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220th out of 571 books
—
511 voters
Enter a Murderer (Roderick Alleyn #2)
by
Ngaio Marsh
The script of the Unicorn Theatre's new play uncannily echoes a quarrel in the star's dressing room. And the stage drama gets all too real when charming Felix Gardener shoots his blustering rival, Arthur Surbonardier, dead-with a gun Arthur himself loaded with blanks. Or did he? How the live bullets got there, and why, make for a convoluted case that pits Inspector Roderic...more
Paperback, St. Martin's Paperbacks Edition, 245 pages
Published
December 1998
by St. Martin's Press
(first published 1935)
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71st out of 120 books
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84 voters
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1935, #2 Chief Detective-Inspector Roderick Alleyn, London; first of her eight theatre-centered novels, old-fashioned but nicely sly; classic theatre mystery - really three-and-a-half stars, not four.
Arthur Surbonadier was a rotter who happened to also be a pretty good, not great, actor. Passed over for a role that he thought was his, *ought* to have been his, he resorts to several nefarious methods to push out the Nice Guy actor Felix Gardiner, who did get the role. And both of them are "intere...more
Arthur Surbonadier was a rotter who happened to also be a pretty good, not great, actor. Passed over for a role that he thought was his, *ought* to have been his, he resorts to several nefarious methods to push out the Nice Guy actor Felix Gardiner, who did get the role. And both of them are "intere...more
Sekarang saya memahami mengapa banyak pembaca menyukai buku oleh Ngaio Marsh. Dari awal hingga akhir buku ini sangat padat, tiada bab yang terbuang untuk sekedar menambah ketebalan buku.
Yang dituturkan pun berdasarkan fakta bukan intuisi (as Mac Taylor said in CSI NY, "I need you to work with evidence not intuition"), bukan pula kebiasaan a.k.a habit (seperti yang digaungkan dalam buku Agatha Christie). Dan meskipun fakta namun disajikan sangat enak dibaca dan yang pasti mudah dicerna (membandin...more
Yang dituturkan pun berdasarkan fakta bukan intuisi (as Mac Taylor said in CSI NY, "I need you to work with evidence not intuition"), bukan pula kebiasaan a.k.a habit (seperti yang digaungkan dalam buku Agatha Christie). Dan meskipun fakta namun disajikan sangat enak dibaca dan yang pasti mudah dicerna (membandin...more
Originally published on my blog here in August 2001.
The earliest Ngaio Marsh novels have a rather tentative air which probably would not be tolerated by publishers today. This, her third and the first with a theatrical setting, is the one in which she really hit her stride.
The plot is simple. Journalist Nigel Bathgate, who appears in many of the early novels, takes Inspector Alleyn to a West End play. It is a thriller, which climaxes with a shooting. But this particular night, someone has switch...more
The earliest Ngaio Marsh novels have a rather tentative air which probably would not be tolerated by publishers today. This, her third and the first with a theatrical setting, is the one in which she really hit her stride.
The plot is simple. Journalist Nigel Bathgate, who appears in many of the early novels, takes Inspector Alleyn to a West End play. It is a thriller, which climaxes with a shooting. But this particular night, someone has switch...more
Throughly entertaining read; in my experience of reading Marsh novels, this is beaten only by Night at the Vulcan and Swing, Brother, Swing. The most enjoyable aspect of Enter A Murderer is Alleyn's central role here; unlike many of her contemporaries, Marsh often produces whodunnits where her detective is hardly the focus and almost his appearance is almost an afterthought. Here, however, Alleyn is the focal figure from beginning to end, and it is wonderful getting to know him better.
Alleyn is...more
Alleyn is...more
First Sentence: On May 25th Arthur Surbonadier, whose real name was Arthur Simes, went to visit his uncle, Jacob Saint, whose real name was Jacob Simes.
When Inspector Roderick Alleyn accepts an invitation to the theater from his friend, newspaper journalist Nigen Bathgate, he doesn’t expect to be witness to a murder. During a scene in the play, actors Arthur Surbonadier and Felix Gardner struggle over a gun.
The gun had been loaded by Arthur but, in the struggle, fired by Felix and Arthur dies....more
When Inspector Roderick Alleyn accepts an invitation to the theater from his friend, newspaper journalist Nigen Bathgate, he doesn’t expect to be witness to a murder. During a scene in the play, actors Arthur Surbonadier and Felix Gardner struggle over a gun.
