Clutch of Constables by Ngaio Marsh

The book opens with Roderick Alleyn telling the story to group of upcoming police of the time Troy decided to take a riverboat cruise on impulse. And this group is interspersed with a third person view of how a murder occurred on board and why/how a famous thief, the Jam Pot (sp?) was involved.

With Roderick in the United States and her son away as well, Troy can afford to take eight days on the river. Of course, people will probably find out who she is but she does try to stay under the radar, especially when a cloying Englishwoman with a cold latches on to her. If the woman knew that Troy was a famous artist... ugh. No one on the trip is too upset when that woman ends up leaving the boat but Troy is definitely concerned. Especially since she was already on alert when she makes an offhand comment about Constables (meaning the artist) and feels a sudden tension. Then she sees a newspaper article mentioning that the man who was supposed to be in her cabin was strangled. It makes her call Brer Fox to see if she needs to be worried. 

Overt racism is exhibited by some of the passengers making some of the trip uncomfortable. Also, the solution is a little overly dramatic. I decided to read this out of order based on the Classic Mysteries podcast episode.

Three and a half stars

This book came out in 1968

Follows Killer Dolphin

Followed by When in Rome

Borrowed as audiobook from Audible

Opinions are my own

Tied Up in Tinsel by Ngaio Marsh, Wanda McCaddon

Agatha Troy is on site, painting a picture of Hilary Bill-Tasman ahead of the holiday season. His family and friends and the local villagers are getting ready for the upcoming Christmas season. There is an eccentric group of people joining them at the manor, Halberds, and that includes the servants who are all reformed murderers. There is Hilary's fiancee, a beautiful woman but maybe not much more than her elegance to add to the depth. Also attending are his (honorary) uncle Bert who likes to keep his low-origins accent on full display even though he has made his fortune as well as Hilary's aunt and uncle, Mrs. and Colonel Forrester, the latter of whom is very deaf and the former who has a tendency of not only talking loud but repeating herself. 

Troy is bemused by the servants and amused by the family. On the night of the big celebration, Forrester has a spell and is unable to play the druid around whom the festivities revolve. The Forrester's manservant, Moult, steps in but then disappears. Hilary works to make sure that Roderick Alleyn is the one called in to the case. What the heck, his wife is already on site.

I liked this one and a lot had to do with the narrator. There are a few red herrings but the clues are fairly obvious and the murderer is easy to guess. This is the best of the Troy/Alleyn relationship though the clues are a bit heavy-handed at points.

Four stars

This book came out in 1972

Follows When in Rome

Followed by Black as He's Painted

Borrowed as audiobook from Audible Premium Plus

Opinions are my own

Death in Ecstasy by Ngaio Marsh

Roderick-Alleyn-regular Nigel Bathgate is bored one rainy night. His boredom and a neon sign lead him to the House of the Sacred Flame. There are guards at the door to the temple which Nigel does eventually sneak manage to sneak into. Unfortunately, one of the parishioners dies. But Nigel has a Detective Inspector of Homicides' number memorized and Roderick Alleyn is brought into the mystery.

The woman who died was incredibly wealthy and fairly young (in her thirties). She recently changed her will to leave her money to the House of the Sacred Flame. But is that a good enough motive? Or could their be others.

I actually made it through this book faster than some in this series. It was tightly written and engaging. You can start to see some of the drug mania of the time that Marsh will start to infuse her books with.

Three stars

Follows The Nursing Home Murder

Followed by Vintage Murder

This book came out in 1936

Hard copy I didn't keep

Opinions are my own

The Nursing Home Murder by Ngaio Marsh

When one of the most powerful men in the land dies on a surgical table, it shouldn't automatically be labeled as a murder. But when his wife insists on an autopsy... and he's found to have been poisoned, Inspector Roderick Alleyn is called in. There is, of course, no shortage of suspects. The man's wife was a chilly woman who didn't love him, his sister pushed patent medicines on him, there was the young woman he had seduced and her potential husband (both at the operating table), as well as at least one radical who disagreed with the man's politics.
The solution wasn't exactly fairly clued but it wasn't completely out of left field either. An interesting book with just a few too many red herrings.

Three stars

Follows Enter a Murderer

Followed by Death in Ecstasy

This book came out in 1935

Borrowed as an ebook from Libby

Opinions are my own