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Roderick Alleyn #24
Death at the Dolphin
When the bombed-out Dolphin Theatre is given to Peregrine Jay by a mysterious wealthy patron, he is overjoyed. And when the mysterious oil millionaire also gives him a glove that belonged to Shakespeare, Peregrine displays it in the dockside theatre and writes a successful play about it. But then a murder takes place, a boy is attacked, the glove is stolen. Could it be that oil and water don’t mix? Inspector Roderick Alleyn is determined to find out…Run 9 hours
256 pages, Paperback
First published June 1, 1966
223 people are currently reading
921 people want to read
About the author
Ngaio Marsh
198 books821 followersDame 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
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
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 177 reviews
December 22, 2019
I can see it's flaws, but I can't help it - I just love this book
This is all the more surprising as I am not a big Marsh fan. I think this one was the first Marsh I read and maybe that explains my love for it.
The Dolphin Theatre is described with such love and detail. Ms Marsh is totally at home with her theatrical characters and she also makes them believable as people from the sixties - my favourite decade! I don't think the murder was as important to Marsh in this mystery, as the fun she was having with the setting.
Alleyn and Fox are witty together without Marsh making Alleyn too arch - Marsh is prone to do that. No Troy is a bonus. Troy and Alleyn's relationship has never seemed believable or comfortable to me.
Lovely, escapist fare!
This is all the more surprising as I am not a big Marsh fan. I think this one was the first Marsh I read and maybe that explains my love for it.
The Dolphin Theatre is described with such love and detail. Ms Marsh is totally at home with her theatrical characters and she also makes them believable as people from the sixties - my favourite decade! I don't think the murder was as important to Marsh in this mystery, as the fun she was having with the setting.
Alleyn and Fox are witty together without Marsh making Alleyn too arch - Marsh is prone to do that. No Troy is a bonus. Troy and Alleyn's relationship has never seemed believable or comfortable to me.
Lovely, escapist fare!
https://wordpress.com/view/carolshess...
December 3, 2019
Ngaio Marsh returns to the theatre for this, her twenty fourth mystery, featuring Alleyn. Peregrine Jay visits The Dolphin Theatre – blitzed and bombed out – which he longs to restore. However, he has an accident, which sees him falling through the stage and nearly drowning. Rescued by a wealthy, secretive, businessman, he finds that the gentleman in question is suddenly willing to buy the theatre, restore it and set Peregrine up as the manager. Along with his friend, Jeremy Jones, the two young men are delighted. When the elderly benefactor, Mr Conducis, shows Peregrine a glove he had, reputed to have belonged to Shakespeare’s son, it inspires him to write a play about the glove and this is put on display in the theatre, with Alleyn involved in the security for the item.
The problem with this mystery, is that I almost felt I had read it before. You have the cast of theatre people, all with their secrets and sniping. The mysterious businessman, the rumours, shady characters and an annoying child actor, thrown in for good measure. Of course, there is also murder and even a rather theatrical ending. For someone who loved the theatre, Marsh doesn’t paint a very pretty picture of those who work there. A reasonable addition to the series, but not one of my favourites.
The problem with this mystery, is that I almost felt I had read it before. You have the cast of theatre people, all with their secrets and sniping. The mysterious businessman, the rumours, shady characters and an annoying child actor, thrown in for good measure. Of course, there is also murder and even a rather theatrical ending. For someone who loved the theatre, Marsh doesn’t paint a very pretty picture of those who work there. A reasonable addition to the series, but not one of my favourites.
April 16, 2020
This is the 24th novel in the Inspector Alleyn series. The plot is about the discovery of a priceless relic associated with Shakespeare in the form of a glove. The start of the story is excellent when Peregrine a theatrical director and writer is exploring the dilapidated Dolphin theatre near the Thames River in London.
Peregrine gets himself into deep water and is saved by a wealthy eccentric who takes him home and then shows him a glove associated with Shakespeare. Peregrine a bit tipsy and has a rant about saving the theatre from demolition and it’s cultural and historical significance. Conducis the wealthy owner decides to save it and Peregrine is made the theatre director of the refurnished theatre. He also writes a play around the theme of the glove.
We then meet the cast. A motley lot. Marcus Knight s temperamental actor with a temper. Destiny Meade an actress with a gambling habit and not to bright. W.Hartley Grove an actor disliked by most of the cast for his cynical humor and his affair with Destiny. Gertrude Bracey an actress ditched by Grove and jealous. Emily Dunne an actress who Peregrine falls in love but appears to not reciprocate. Charles Random an actor who collects antiques and the child actor Trevor Vere a little shit with an alcoholic mother.
