Ngaio Marsh, a New Zealander, was one of a group of women writers who dominated what is sometimes known as the Golden Age of British detective fiction that occurred in the 1930s and the 1940s. The others were Agatha Christie, Dorothy L Sayers and Margery Allingham. Marsh does not have Christie's fiendish ingenuity when it comes to plotting (a characteristic which, in my view, is what sets Christie apart from other writers of her era and since, and which has resulted in her continued pre-eminence in the field even though it is almost 40 years since her death). However, Marsh is usually very good at characterisation. "The Nursing Home Murder" is not perhaps one of her best books. The characterisation is not as good as in many of her others. The story is a straightforward potboiler of a whodunit. Its purpose is to provide a few hours of entertainment (on a train journey, before sleep, etc.). And, on that basis, it succeeds. The plot concerns the murder of the Home Secretary, Sir Derek O'Callaghan, who dies a short time after having an operation for acute appendicitis at a private hospital. The surgeon who was in charge of the operation, the eminent Sir John Phillips, had good reasons for committing the murder - but so did several other people, some of whom were also involved in the surgical process that resulted in Sir Derek's demise. The investigation into the murder is led by Chief Detective Inspector Roderick Alleyn, a professional policeman, who appears in most of Marsh's novels. Although a career detective, Alleyn is not your usual police officer (even by the standards of the 1930s, the decade in which this story was first published and is set). He is an aristocrat. He has a servant (Vassily) and an apartment in central London. He knows the Prime Minister personally. He sports a dinner jacket when dining at home. And, to cap it all, he has a love of Shakespeare (he is partial to the first scene in Hamlet!). He is at ease with people (for example, Establishment figures) with whom most professional detectives would be uneasy. I give nothing away when I tell you that he does, of course, get to the bottom of the events depicted in the story.Although not one of Ngaio Marsh's best books, "The Nursing Home Murder" is a reasonably good read. The plot, which revolves around the use of the drug hyoscine, is complex. (As with many such stories of this type, the novel is perhaps best read in one sitting, if the reader has the necessary time. In that way, it is easier to follow the detail of the plot.) It goes almost without saying that it is frankly incredible and unrealistic in places - but that tends to be a feature of stories such as this (after all, the plot of one of Agatha Christie's very best books, "And Then There Were None", is completely implausible!). The characterisation is limited and, indeed, in a number of instances, is stereotypical. I was not convinced, for example, by the meeting of Communist sympathisers described in the story or by the seemingly simplistic portrayal of some of its participants. Another problem is that there is only a very limited change of scenery during the book's 187 pages. However, Marsh writes in a readable style that has one turning the pages eager to find out what happens next. "The Nursing Home Murder" is by no means a classic of the genre. It is unlikely to live long in the memory. But it provides a few hours of solid diversion from the stresses and anxieties of modern life - no bad thing in itself. 6/10.
1935, written with help on background by Henry Jellett. #3 Inspector Roderick Alleyn, Scotland Yard, London; famous - and hated - politician goes into private hospital for appendicitis operation and dies under peculiar circumstances; classic cosy thriller, three-and-one-half-stars, not her very best but still entertaining. Sir Derek O'Callaghan, Home Secretary, is in the process of introducing a stringent anti-Bolshivism bill in Parliament when he becomes very ill and is rushed to the private hospital of his friend and doctor Sir John Phillips, for an operation. In 1935 an appendix opperation was not an easy nor terribly safe thing, so it's all rather touch-and-go, especially since Sir Derek has been battling the pain for quite a while now, and peritonitis has set in. When Sir Derek dies shortly after the operation at first no-one questions the death certificate, but as more information comes out Roderick Alleyn is called in to try and make sense of what might be an extremely tricky - and newsworthy - case of murder. Good pacing and a lot of variety in the suspect pool move things along: there's Bolshevik activists out for his blood, an ex-lover and her wannabe husband (who just happens to be the surgeon), a peculiar anaesthetist with an unusual bee in his bonnet, a Bolshie-leaning nurse who got to be far too close to Sir Derek, Derek's loopy sister Ruth, and his very cold and brisk wife. And that's not counting all his political enemies - or friends. This early Marsh novel has all the good things she cultivated for so many years in her writing: smooth, complex plots, gently satirical but evocative snapshots of all sorts of people in her rareified sort of circle, a decent pace, and most of the classic elements (i.e., fair play, lots of suspects, each with a perfectly viable and well-presented motive, and a "gather the suspects" moment at the end). This early novel has, however, a few things she, happily, quickly outgrew - a slight tendency towards "cute!!", a dim reporter/Watson and his adorable fiance, Bolshie plots, and a peculiar Russian manservant for Alleyn. No Troy as yet, Fox is present but has limited face-time; they're my favorite characters in her long series. And I've always disliked the reporter/Watson character and thankfully she gives him up after only a couple more books. This is only her third novel, and despite its few flaws, it's a very creditable 1930s classic style mystery, quite dated in style now but still rather enjoyable.
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This is a significant improvement on A Man Lay Dead, but still a long way off Christie. Here, Inspector Alleyn is investigating the murder of the Home Secretary, who has died of an overdose of hyoscine following an operation. The plot is appropriately thickened by the fact that he was operated on by the nurse he'd been having an affair with, the doctor who wants to marry her, and a Bolshevik sympathiser.There are some issues here: once again, there's a political sideplot which failed to really grab me. Alleyn's Watson, journalist Nigel Bathgate, is a tedious little dweeb, and I wanted to see less of him and more of Alleyn's deadpan fellow officer, Fox. Because of the nature of the murder, there was quite a bit of attention paid to the specific makeup of the medicine, dosages, different anaesthetics, etc, which I skimmed. The ending was still not wholly satisfying: a lot hinged on chance, which I don't want in my detective novels, and the motive was a little dubious. However, this was a big improvement on her debut, so I'll stick with these in the hope the upward trend continues.
—Kiera Healy
Another enjoyable read by Marsh. Although I wish it had touched on this more, eugenics as a motive for murdering a member of the House of Lords just because there is a family history of being nutty, was certainly different. And to do it during a surgery in an effort to pin it on the surgeon was quite bold. Commies come into possible play reflecting some hysteria of the times. As always, I enjoyed Alleyn coming across as stupider than he really is and I think I'm liking Inspector Fox more and more for his dry wit.
—DH Hanni
was a cozy read. An English Parliamentarian dies after a complicated surgery for ruptured appendix, his wife wants investigation into the death as she suspects foul play. Then the story unravels in the old detective school way of interviewing all involved, reconstructing the scene etc. with practically no modern forensic method involved. I love reading about the way an interview goes - a good writer can afford us a glimpse into the psyche of the interviewer as well as interviewee and its great fun trying to deduce who did it. I enjoyed reading this book after a long gap after finishing all the Agatha Christie's though I enjoy forensic procedural books too.
—Ahtims