The gun had been loaded by Arthur but, in the struggle, fired by Felix and Arthur dies....more
Our mystery book club is reading books by Dorothy Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, and a few other authors for March. I have several of Ngaio Marsh's books in the Roderick Alleyn series and decided to revisit them.
The word that popped into my mind was "clean." I like Marsh's writing and it seems clean to me.
In this particular entry, Alleyn is invited to the theater by one of his friends, a journalist. Prior to the opening of the curtain, Alleyn is treated to introductions backstage of some of the actors and...more
The word that popped into my mind was "clean." I like Marsh's writing and it seems clean to me.
In this particular entry, Alleyn is invited to the theater by one of his friends, a journalist. Prior to the opening of the curtain, Alleyn is treated to introductions backstage of some of the actors and...more
Jan 10, 2012
BoekenTrol
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Into-the-Blue
Recommended to BoekenTrol by:
yorkshire-lass
The E-book in the ABC-roundabout. Just my type of book, love mystery / crime books.
Writing a review for this book is quite easy on the one hand: just write down that I liked the book. On the other hand that would make me feel like I didn't do the book justice, so I'll have to elaborate a bit more.
I liked the book: it is a bit like these English detective series I like to watch: A TOuch of Frost, Inspector Dalgliesh, you know the kind. In general very polite, very correct, with very little viole...more
Writing a review for this book is quite easy on the one hand: just write down that I liked the book. On the other hand that would make me feel like I didn't do the book justice, so I'll have to elaborate a bit more.
I liked the book: it is a bit like these English detective series I like to watch: A TOuch of Frost, Inspector Dalgliesh, you know the kind. In general very polite, very correct, with very little viole...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
I have read a couple of Marsh's Inspector Alleyn novels and really enjoyed them. One of the things that stood out for me about this one was the fact that most of it was from the point of view of someone other than the detective. Alleyn goes to the theater with a friend of his who is a journalist and during the play one of the actors is murdered onstage. The journalist is also friends with one of the actors who was involved in the scene where the murder occurred and ends up helping Alleyn in the...more
Enter a Murderer, by Ngaio Marsh, b-plus, Narrated by James Saxon, Produced by The Audio Partners Publishing Corps, Downloaded from audible.com.
This is another in the Inspector Roderick Alleyn and Nygel Bathgate series. A murder is committed on stage. The murder follows pretty closely the plot of the play under production. A gun is used as a prop in the last scene, and one of the actors shoots another in the heart. Because the gun has to look real and the shot look real, dummy bullets are used,...more
This is another in the Inspector Roderick Alleyn and Nygel Bathgate series. A murder is committed on stage. The murder follows pretty closely the plot of the play under production. A gun is used as a prop in the last scene, and one of the actors shoots another in the heart. Because the gun has to look real and the shot look real, dummy bullets are used,...more
Jun 06, 2011
Alexander Inglis
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
golden-age-whodunit,
police-detective
There's nothing like a classic. I recently read my first Ngaio Marsh novel, the second of the Roderick Alleyn tales, Enter A Murderer. Somehow I've never managed to see even the PBS/Brit TV episodes.
In this 1935 adventure, Inspector Alleyn and his sidekick journalist Nigel Bathgate are the scene of a murder that takes place, literally, on stage to a packed house. The dialogue is delicious and the twists-and-turns great fun. Marsh had a solid bead on theatrical people and conjures them up in a d...more
In this 1935 adventure, Inspector Alleyn and his sidekick journalist Nigel Bathgate are the scene of a murder that takes place, literally, on stage to a packed house. The dialogue is delicious and the twists-and-turns great fun. Marsh had a solid bead on theatrical people and conjures them up in a d...more
Marsh fooled me, again, but with Enter A Murderer I honestly feel like I could (and should) have figured it out. I know Marsh is famous for her theatre settings, but the setting in this novel didn't attract me in the least. If the murder had occurred during the performance of an actual play, maybe Shakespeare, instead of 'The Rat and the Beaver,' I would most probably have been more intrigued. Roderick Alleyn was at the top of his game, and I felt that he started to develop as a character, espec...more
First of all, Roderick Alleyn, what a great name for a detective. It wreaks of masculinity and sophistication, like rock hard muscle dressed in white tie and tails, dark hat, white handkerchief and a red carnation.
