Death and the Dancing Footman by Ngaio Marsh

Death and the Dancing Footman by Ngaio Marsh

I love mysteries, but if I had to narrow the genre down to my favorite type, I'd pick vintage mysteries. Even narrower, I'd go with country house mysteries, preferably at Christmastime, but winter will do. Death and the Dancing Footman is one of those. Our Inspector Roderick Alleyn doesn't show up until about 2/3rds through. Usually that annoys me, but Marsh tends to make it work. This time around, it gives us plenty of time to meet all of the guests. Jonathan Royal is the owner of the country house and the host of the house party. He is rather not a good person. He's invited a group of people who will quite clearly not get along well. The Compline family consists of the mother Sonia and her two sons, William who is excessively devoted and Nicholas, her favorite. William is engaged to another guest, Chloris Wynne, who used to be engaged to Nicholas. Sonia's friend, Hersey Amblington, who owns a spa and...
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The Circular Staircase by Mary Roberts Rinehart

The Circular Staircase by Mary Roberts Rinehart

The Circular Staircase is the first of Mary Roberts Rinehart's novels I've read. I don't know why it has taken me so long to get around to reading her. The Circular Staircase is apparently the first example of the "Had-I-But-Known" school of mystery writing. The Had-I-But-Known mystery novel is one where the principal character (frequently female, in this case Rachel Innes) does things in connection with a crime that have the effect of prolonging the action of the novel. Ms. Innes keeps information from the police, does her own investigation, actively hides things the police should know - basically she's a standard amateur detective. I take that back, she literally hides people, which is taking the whole thing a little far. Of course, she's surrounded by people who are keeping secrets too, but they are suspects, so that's expected. So, Ms. Innes, her niece and nephew, and her maid move into a rented country house for the summer. The owners, a rich...
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A Judgement in Stone by Ruth Rendell

A Judgement in Stone by Ruth Rendell

A Judgement in Stone by Ruth Rendell shows up on several "best mysteries" lists, which is why I added it to my to-read list. I had read several of her Inspector Wexford series, but none of her stand-alone novels. And then it was my Classic Club Spin book for the month, which pushed it to the top of my stack. From the opening sentences, the book had my attention. "Eunice Parchman killed the Coverdale family because she could not read or write. There was no real motive and no premeditation; no money was gained and no security." We know from the first chapter, which is only two pages long, who was killed, when they were killed, and who the murderers were. The rest of the book relates what led up to the crime and the aftermath. Eunice Parchman is illiterate, a fact that she is desperate to keep secret. The Coverdales are a decent enough family, intelligent, a little snobby, but overall well-meaning....
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A Man Lay Dead by Ngaio Marsh

A Man Lay Dead by Ngaio Marsh

Marsh's Inspector Alleyn series is one of my favorites, but I've been reading it all out of order. I finally got around to picking up the first in the series. While obviously don't think this is a series that needs to be read in order, it was nice to read this first introduction to Alleyn. A Man Lay Dead is a country house mystery and we have seven suspects, the host, his niece and five guests. Actually a couple more than that, because you have to count the servants, especially the missing butler. As always, Marsh is good with giving us clues and red herrings, even if the actual "how" the murderer did it was a bit far-fetched.This time around there's a side plot involving the dreaded Bolsheviks that really shows the era of the book. Alleyn's personality is not quite cemented yet, but this is the first. One of the guests, Nigel Bathgate, a journalist, becomes his assistant. He's kind of...
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