A few other characters are Peregrine’s flat mate Jeremy and Dobbins the caretaker. The glove is authenticated and put on display at the theatre. A murder robbery takes place and Alleyn investigates. Here the story gets a bit silly with motives unclear and although the reveal makes sense and the culprit it for me was a bit weak and so a rating of 3.5. Saying that still an enjoyable read and excellent characterization.
Peregrine gets himself into deep water and is saved by a wealthy eccentric who takes him home and then shows him a glove associated with Shakespeare. Peregrine a bit tipsy and has a rant about saving the theatre from demolition and it’s cultural and historical significance. Conducis the wealthy owner decides to save it and Peregrine is made the theatre director of the refurnished theatre. He also writes a play around the theme of the glove.
We then meet the cast. A motley lot. Marcus Knight s temperamental actor with a temper. Destiny Meade an actress with a gambling habit and not to bright. W.Hartley Grove an actor disliked by most of the cast for his cynical humor and his affair with Destiny. Gertrude Bracey an actress ditched by Grove and jealous. Emily Dunne an actress who Peregrine falls in love but appears to not reciprocate. Charles Random an actor who collects antiques and the child actor Trevor Vere a little shit with an alcoholic mother.
A few other characters are Peregrine’s flat mate Jeremy and Dobbins the caretaker. The glove is authenticated and put on display at the theatre. A murder robbery takes place and Alleyn investigates. Here the story gets a bit silly with motives unclear and although the reveal makes sense and the culprit it for me was a bit weak and so a rating of 3.5. Saying that still an enjoyable read and excellent characterization.
March 9, 2020
I messed up my list of books I take to the library and had to go back to Marsh and chose a couple of the Alleyn books I had yet to read. Both of them have theater themes, my least favorite even knowing that was one of her loves. In this murder mystery we are introduced to some likable characters so that saved the day and made it a very enjoyable read.
There is a very long list of key characters including a Greek tycoon; a treasure of a letter and Shakespeare-related glove are front and center; the rehabilitation of a degraded old theater building with the writing of a new play centered on the Shakespeare artifact; deaths and injuries and Alleyn and Fox to the rescue.
I was happy to have this diversion from watching the markets crash.
Library Loan
There is a very long list of key characters including a Greek tycoon; a treasure of a letter and Shakespeare-related glove are front and center; the rehabilitation of a degraded old theater building with the writing of a new play centered on the Shakespeare artifact; deaths and injuries and Alleyn and Fox to the rescue.
I was happy to have this diversion from watching the markets crash.
Library Loan
October 16, 2020
DAME AGATHA CHRISTIE AND HER PEERS
1966
I've read 3-4 novels by this author, and this is my favorite so far. First of all, cool title. But it's really tricky to write a book about a book that doesn't exist, or in this case a book about a stage play in which so little about the stage play is revealed. Or so you might think.
CAST - 4 stars: My favorite character is Mrs. Constantia Guzmann, a filthy rich, filthy ugly American who is actually a small player in this story. She tries to be 'owned' by the stupendously handsome Marcus Knight who lands the lead role of a stage play entitled "The Glove" within this novel, and her method is rather insane...and illegal. In a way, she drives the story though. Marcus lives with Destiny who plays a Dark Lady in "The Glove": she is characterized as being rather stupid but at the same time an excellent actress as a result of being short some tools in the shed. W. Hartley Grove is shady and supposes no one likes him, but in truth some characters do like him for this very reason. He might be gay but the author uses the term 'queer' in different contexts ((Hawkins, a watchman, 'turned queer at the site of blood"). Grove shares a dressing room with the precocious, rude 11 y/o boy, Trevor.) Marsh toys with this issue, oddly. Charles Random is just that, quiet and detached for most of the novel. Gertrude Bracey is rude and bossy. Trevor's mom is the neighborhood drunk. Knight, Grove, Gertrude, Random, Trevor, Destiny and Emily Dunne are the seven characters in "The Glove". Peregrine Jay wants to re-open the bombed out shell of a theatre as the director, writer. His roommate Jeremy Jones is to be the set decorator, costume designer and do about everything Jay doesn't do...and again Marsh toys with their relationship. Each have ex-girlfriends but odd references abound. A mysterious Vassily Conducis (compared by the author to Onassis) funds the restoration to the surprise of Jay. Jobbins is a night watchman, Greenslade a solicitor, and at about 100 pages in, Superintendent Alleyn from Scotland Yard enters the picture to guard...well, a certain lobby display about which the stage play is fashioned. I liked very much that Marsh sticks with the seven actors as suspects (that's a low number for a murder mystery) and for that, and making these seven characters interesting, I'm giving this element four stars. Marsh insinuates and insinuates, much of it just red herrings.
