A Man Lay Dead

 

A Man Lay Dead by Ngaio Marsh  224 pp.

This is the first book in Marsh's series of mysteries featuring Inspector Roderick Alleyn. It was written in the 1930s, in the heyday of British mysteries (although Marsh was from New Zealand). I read this about 30 years ago and that was long enough for me to have vague memories of the story but not remember who the murderer was. Alleyn is a rare detective who comes from the upper classes and was educated at Oxford. After working for the diplomatic service he turned to policing. The story is a classic one of a British house party where a "murder game" is played but one of the guests actually ends up dead, stabbed with his own dagger. The victim's cousin, Nigel Bathgate, is also in attendance and ends up helping Alleyn with the investigation while still being a suspect because of inheriting the victim's fortune. Bathgate reappears in later stories about Alleyn. Of course, there are multiple characters who could be the killer (including the butler). A side story about a band of Russian anarchists enhances the investigation. Inspector Alleyn is still single in this volume and appreciates young, eligible women, but not in a creepy way. He meets and marries artist Agatha Troy in a later book.  

Hand in Glove

 Hand in Glove by Ngaio Marsh (1962) 239 pages

Nicola Maitland-Mayne is a typist who has been hired by Percival Pyke Period, who wants to write a book. Little does Nicola know the drama to come: Desiree, Lady Bantling--larger than life, renowned for her parties--lives nearby with Bimbo, her third husband. Her second husband, Harold Cartell, and his obnoxious dog, now live with Percival. Harold's sister, Connie, lives on the next estate over. Connie's adopted daughter, Moppet, has a boyfriend who has been in trouble with the law, and it looks like Moppet is going astray, but Connie thinks Moppet can do no wrong. Lady Bantling's son Andrew, is trying to coax his guardians, one of whom is Harold, to allow him to buy an art gallery, to no avail. When Harold is found dead in a ditch being dug for a sewer line on Percival's property, everyone looks suspicious, with the possible exception of the typist. When Inspector Alleyn is called in by the local authorities, he is the picture of calm, clear thinking, although it must be admitted that this cast of characters tests Alleyn's temper more than once. Fun Sunday afternoon read.