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Enter a Murderer

By Ngaio Marsh
Enter a Murderer 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 Arth

  • Title: Enter a Murderer
  • Author: Ngaio Marsh
  • ISBN: 9780312966706
  • Page: 492
  • Format: Paperback

    • 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 RoderThe 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 Roderick Alleyn against someone who rates an Oscar for a murderously clever performance.

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    About Author

    1. Ngaio Marsh says:
      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 alone survived to publish in the 1980s Over a fifty year span, from 1932 to 1982, Marsh wrote thirty two classic English detective novels, which gained international acclaim She did not always see herself as a writer, but first planned a career as a painter.Marsh s first novel, A MAN LAY DEAD 1934 , which she wrote in London in 1931 32, introduced the detective Inspector Roderick Alleyn a combination of Sayers s Lord Peter Wimsey and a realistically depicted police official at work Throughout the 1930s Marsh painted occasionally, wrote plays for local repertory societies in New Zealand, and published detective novels In 1937 Marsh went to England for a period Before going back to her home country, she spent six months travelling about Europe All her novels feature British CID detective Roderick Alleyn Several novels feature Marsh s other loves, the theatre and painting A number are set around theatrical productions Enter a Murderer, Vintage Murder, Overture to Death, Opening Night, Death at the Dolphin, and Light Thickens , and two others are about actors off stage Final Curtain and False Scent Her short story I Can Find My Way Out is also set around a theatrical production and is the earlier Jupiter case referred to in Opening Night Alleyn marries a painter, Agatha Troy, whom he meets during an investigation Artists in Crime , and who features in several later novels.Series Roderick Alleyn

    Comment 548 on “Enter a Murderer”

    1. Susan says:
      This is the second book featuring Chief Detective Inspector Roderick Alleyn In this mystery, Alleyn is invited to the theatre by journalist friend, Nigel Bathgate, who he met in the first adventure, A Man Lay Dead Again, Bathgate knows one of the principal characters, in this case the leading man, Felix Gardener During the play, Gardener is supposed to pretend to shoot Arthur Surbonadier, fellow actor, nephew of the theatre owner, disgruntled loser of the leading part and rival for the hand of l [...]
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    2. Carol Clouds ꧁꧂ says:
      4.5 Well here s a surprise I ve never been a whole hearted, absolute Marsh fan although I did like Death At The Dolphin read pre joining GR Tied Up In Tinsel very much I find Marsh annoyingly arch twee if she wasn t a snob herself, she seemed to delight in creating snobbish characters But I enjoyed this book very much.The books main strengths come from Marsh s own theatrical background her sly depictions of the actors all seeing themselves in turns of a performance.I used to love the old black w [...]
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    3. BillKerwin says:
      Ngaio Marsh is a mystery writer with style, and in this early book she and Inspector Alleyn are in their element the theatre Her character sketches of the members of the theatre troupe are particularly fine.
      Reply

