the description of the dancing footman had me in stitches. Marsh's descriptions are so well done that I could almost see the footman dancing to Boops-a-Daisy. And yes, like every other Marsh mystery, she takes a very long time to set up the plot and cast of characters, but I really enjoy that part.

knyvern's review against another edition

3.0

I missed the banter between Fox and Alleyn in this one.

carrieclothwright's review against another edition

dark 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? Yes

4.5

One of Marsh's last (maybe the last?) pre-WWII Alleyn novels.  Rich and complicated, similar to Overture to Death, in the way the characters are drawn and in the detail given about their relationships.  Some may find the build-up to the corpse a bit lengthy, and the presence of Alleyn too brief (though Color Scheme surely takes the prize in that regard).  It's an excellent example of its time and genre.  

dvo19's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

ungildedlily's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0