And the story? Well it's an above average golden age British detective kind of story. A big puzzle, a lot of suspects, a not too bright side-kick and lots of witty urbane British dialogue (If you happen to be British, otherwise it's just rum.)
If you like Golden Age detective stories th...more
And the story? Well it's an above average golden age British detective kind of story. A big puzzle, a lot of suspects, a not too bright side-kick and lots of witty urbane British dialogue (If you happen to be British, otherwise it's just rum.)
If you like Golden Age detective stories th...more
Sep 24, 2010
Catherine Mustread
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommended to Catherine by:
New Zealand author list
Ngaio Marsh, according to reviews and the book cover, is comparable to Agatha Christie and Margery Allingham. I found Enter A Murderer, an Inspector Alleyn mystery, to be entertaining and intriguing as the cast and crew at London's Unicorn Theatre all seem likely suspects. First published in 1935, this book holds up well, and could as easily be an historical mystery written 75 years later. This is my first Ngaio Marsh and I was hoping for a bit more New Zealand flavor. Are any of her books set i...more
A classic murder mystery by Ngaio Marsh. A pleasure reading her works. Inspector Alleyn invited to a play and a murder happens right on stage. I love his partner Fox, dry humor. Ms. Marsh can keeping you guessing to the end and it is a joy to read any of her works. Her characters are well "characters" always throwing in the British laugh lines and fun.
The ending is great and you may think wow I got that wrong, but who knows that's why it is a mystery!
This book was first published in 1935 and sti...more
The ending is great and you may think wow I got that wrong, but who knows that's why it is a mystery!
This book was first published in 1935 and sti...more
The second of the Alleyn mysteries, Enter a Murderer still finds the story's focus divided between Alleyn and the journalist Nigel Bathgate, and takes us firmly into the world Marsh clearly loves most -the stage. The mystery has an excellent and dramatic resolution, but the overall feeling is a 'down' one, and Alleyn's character - especially to someone who has read the later books - is a little off and not yet formed, and we do not really have a strong reason to care for any of the other charact...more
Ngaio Marsh is at her best when she's taking pot-shots at the professions she knew so well: writing and theater.
And in this one she's all over theater.
For some reason, it reminds me of a dotty Simon Brett mystery about out-of-work actors that I read the other week, Not Dead, Only Resting (which I liked fine, although I was sorrowed to find his other stuff is weak). She's all the way into this world, and she doesn't mind showing it.
And Chief Detective-Inspector Alleyn is at his best when Marsh i...more
And in this one she's all over theater.
For some reason, it reminds me of a dotty Simon Brett mystery about out-of-work actors that I read the other week, Not Dead, Only Resting (which I liked fine, although I was sorrowed to find his other stuff is weak). She's all the way into this world, and she doesn't mind showing it.
And Chief Detective-Inspector Alleyn is at his best when Marsh i...more
Uno dei lavori più significativi di Edith Ngaio Marsh, grande e conosciutissima scrittrice di detective story inglese, precedentemente pubblicato nella collana Giallo Mondadori, "Delitto a Teatro" è un romanzo veloce, intrigante e molto scorrevole che non potrà che affascinare tutti gli amanti dei romanzi gialli classici.
Ci troviamo in uno dei casi dell'ispettore capo di Scoltland Yard Roderick Alleyn che, convinto di godersi una semplice serata a teatro, si ritroverà ad assistere all'omicidio d...more
Ci troviamo in uno dei casi dell'ispettore capo di Scoltland Yard Roderick Alleyn che, convinto di godersi una semplice serata a teatro, si ritroverà ad assistere all'omicidio d...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Classic 'golden era' mystery in the grand tradition of Backstage Intrigue. Here the murder itself is accomplished onstage, in full performance with costumed cast and paying audience in attendance.