    4. Libros Prestados says:
      He estado a punto de ponerle 5 estrellas porque me la col hasta el fondo, pero creo que ser a exagerado Al fin y al cabo, es una historia bastante simple, un murder mistery o whodunit de lo m s cl sico, s , entretenido, sin duda, y bien escrito, pero que no pasa de ser un divertimento.Ahora, como pasatiempo es fant stico El puzle tal vez no sea tan elaborado como en otras novelas del g nero, pero es lo es lo suficiente para enga ar al lector O al menos a m me ha tenido en vilo Aunque me averg en [...]
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    5. Abbey says:
      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 interested in th [...]
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    6. Benjamin Thomas says:
      Continuing with my quest to sample the great mystery and detective writers of yesteryear, I now turn my attention to Ngaio Marsh, often mentioned as one of the Queens of Crime alongside the likes of Agatha Christie and Dorothy L Sayers She is known mostly for her detective series which contains 32 novels featuring Chief Inspector Roderick Alleyn later Chief Superintendent of the Criminal Investigation Department, Metropolitan Police, London However, she is also well recognized for her extensive [...]
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    7. Rebecca says:
      An average murder mystery Murder committed during a play My first Ngaio Marsh Not impressed with inspector Allyn And the layout of the stage, the dressing room and the numerous passages, I did not get which was crucial to the mystery May try out from this author but not too soon.
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    8. Bev says:
      Alleyn and Bailey were on their knees by the prompt box Bailey was busy with an insufflator and the inspector seemed to be peering at the floor through a magnifying glass Beside him, opened, was the bag they had brought him from the Yard Nigel looked into it and saw a neat collection of objects, among which he distinguished magnifying glasses, tape, scissors, soap, a towel, an electric torch, rubber gloves, sealing wax, and a pair of handcuffs What are you doing asked Nigel Being a detective Can [...]
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    9. Jesús says:
      Rese a completa lacavernaliteraria 201Agatha Christie supo dibujar con maestr a casos inolvidables con protagonistas c lebres en decenas de novelas policiales Pero Ngaio Marsh, coet nea de la autora brit nica, logr crear atm sferas similares en sus m s de treinta libros encabezados por Roderick Alleyn Nada tiene que envidiar Un asesino en escena a las averiguaciones de Poirot o Marple La escritora neozelandesa vierte con acierto sus conocimientos como directora esc nica en el crimen del Unicorn, [...]
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    10. Hilary S says:
      Roderick Alleyn has been invited to the theatre by Nigel Bathgate, during the performance what should have been a fake shooting turns into the real thing and Scotland Yard in the person of Alleyn needs to track through blackmail, bribery and lies to find out the truth behind the killing.Marsh is still finding her feet as a author but Alleyn is becoming a believable character in this the second book.
      Reply

    11. Laura says:
      Roderick Alley series 3 A Man Lay Dead Roderick Alleyn, 1 3 Enter a Murderer Roderick Alleyn, 2 4 Death in a White Tie Roderick Alleyn, 7 3 Death of a Peer Roderick Alleyn, 10 3 Death and the Dancing Footman Roderick Alleyn, 11 3 Night at the Vulcan Roderick Alleyn, 16 3 When in Rome Roderick Alleyn, 26 TR The Nursing Home Murder Roderick Alleyn, 3 TR Death in Ecstasy Roderick Alleyn, 4 TR Vintage Murder Roderick Alleyn, 5 TR Artists in Crime Roderick Alleyn, 6 TR Overture to Death Roderick Alle [...]
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    12. Jann Barber says:
      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 also [...]
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    13. Nancy Butts says:
      This is the second Roderick Alleyn mystery, and the first of several set in the theatre, a world that Marsh knew well from her own work in drama This is the first of two books set at the Unicorn Theatre, and one can see that Marsh is still experimenting with Alleyn, trying to settle on his personality He is a vastly different person in this book than he becomes in later novels much facetious, almost ridiculous at times though she didn t intend that And the reporter Nigel Bathgate makes his seco [...]
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    14. Gary says:
      Ngaio Marsh is very famous but, although her plots are well conceived, her dialogue is so over the top and pretentious that it makes her books difficult to read Surely, even in the 1930 s people just did not talk like this.
      Reply

    15. Jessica says:
      I enjoyed this than the first book in this series I feel like Roderick Alleyn is growing on me, though his humor still sometimes goes over my head A very fun read.
      Reply

    16. Robin Stevens says:
      A very clever and very bold theatre murder mystery I love the detail of this story, and loved the 1930s theatre that it depicts 10 Please note this review is meant as a recommendation only Please do not use it in any marketing material, online or in print, without asking permission from me first Thank you
      Reply

