Status
Available
Call number
Series
Genres
Collection
Publication
HarperCollins (1999), Edition: (Reissue), Paperback, 352 pages
Description
Fiction. Mystery. HTML:This tale of murder at a snowed-in country house is a "constant puzzle to the end . . . alive with wit" (The New York Times). The unspeakably wealthy (and generally unspeakable) Jonathan Royal has decided to throw a party and, just for fun, has studded the guest list with people who loathe one another. When a blizzard imprisons them all in Royal's country house, murder ensues, and there are nearly as many suspects as there are potential victims. Eventually, Inspector Alleyn makes his way through the snow to put things right, in this classic whodunit by the Mystery Writers of America Grand Master. "A smooth yarn." �??Kirkus Reviews (starred revie
User reviews
LibraryThing member alanteder
A Classic Locked-Room Mystery
Review of the Fontana paperback edition (1976) of the 1942 original
While I still have a considerable number of new releases to read during the current lockdown, I have also been turning to several of the classics of the Golden Age of Crime, especially due to their cozy
Ngaio Marsh's Death and the Dancing Footman sticks to many of these conventions and even goes further by making most of the house-guests unlikable. The murder is committed in a seemingly locked room situation where the victim is heard to turn on the radio and the outside hallway is occupied by a servant who happens to take a private moment to dance along to the music on the radio while unobserved. They are able to testify that no one entered the room with the victim during the crucial time period. Chief Inspector Roderick Alleyn of Scotland Yard doesn't appear until about 2/3rds of the way through the book to disentangle the events and to provide a solution.
Review of the Fontana paperback edition (1976) of the 1942 original
While I still have a considerable number of new releases to read during the current lockdown, I have also been turning to several of the classics of the Golden Age of Crime, especially due to their cozy
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housebound type of narratives. The typical story of the genre has an assorted variety of guests snowbound or in an otherwise isolated location, so that the culprit definitely has to be found within the limited cast of characters. Another convention is that the victim not be too likable, so that no time is spent in mourning but instead the crime-solving can immediately begin.Ngaio Marsh's Death and the Dancing Footman sticks to many of these conventions and even goes further by making most of the house-guests unlikable. The murder is committed in a seemingly locked room situation where the victim is heard to turn on the radio and the outside hallway is occupied by a servant who happens to take a private moment to dance along to the music on the radio while unobserved. They are able to testify that no one entered the room with the victim during the crucial time period. Chief Inspector Roderick Alleyn of Scotland Yard doesn't appear until about 2/3rds of the way through the book to disentangle the events and to provide a solution.
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LibraryThing member delphica
(#3 in the 2003 Book Challenge)
3. Death and the Dancing Footman by Ngaio Marsh
I've read a few Marsh mysteries before, and I got a nice supply of them for Christmas. They're pleasant and everything, but (and I should be embarrassed to admit how long it took me to figure this out) I realized that
I do like this type of English mystery though, it's the mystique of the time period -- someone gets murdered, and everyone else still manages to dress for dinner.
Oh, I should add that the giver of these books assembled a nice little package of second hand paperbacks, with the ultra cool 1950s and early 1960s murder mystery cover art that make them look vaguely like soft core porn.
Grade: B
Status: Recommended for people who like Sayers, Tey, etc, only not quite so good.
3. Death and the Dancing Footman by Ngaio Marsh
I've read a few Marsh mysteries before, and I got a nice supply of them for Christmas. They're pleasant and everything, but (and I should be embarrassed to admit how long it took me to figure this out) I realized that
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they're all essentially the same book. If I recall, Light Thickens is the one that's considered her masterpiece, I think I better read that one last because I like to always be on the upward trajectory.I do like this type of English mystery though, it's the mystique of the time period -- someone gets murdered, and everyone else still manages to dress for dinner.
Oh, I should add that the giver of these books assembled a nice little package of second hand paperbacks, with the ultra cool 1950s and early 1960s murder mystery cover art that make them look vaguely like soft core porn.
Grade: B
Status: Recommended for people who like Sayers, Tey, etc, only not quite so good.
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LibraryThing member mmyoung
While the writing itself seems flatter than in her previous books and the going feels as turgid and difficult as the driving through the snow described in the book this Marsh holds a special place of fascination for me as the author (and the characters) attempt to understand and justify the time
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and effort spent on one murder when in the background WWII awaits -- still in the false peace stage but with everyone aware that it is about to break out in its full level of destruction. Show Less
LibraryThing member booksaplenty1949
Superior character development makes this memorable and touching as well as a gripping whodunnit. Snow interest.
LibraryThing member katekf
Death and the Dancing Footman is an enjoyable Alleyn mystery where an eccentric has gathered together a group that all have connections and conflicts with each other and a playwright to see what happens. The set up has the feel of many mysteries of this era with the beautiful country house and the
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slightly elaborate set up around the actual murder. Marsh though improves upon this formula with her deft hand with the characters and her teasing acknowledgement of her genre. I would recommend this to any reader of Christie and Marsh as its a classic cozy mystery at its best. Show Less
LibraryThing member Figgles
A crime classic, a country house isolated by a snowstorm, a party of antagonistic guests assembled by a mischievous host, a series of threatening events culminating in a locked room murder. Alleyn is visiting a nearby rectory (familiar to readers of "Overture to Death") and is called in to
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investigate. As with many Ngaio Marsh mysteries, the development of the characters leading up to the murder is the main thrust of the book, whilst the detection is a minor part, however the book is no less enjoyable for taking this form. Recommended for fans of the Queens of Crime! Show Less
LibraryThing member Matke
Jonathan fancies himself a student of psychology. He decides to conduct a living experiment (really an entertainment for himself) by having a house party for eight people. Each one has a secret (or three) and each has a deep antipathy for at least one other guest.
Of course Murder ensues.
The plot
Overall this is a good Inspector Alleyn book. He doesn’t appear until quite late, but there is more than enough emotion to keep one reading. Recommended.
Of course Murder ensues.
The plot
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has similarities to some of Christie’s books. There’s also a device similar to Sayers’s Busman’s Honeymoon, which one character name checks.Overall this is a good Inspector Alleyn book. He doesn’t appear until quite late, but there is more than enough emotion to keep one reading. Recommended.
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Subjects
Language
Original publication date
1941
Physical description
352 p.; 7.56 inches
ISBN
0006512372 / 9780006512370
Local notes
A winter weekend ends in snowbound disaster in a novel which remains a favourite among Marsh readers. It began as an entertainment: eight people, many of them enemies, gathered for a winter weekend by a host with a love for theatre. They would be the characters in a drama that he would devise. It ended in snowbound disaster. Everyone had an alibi -- and most a motive as well. But Chief Detective Inspector Roderick Alleyn, when he finally arrived, knew it all hung on Thomas, the dancing footman...