"They at once sensed the indescribable flavour of the working half of a theatre when the nightly show is coming on. The stage door opens into a little realm, strange or familiar, but always apart and shut in. The passage led directly on to the stage, which was dimly lit and smelt of dead scene paint, o...more
"They at once sensed the indescribable flavour of the working half of a theatre when the nightly show is coming on. The stage door opens into a little realm, strange or familiar, but always apart and shut in. The passage led directly on to the stage, which was dimly lit and smelt of dead scene paint, o...more
This is an early Alleyn novel, I think, and it was more thinly written and plotted, but otherwise, it was a pleasurable "listen." Alleyn was a little annoying (Saxon's reading made him sound quite flip in spots) and I missed the more developed and solid Alleyn of the later books, but Marsh is a good writer regardless. I finished it as I worked on the button band for the cardigan--a nice way to pass the time! Thanks to my sister for my gift membership to Audible.com!
No one really liked Arthur Surbonardier so no one is too upset that he is dead, though the way he died---shot on stage with a gun supposedly loaded with blanks, is certainly worrisome to all those who have a motive to wish Arthur dead. Luckily (except for the murderer) Inspector Alleyn happens to be in the audience for a front row seat to murder. Agatha Christie fans will love these 1930’s era mysteries and the intelligent, aristocratic inspector.
I have read other Roderick Alleyn mysteries by Ngaio Marsh and enjoy him as the detective. Ngaio Marsh, an author from New Zealand, wrote this in 1935. Alleyn's sidekick, Fox, is a fun character, also. This mystery begins in a theatre with a shooting and centers around the actors and actresses involved in the play. A journalist friend adds another dimension. The reader is kept guessing about the outcome.
The early Roderick Alleyn books are so wonderful. This one is set in a play. A man is murdered onstage while the Inspector sits in the front row. Felix Gardiner shoots his rival in love Arthur Surbonardier onstage. Was it an error? Who wanted Arthur to die (hint: just about everyone onstage). Fast read, loved the characters. Will probably read again in a few years.
I am trying hard to like Marsh's mysteries, but having a difficult time getting started. The characters don't seem sharply drawn enough to stand out and the plots take a while to get going. Still, I liked this Roderick Alleyn mystery better than the first in the series, and I'll starting number three shortly.
Sep 26, 2009
Wirotomo Nofamilyname
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
para pencinta Sherlock Holmes yang kuno itu :-)
terlalu kuno untuk selera saya. Kesulitan utama adalah membayangkan semua peralatan pentas dan alat-alat lainnya yang digunakan pada tahun 1935 saat cerita ini dibuat.
tapi tokoh utamanya, Inspektur Alleyn, cukup menyenangkan untuk dibaca segala tingkah polahnya memecahkan kasus tersebut.
tapi tokoh utamanya, Inspektur Alleyn, cukup menyenangkan untuk dibaca segala tingkah polahnya memecahkan kasus tersebut.
view all 13 comments
Recreational read. I have not read Ngaio Marsh in a long time, though I have a whole stack of her books waiting for me. Just happened to pick up this book and was hooked after reading the first page. I guessed the outcome of this one and was not completely thrilled with how the investigation was tied up.
Apr 06, 2012
aPriL MEOWS often with scratching
rated it
2 of 5 stars
Shelves:
mysteries-suspense-thrillers
This is a classic 'golden age' style mystery, but because it's by the numbers it is flat in tone, without the distinct sparkle of her later books in the series. If this is the first one you read, you'll get the wrong impression of Marsh's real writing flair.
I love Inspector Alleyn, but that wasn't quite enough for me here. I don't enjoy theatrical settings, and I read this too close to another mystery set on an opera stage to really enjoy it. It was fine enough, just not to my taste.
The language and attitudes of this book are very period and I found that off-putting for a while. The stage detail was well done and the actor characterizations sharp. I guessed the killer at the beginning but this is one of the Dames - good to get educated in the classics.
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Dame Ngaio Marsh, born Edith Ngaio Marsh, was a New Zealand crime writer and theatre director. There is some uncertainty over her birth date as her father neglected to register her birth until 1900, but she was born in the city of Christchurch, New Zealand.
Of all the "Great Ladies" of the English mystery's golden age, including Margery Allingham, Agatha Christie, and Dorothy L. Sayers, Ngaio Marsh...more
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Of all the "Great Ladies" of the English mystery's golden age, including Margery Allingham, Agatha Christie, and Dorothy L. Sayers, Ngaio Marsh...more
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