Colour Scheme

I was a bit disappointed by this mystery, as the other three in the collection had been so wonderful… My main problem with this book was that there wasn’t a single character I liked. And I understand that even though you’re not supposed to like them, I am a happier reader when at least one character......more

I thoroughly enjoyed this story. A combination of crime and spying set in a New Zealand hot springs setting. A genteel English immigrant family struggling to survive in 1943. Maurice Questing an unlikeable businessman who is planning to call in his loan and take over the hot springs. Mr Gaunt a famo......more

I like Ngaio Marsh's mysteries in a lukewarm sort of way. They are not as mind-bending as Dame Agatha's, nor literary like those of Dorothy Sayers or P. D. James. However, they are very old-world and cosy; eminently readable; and Roderick Alleyn is a likeable sleuth. And in almost all of them, you c......more

Hard to write a review after the miserable ending I simply abhorred. The majority of the book was a very entertaining read, however. Within the first 43 pages or so I was in hysterics and glad no one was around to hear me hooting. The characters Dame Marsh populated this book with are gems. She also......more

On second read. She got me. She totally got me. And I can't even tell you the details of how she did it because it would spoil everything that I enjoyed about this book. I know I've read it before but I think it was only my 2nd or 3rd Marsh so on first read I didn't have any expectations as to how it......more