From the Bookshelf of Reading the Detectives…

Colour Scheme (Roderick Alleyn, #12)

Ngaio Marsh

Start date: December 1, 2018

Finish date: December 31, 2018

Discussion: Group Challenges

Why we're reading this: The last in our 2018 Inspector Alleyn challenge - but there are more books in the series coming up in 201…more
[close] The last in our 2018 Inspector Alleyn challenge - but there are more books in the series coming up in 2019!

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

Showing 2 of 166 topics — 7,784 comments total

Group Challenges

* Sept 25: The Mystery of the Blue Train (1928) by Agatha Christie
By Susan · 14 posts · 16 views

last updated Sep 02, 2025 12:08AM

* Sept 25: The Mystery of the Blue Train (1928) - SPOILER Thread
By Susan · 4 posts · 12 views

last updated Sep 01, 2025 04:16PM

showing 7 of 7 topics view all »

What Members Thought

Oct 19, 2015 Bev rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery, vintage-mystery, mount-tbr-2018, bought-2015, marsh-challenge, spy-espionage, set-in-new-zealand

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Possibly Spoilerific....Read at your own risk if you have any desire to read Ngaio Marsh's mysteries.

So...the last time I read Ngaio Marsh's Colour Scheme (1946), I gave it a very unenthusiastic two stars. Unfortunately, I have to report that I still don't think much of it. If you'd like a review that goes a bit more in-depth, then please see my earlier review (HERE). This time around, I'd just like to reiterate what a very long wait we have for A. the murder and B. for Alleyn to show up. And it ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

Aug 02, 2018 Louise Culmer rated it liked it

Shelves: owned

Enjoyable murder mystery set during WW2 in New Zealand. The Claires are a decayed gentry family running a health spa at Wai-at a-tapu among hot springs and pools of boiling mud. Mrs Claire's irascible brother, Dr Ackrington, is convinced that the vulgar Mr Questing, a resident of Wai-ata-tapu,is a Nazi spy, and keeps writing to the authorities about him. A famous actor from England arrives to stay at the spa, accompanied by his long suffering secretary, and charms the Claires' gauche daughter, B ...more

3 likes · Like · see review

Mar 09, 2011 Bev rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: vintage-mystery, mystery, british-mystery

Colour Scheme (1943) is one of the smaller number of detective novels that Ngaio Marsh set in her home country, New Zealand. Most of her books, which feature Roderick Alleyn as her detective, are set in England. But a few, including Colour Scheme and Died in the Wool, take Inspector Alleyn away from his accustomed haunts.

This one is set during WW II at a small, privately owned health spa located on the coast of New Zealand's North Island. The spa features warm to hot mud and steam baths. Unfortu Colour Scheme (1943) is one of the smaller number of detective novels that Ngaio Marsh set in her home country, New Zealand. Most of her books, which feature Roderick Alleyn as her detective, are set in England. But a few, including Colour Scheme and Died in the Wool, take Inspector Alleyn away from his accustomed haunts.

This one is set during WW II at a small, privately owned health spa located on the coast of New Zealand's North Island. The spa features warm to hot mud and steam baths. Unfortunately, one of the members of the little community winds up taking a plunge in the more unhealthy boiling mud pools (in an area normally marked clearly by red flags). Was it an accident as it appears or did someone help Maurice Questing to his final mud bath? Unpleasant as the fellow was, it is a horrible death and, naturally, the local police must investigate. There are rumors of espionage, the raiding of ancient Maori burial grounds, underhanded dealings to take over the spa--possibly involving blackmail (or a similar hold)...plenty of motives to go around. There are also rumors that London's Chief Inspector Alleyn is in the neighborhood and taking an interest in spy activity.

I am, generally speaking, a huge fan of Ngaio Marsh and her Inspector Alleyn novels. However, I can't say that I'm a huge fan of this one. There is a very long lead up to the murder. There is an even longer lead up to the appearance of Alleyn. There isn't a whole lot of real investigation on the part of Alleyn. Questing is a very unlikeable character and, while, his death is horrible, I didn't have the usual enthusiasm to have his murderer caught....until the final motive was revealed, that is. I did enjoy reading about the Maori culture and it is obvious that this is Marsh's home ground when she writes of New Zealand and its inhabitants. It just isn't a true Alleyn book. I think I would have enjoyed the story more if he had been left out of it and she'd given us a straight mystery novel with home-grown detectives only. Redeeming characteristics: descriptions of Maori culture and New Zealand and the characters of Dikon Bell and Barbara Claire. The mystery itself isn't very difficult. I caught on to one of the major clues fairly early. But, again, handled as a straight-forward New Zealand mystery without Alleyn (or more to the point...his obvious absence from most of the book when you keep expecting him to appear) would have made the mystery far more engaging. Two stars out of five ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Jan 06, 2019 Paperbackreader rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: all-collections, read-but-unowned, classic, mystery, detective, inspector-roderick-alleyn, fay-pub-lib, audiobook

I disliked almost every character in this book, especially Geoffrey Gaunt and Simon Claire. The native characters are sympathetically portrayed, but the tinge of racism never entirely leaves the narrative. The plot does have some redeeming points, such as the method of the murder. But there is an overall unevenness here (the randomness of the motive(s) and the identity of the perpetrator, for example) which makes liking this book rather impossible. A so-so read for me.

1 like · Like · see review

Feb 16, 2012 Carol Evans rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: mystery

Colour Scheme by Ngaio Marsh is a great little mystery. Set at a resort build around natural hot mud pools in New Zealand, the setting is unique, at least in my experience, and the characters range from quirky to downright sleazy.

This is a murder mystery, and by the time the murder occurs I was more than ready for it. The victim is an absolute jerk, but the murder doesn’t happen until over halfway through the story. I guess the plot does move rather slowly in that way, but the characters kept m ...more

Like · see review

Apr 29, 2019 Zander rated it liked it

Shelves: ngaio-marsh

While this is billed as a Roderick Alleyn book it really isn't. It's a spy and romance novel set in WWII. Write as the war was actually happen in the setting of the author's native land it's as much as about New Zealand, living during WWII as it is about murder. The murder itself takes place far into the novel and like many mysteries where the victim is considered a cad it's hard to care much about him. The writing to about the Maori people isn't exactly as racist as other authors and the genera ...more

Like · see review

Aug 29, 2015 Teri-K rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: historical-mystery, mystery-golden-age

This is a Roderick Alleyn book in which we never see Alleyn. Or do we? At any rate, it's not one to recommend to those who want to see more of the series detective. Still, it's always been on of my favorites.

The Clair family owns a natural sulphur mud springs spa in New Zealand, set right against sacred Maori burial grounds. How's that for a unique setting? Taking place during WWII, the destruction of several Naval vessels in the harbor have them suspecting a possible spy within their midst. And ...more

Like · see review

May 11, 2018 Nanosynergy rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction-1940s, british, mysteries-thrillers-espionage, fiction, series, 2018read, new-zealand

Detective Chief Inspector Roderick Alleyn in New Zealand during WWII. Almost anything I'd share after this would be a spoiler. But just anticipate that Alleyn doesn't show up in the book until the end. ...more

Like · see review