ATMOSPHERE - 4: About the bombed-out theatre: "A long shaft of sunlight from a gap in the roof...produced the effect of a wartime blitz drawing in charcoal and, like a spotlight, found its mark on the empty stage." Or, "The bar was all golden syrup and molasses in colour." Off to a party, one character grabs a domino. Now, if I hadn't just read Durrell's first two books in his "Alexandria Quartet", I'd have had no idea about wearing a domino. (It's a massive black velvet covering, worn over the head and hiding all identity and used during Alexandria's Carnival.) There is much in the way of reconstructing the theatre itself which I found fascinating. Then there are the players, playing their own games within the stage play itself.
CRIME - 4: There are several main crimes at the center of the story, none out of the ordinary and never boring. We get a hint of the global black market for historical objects, just enough information to understand how some of it works. And how Marsh weaves that in with the murder(s?) is exceptionally well done. And then there's the crime of...oh, I'd better stop.
INVESTIGATION - 4: Alleyn and his cop buddy Br'er Fox move quickly and of course interview all suspects together and apart. A particularly interesting scene occurs when one suspect is actually close to death in a hospitable bed but is visited by all cast members while the out-of-it patient drops off to sleep (patient medicated) just when a pertinent question needs to be answered. This little trick by Marsh is so much better than the typical reason people don't answer THE question in this genre: usually a phone rings, there is a knock at the door, someone MUST have some hot lovin', etc. We're taken all through the theatre, a backstage tour perhaps, revealing entrances and exits, stage tricks, etc. And this story HAS to take place 1) in a run-down theatre during 2)post WW2 bomb-ravaged London with 3) characters rich, poor, and between meshing together the investigation and atmosphere nicely.
RESOLUTION - 5: Of course great actors act in real life and are so good, everyone believes them even in real life, whatever that is. Marsh has written of stage plays and theatres and actors in other novels, and here she seems to get all the interplay games, on-stage and off, just right. I believed it all, every motive, every wink, every button pushed, the odd reason for the financing, an odd casting decision dictated by Conduci. And more. It seemed to me that all points/subplots are resolved, the explanation thorough. Even past references to a shipwreck explains a rather odd issue involving Conducis' dislike of pale gloves. It's a tiny detail, but Marsh explains it believably and sadly, thus going further than other authors in the murder mystery genre. Yes, the sexuality of some characters is left questionable. But isn't that the way it is in the real world today, given the sexual spectrum is so much larger than most people ever suspected?
SUMMARY - 4.2 stars. Marsh is indeed writing in Christie territory here as this book is fascinating. This is no "Murder on the Orient Express", but it's the best Marsh I've read so far and I think it's a vast improvement over her earlier novels. Even though Marsh never takes us through the stage play, "The Glove", the action and characters and a certain important item of apparel-that isn't a glove- reveals so much that we come close to understanding the play itself. And that's a trick very hard to pull off. I've been disappointed often by conspiracy-type thrillers about the hunt for a long lost book/play, etc., where the book/play is never found anyway, hence we are left with next to nothing. Here, we have everything we'd expect in a murder mystery...well, other than a jaw
dropping final twist.
(P.S. YES, there is indeed a killer dolphin...and yea, that is a good twist.)
1966
I've read 3-4 novels by this author, and this is my favorite so far. First of all, cool title. But it's really tricky to write a book about a book that doesn't exist, or in this case a book about a stage play in which so little about the stage play is revealed. Or so you might think.