    17. Orinoco Womble (tidy bag and all) says:
      Having read Alleyn 3 before this one, Enter a Murderer was a bit of a let down I thought I had wandered into an episode of Murder, She Wrote , stilted dialogue, unbelieveable wrap, and all How much did she actually know about heroin addicts Yes, I know, it s a vintage cosy But if I had read this before The Nursing Home Murder I would have given up on Marsh without a backward glance Fortunately in vol 3 there is a decided improvement in voice, devices and plottingA I just listened to this on audi [...]
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    18. FangirlNation says:
      Ngaio Marsh publishes her first novel set in her own personal world of the theater in her second book, 1935 s Enter a Murderer Nigel Bathgate, the journalist introduced in A Man Lay Dead, gets tickets to a play at the prestigious Unicorn Theater from one of the stars, Felix Gardener, with whom Nigel attended Cambridge, and he takes along with him Detective Inspector Roderick Alleyn Visiting Felix before the play, the pair meet much of the cast, including a hostile Arthur Surbonardier, who is cle [...]
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    19. Jessica says:
      I love reading Golden Age Detectives and as such, it was a pleasant experience, yet, I cannot really say I am convinced by it I am looking forward to getting to know the writer and her detective as the Reading the Detectives group here on has embarked on a yearlong challenge reading her Alleyn series The atmosphere throughout is decidedly cosy You can smell the theatre and get jut a riled up about their dramatic behaviour as the detective does It just feels too much like an episode of Murder Sh [...]
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    20. Pamela says:
      In this second book in the series, we again meet Inspector Alleyn, and his friend the journalist Nigel Bathgate The two men attend the theatre to see a play starring Bathgate s friend, Felix Gardener During the play, a gun is fired and Alleyn quickly realises that real bullets have been used instead of the usual blanks The dead actor, Arthur Surbonardier, appears to have been disliked by the others in the cast, so Alleyn must tread carefully to identify who is behind the killing.This has quite a [...]
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    21. D.R. Oestreicher says:
      Ngaio Marsh is a New Zealand author and one of the Four Queens for Crime Enter a Murder 1935 might be the first occurrence of a real on stage murder co opting the dramatic scripted murder using the prop murder weapon The deceased is Arthur Surbonadier, degenerate nephew of rich theater owner Jacob Saint Arthur is part of a love triangle including leading lady Stephanie Vaughan, and leading man Felix Gardener Since everyone saw Felix shot Arthur, the question is who replaced the dummy bullets in [...]
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    22. Aylavella says:
      No ha llegado a convencerme, me imagino que porque esperaba m s No he entendido bien el humor que destila No me ha gustado como plantea la investigaci n y resuelve el caso No me han gustado sus personajes Me gusto m s su anterior novela, Un hombre muerto.
      Reply

    23. Encarni Prados says:
      Ha sido un libro cl sico de los que perfectamente podr a haber escrito Agatha Christie, con asesinato y b squeda del asesino, sospechas de todos y cuesta deducir qui n es el verdadero asesino, lo recomiendo
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    24. J. says:
      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, of fresh [...]
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    25. Mary says:
      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 inv [...]
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    26. Bill says:
      The Inspector Alleyn mysteries I read by Ngaio Marsh, the I enjoy them This is the second book in the series I managed to find a copy on one of my locals It involves a favourite setting of Marsh s, the theater Alleyn is invited to see a play with his friend, Nigel Bathgate, budding news reporter, and while there, a murder is committed A supposed prop gun is loaded with real bullets and the target is killed The rest of the book deals with Alleyn and his team s investigation of the murder, or wa [...]
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    27. Surreysmum says:
      These notes were made in 1985 An early one, and a theatre one so Alleyn is still allowed to be a bit of a devil with the ladies, and one of the ladies, being an actress, is allowed to be devil enough to respond The plot involves a murder onstage, and the solution is, enfin, the obvious one the man who pulled the trigger, Felix Gardener, is the man who intended and committed the murder Marsh has, I think, a fondness for this particular kind of elegant solution Gardener compounds his murder by kil [...]
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    28. Anthony Maiella says:
      Enter a Murderer was a greatly entertaining mystery book with a twist This is second of 32 mystery novels by Ngaio Marsh, Enter a Murderer establishes Chief Inspector Roderick Alleyn as a leading detective to solve these mysteries Enter a Murderer opens at the Unicorn Theater with a stage drama that calls for murder and it was a great opening to this story The book keeps you coming back to keep reading and reading, with lots of twist and turns and lots cliffhanger I love murder mystery that keep [...]
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    29. Ali says:
      First published in 1935 Enter a Murderer was the second novel to feature Chief Detective Inspector Roderick Alleyn Over the last few years I have read quite a number of Marsh s Alleyn novels, but I don t think it matters that I haven t been reading them in the right order This novel finds us in Ngaio Marsh s beloved theatre a world she was very much at home in and which played an important part in her life Several of Nagio Marsh s novels have a theatrical setting a setting I do think suits a mur [...]
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    30. Jean-Luke says:
      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 intrigued Roderick Alleyn was at the top of his game, and I felt that he started to develop as a character, especially in hi [...]
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