CAST - 4 stars: My favorite character is Mrs. Constantia Guzmann, a filthy rich, filthy ugly American who is actually a small player in this story. She tries to be 'owned' by the stupendously handsome Marcus Knight who lands the lead role of a stage play entitled "The Glove" within this novel, and her method is rather insane...and illegal. In a way, she drives the story though. Marcus lives with Destiny who plays a Dark Lady in "The Glove": she is characterized as being rather stupid but at the same time an excellent actress as a result of being short some tools in the shed. W. Hartley Grove is shady and supposes no one likes him, but in truth some characters do like him for this very reason. He might be gay but the author uses the term 'queer' in different contexts ((Hawkins, a watchman, 'turned queer at the site of blood"). Grove shares a dressing room with the precocious, rude 11 y/o boy, Trevor.) Marsh toys with this issue, oddly. Charles Random is just that, quiet and detached for most of the novel. Gertrude Bracey is rude and bossy. Trevor's mom is the neighborhood drunk. Knight, Grove, Gertrude, Random, Trevor, Destiny and Emily Dunne are the seven characters in "The Glove". Peregrine Jay wants to re-open the bombed out shell of a theatre as the director, writer. His roommate Jeremy Jones is to be the set decorator, costume designer and do about everything Jay doesn't do...and again Marsh toys with their relationship. Each have ex-girlfriends but odd references abound. A mysterious Vassily Conducis (compared by the author to Onassis) funds the restoration to the surprise of Jay. Jobbins is a night watchman, Greenslade a solicitor, and at about 100 pages in, Superintendent Alleyn from Scotland Yard enters the picture to guard...well, a certain lobby display about which the stage play is fashioned. I liked very much that Marsh sticks with the seven actors as suspects (that's a low number for a murder mystery) and for that, and making these seven characters interesting, I'm giving this element four stars. Marsh insinuates and insinuates, much of it just red herrings.
ATMOSPHERE - 4: About the bombed-out theatre: "A long shaft of sunlight from a gap in the roof...produced the effect of a wartime blitz drawing in charcoal and, like a spotlight, found its mark on the empty stage." Or, "The bar was all golden syrup and molasses in colour." Off to a party, one character grabs a domino. Now, if I hadn't just read Durrell's first two books in his "Alexandria Quartet", I'd have had no idea about wearing a domino. (It's a massive black velvet covering, worn over the head and hiding all identity and used during Alexandria's Carnival.) There is much in the way of reconstructing the theatre itself which I found fascinating. Then there are the players, playing their own games within the stage play itself.
CRIME - 4: There are several main crimes at the center of the story, none out of the ordinary and never boring. We get a hint of the global black market for historical objects, just enough information to understand how some of it works. And how Marsh weaves that in with the murder(s?) is exceptionally well done. And then there's the crime of...oh, I'd better stop.
INVESTIGATION - 4: Alleyn and his cop buddy Br'er Fox move quickly and of course interview all suspects together and apart. A particularly interesting scene occurs when one suspect is actually close to death in a hospitable bed but is visited by all cast members while the out-of-it patient drops off to sleep (patient medicated) just when a pertinent question needs to be answered. This little trick by Marsh is so much better than the typical reason people don't answer THE question in this genre: usually a phone rings, there is a knock at the door, someone MUST have some hot lovin', etc. We're taken all through the theatre, a backstage tour perhaps, revealing entrances and exits, stage tricks, etc. And this story HAS to take place 1) in a run-down theatre during 2)post WW2 bomb-ravaged London with 3) characters rich, poor, and between meshing together the investigation and atmosphere nicely.
RESOLUTION - 5: Of course great actors act in real life and are so good, everyone believes them even in real life, whatever that is. Marsh has written of stage plays and theatres and actors in other novels, and here she seems to get all the interplay games, on-stage and off, just right. I believed it all, every motive, every wink, every button pushed, the odd reason for the financing, an odd casting decision dictated by Conduci. And more. It seemed to me that all points/subplots are resolved, the explanation thorough. Even past references to a shipwreck explains a rather odd issue involving Conducis' dislike of pale gloves. It's a tiny detail, but Marsh explains it believably and sadly, thus going further than other authors in the murder mystery genre. Yes, the sexuality of some characters is left questionable. But isn't that the way it is in the real world today, given the sexual spectrum is so much larger than most people ever suspected?
SUMMARY - 4.2 stars. Marsh is indeed writing in Christie territory here as this book is fascinating. This is no "Murder on the Orient Express", but it's the best Marsh I've read so far and I think it's a vast improvement over her earlier novels. Even though Marsh never takes us through the stage play, "The Glove", the action and characters and a certain important item of apparel-that isn't a glove- reveals so much that we come close to understanding the play itself. And that's a trick very hard to pull off. I've been disappointed often by conspiracy-type thrillers about the hunt for a long lost book/play, etc., where the book/play is never found anyway, hence we are left with next to nothing. Here, we have everything we'd expect in a murder mystery...well, other than a jaw
dropping final twist.
(P.S. YES, there is indeed a killer dolphin...and yea, that is a good twist.)
November 3, 2021
The greatest joy in reading these classic 20th century crime writers is the gloriously nostalgic world they evoke.
Here, Marsh depicts the first stirrings of gentrification of London’s docklands in the 1960s - like Derek Jarman and Ian McKellan, Marsh’s hero is a theatrical wannabe who inhabits a docklands warehouse in a decaying London east end. He dreams of restoring a Victorian theatre fallen on hard times.
The inspiration for the theatre is, I think, the Old Vic. Marsh situates it ambiguously somewhere between the present Globe theatre and the new Bridge Theatre at Tower Bridge - both fruits of full-blown gentrification and not even glimmers in anyone’s wildest imagination in the 60s.
The story of the theatre’s restoration is entwined with the discovery of a glove made for Shakespeare’s son Hamnet by Shakespeare’s glover father. It was this aspect of the premise that attracted me, after recently reading Maggie O’Farrell’s wonderful Hamnet.
The actual mechanics of Marsh’s crime caper are ludicrous. An aficionado of Agatha Christie, I’m completely familiar with the idea that the culprit is always the least likely suspect. It’s the job of the writer to lead her readers astray, but not so far as to make them feel cheated. Equally important, once the culprit is revealed the reader has to instantly accept this as the fated, the true and satisfactory conclusion.
Marsh curiously fails, in that while all the suspects are equally unlikely, the eventual murderer is actually one of the most engaging and amusing characters. Marsh forgets to supply a motive for stealing the glove, and the contrivances of the crime are physically, psychologically and emotionally incredible. Another issue I had was the long slow build up of the novel, revolving around three characters, is suddenly opened up halfway through by the arrival of all the suspects just before the crime happens, so one struggles to get all the characters straight in ones head. Thank goodness for the cast list at the front.
But these are quibbles - I doubt anyone reads these novels these days purely for the crime plot. Marsh’s characters and setting, and her wonderfully evoked 60s London are the big attractions here.
Here, Marsh depicts the first stirrings of gentrification of London’s docklands in the 1960s - like Derek Jarman and Ian McKellan, Marsh’s hero is a theatrical wannabe who inhabits a docklands warehouse in a decaying London east end. He dreams of restoring a Victorian theatre fallen on hard times.
The inspiration for the theatre is, I think, the Old Vic. Marsh situates it ambiguously somewhere between the present Globe theatre and the new Bridge Theatre at Tower Bridge - both fruits of full-blown gentrification and not even glimmers in anyone’s wildest imagination in the 60s.
The story of the theatre’s restoration is entwined with the discovery of a glove made for Shakespeare’s son Hamnet by Shakespeare’s glover father. It was this aspect of the premise that attracted me, after recently reading Maggie O’Farrell’s wonderful Hamnet.
The actual mechanics of Marsh’s crime caper are ludicrous. An aficionado of Agatha Christie, I’m completely familiar with the idea that the culprit is always the least likely suspect. It’s the job of the writer to lead her readers astray, but not so far as to make them feel cheated. Equally important, once the culprit is revealed the reader has to instantly accept this as the fated, the true and satisfactory conclusion.
Marsh curiously fails, in that while all the suspects are equally unlikely, the eventual murderer is actually one of the most engaging and amusing characters. Marsh forgets to supply a motive for stealing the glove, and the contrivances of the crime are physically, psychologically and emotionally incredible. Another issue I had was the long slow build up of the novel, revolving around three characters, is suddenly opened up halfway through by the arrival of all the suspects just before the crime happens, so one struggles to get all the characters straight in ones head. Thank goodness for the cast list at the front.
But these are quibbles - I doubt anyone reads these novels these days purely for the crime plot. Marsh’s characters and setting, and her wonderfully evoked 60s London are the big attractions here.
September 28, 2015
3 stars!
I have to admit I'm a bit disappointed in this one. Ngaoi Marsh is always being compared to Agatha Christie and so I had high expectations. Maybe I just picked the wrong book to introduce myself to this author, I don't know. The first half is really slooooow. The pace did pick up a bit once a body turned up and I really liked Inspector Alleyn and his assistant, Mr. Fox. So I'd still probably pick up this author again.
I have to admit I'm a bit disappointed in this one. Ngaoi Marsh is always being compared to Agatha Christie and so I had high expectations. Maybe I just picked the wrong book to introduce myself to this author, I don't know. The first half is really slooooow. The pace did pick up a bit once a body turned up and I really liked Inspector Alleyn and his assistant, Mr. Fox. So I'd still probably pick up this author again.
September 17, 2021
Another Marsh mystery set in a theater. Lots of interesting background and surprising twists.
December 26, 2019
May 14, 2011 review:
Killer Dolphin by Ngaio Marsh is a mystery whose title hold a double meaning. The Dolphin refers in part to the Dolphin Theatre which has been recently restored and opens to the public with a brand new play by Peregrine Jay. It also refers to the odd murder weapon used to dispatch the nightwatchman at the theatre. One of a pair of statuettes given by the theatre's patron upon its opening--it is quite heavy and quite deadly. Murder occurs when a thief tries to make off with the recently discovered Shakespearean glove and letters which have inspired Peregrine's play The Glove. Someone realizes that there are unscrupulous collectors who will pay large sums without worrying too much about how the item was obtained. But who among the small cast of suspects had the opportunity? It is up to Inspector Roderick Alleyn to sort among the beautiful femme fatale, the terribly vain leading man, the sharp-tongued supporting actor, the woman scorned, the actor with a penchant for puzzles (and figuring out combinations), the house manager, and the patron who prefers to remain in the background yet was in his box on the fateful night.
Although this mystery takes a while to get to the main action--there is no murder till about half-way through--the lead up is very interesting. It gives plenty of background on the theatre itself and several of the main characters and provides several small clues and possible red herrings for later. Alleyn and Inspector Fox work well off one another as usual. The only slightly tedious bit is sitting through all the interviews. A very nice, tidy, little mystery. Ngaio Marsh really enjoys the theatre and it shows. (four stars when read in 2011)
December 18, 2019 review:
As I noted the last time I read this, the mystery takes quite a while to get to the main action--there is no murder until about half-way through. But the lead-up is quite interesting. Peregrine Jay's first visit to the theater and his encounter with Conducis provide a nice back-drop to the main story. I also enjoyed the build-up of the story and play surrounding Shakespeare and the glove that was supposed to belong to his son. Jay is able to make the items and the incident into a very affecting play. The characters of the actors are perhaps a bit stereotyped, but it does make for a lot of sarcastic back-chat and witty in-fighting.
I was a tad disappointed this time round that Marsh wasn't able to fool me at all--often if it has been long enough I'm able to read some of these vintage mysteries and still be unsure of the solution. This particular plot I remembered right down to the last detail. But overall I still enjoyed the set-up and the interactions of the characters enough that I've nearly given it the same rating as before. ★★★ and 1/2 for this go-round.
Killer Dolphin by Ngaio Marsh is a mystery whose title hold a double meaning. The Dolphin refers in part to the Dolphin Theatre which has been recently restored and opens to the public with a brand new play by Peregrine Jay. It also refers to the odd murder weapon used to dispatch the nightwatchman at the theatre. One of a pair of statuettes given by the theatre's patron upon its opening--it is quite heavy and quite deadly. Murder occurs when a thief tries to make off with the recently discovered Shakespearean glove and letters which have inspired Peregrine's play The Glove. Someone realizes that there are unscrupulous collectors who will pay large sums without worrying too much about how the item was obtained. But who among the small cast of suspects had the opportunity? It is up to Inspector Roderick Alleyn to sort among the beautiful femme fatale, the terribly vain leading man, the sharp-tongued supporting actor, the woman scorned, the actor with a penchant for puzzles (and figuring out combinations), the house manager, and the patron who prefers to remain in the background yet was in his box on the fateful night.
Although this mystery takes a while to get to the main action--there is no murder till about half-way through--the lead up is very interesting. It gives plenty of background on the theatre itself and several of the main characters and provides several small clues and possible red herrings for later. Alleyn and Inspector Fox work well off one another as usual. The only slightly tedious bit is sitting through all the interviews. A very nice, tidy, little mystery. Ngaio Marsh really enjoys the theatre and it shows. (four stars when read in 2011)
December 18, 2019 review:
As I noted the last time I read this, the mystery takes quite a while to get to the main action--there is no murder until about half-way through. But the lead-up is quite interesting. Peregrine Jay's first visit to the theater and his encounter with Conducis provide a nice back-drop to the main story. I also enjoyed the build-up of the story and play surrounding Shakespeare and the glove that was supposed to belong to his son. Jay is able to make the items and the incident into a very affecting play. The characters of the actors are perhaps a bit stereotyped, but it does make for a lot of sarcastic back-chat and witty in-fighting.
I was a tad disappointed this time round that Marsh wasn't able to fool me at all--often if it has been long enough I'm able to read some of these vintage mysteries and still be unsure of the solution. This particular plot I remembered right down to the last detail. But overall I still enjoyed the set-up and the interactions of the characters enough that I've nearly given it the same rating as before. ★★★ and 1/2 for this go-round.
April 14, 2012
Exceedingly well written! The words and sentences sing in clever word usage! Worth reading for that alone. The characters are intensely and sharply drawn and all so interesting I wanted far more of them on the page. Really fun read, if murder doesn't distract you from having fun reading...
December 9, 2019
The weakest Marsh theatre mystery with super stereotypes and weak plot. Do not let this be your introduction to Ngaio Marsh.
June 22, 2022
Beside this outrage lay a bronze dolphin, grinning away for all it was worth through a wet, unspeakable mask.
Read
December 7, 2010The only other Ngaio Marsh book I've read was little like a crime novel for the first half and then launched into the investigation for the second half. So I wasn't surprised at this pattern in this book though I'm told that all of her books don't go like this.
I enjoyed the slow start wondering what would happen and who was going to die at the Dolphin Theatre. In fact I probably enjoyed the first half more than the second. Inspector Alleyn's investigation got a bit tedious in parts as he conducted interview after interview without uncovering any clues that made much sense to me. I didn't really think the resolution of the plot made much sense but I enjoyed the cast of characters and the theatrical setting.
Enjoyable, but at the end of the day, this book was nothing very special.
February 14, 2023
This is one of my favorite of the series. That's a bit surprising since Alleyn doesn't show up till about half way through and Troy isn't in it at all. But the real main character, Peregrine Jay, is wonderfully real and very likable. I love every page spent in his company.
Also, this book takes full advantage of Marsh's experience in the theater as Jay writes, hires, and produces a play during this book. The main actors in the play manage to escape typecasting, which is also good.
Add in a touch of romance, an abandoned theater, a Gatsby-like millionaire and a mystery revolving around Shakespeare's personal life and you have an excellent story. Even when I remember who did it it's a pleasure to reread.
Also, this book takes full advantage of Marsh's experience in the theater as Jay writes, hires, and produces a play during this book. The main actors in the play manage to escape typecasting, which is also good.
Add in a touch of romance, an abandoned theater, a Gatsby-like millionaire and a mystery revolving around Shakespeare's personal life and you have an excellent story. Even when I remember who did it it's a pleasure to reread.
August 30, 2020
The snippets of history thrown in to this book were fascinating - I loved learning more about Shakespeare's life, and the theater craft, too. It was a really good blend of the past and the present (well, the recent past?) in a mystery that I didn't figure out until the end.
8/30/20 It's been awhile and no, I did not remember who the villain was. Some bits are not PC in today's light. This time what struck me was the characters, and how annoying many of them were. It's interesting to watch Alleyn and Fox in action, and to wonder how they'd fare in today's police force.
8/30/20 It's been awhile and no, I did not remember who the villain was. Some bits are not PC in today's light. This time what struck me was the characters, and how annoying many of them were. It's interesting to watch Alleyn and Fox in action, and to wonder how they'd fare in today's police force.
September 6, 2020
Well done! Love all the literary allusions.
August 2, 2022
The Inspector Alleyn mysteries are one of my favorite crime series. Death At The Dolphin was the 24th book in the series by Australian author Ngaio Marsh. I haven't read the series in any particular order but it's not really critical. There are personal details like his relationship with artist Deanna Troy that plays out over the course of the series but it doesn't detract from any particular story.
Marsh especially liked to set her stories in the stage and this one is no exception. Playwright / producer Perregrine Jay has a love affair with an old London playhouse, The Dolphin. It's been abandoned and he has a dream of owning it and setting plays, especially Shakespeare's plays, there. By happenstance, due to an accident while he is checking out the Dolphin, Jay meets the owner, reclusive millionaire, Vassily Conducis. Conducis agrees to renovate the playhouse and let Jay produce plays there.
Conducis also shows Jay a glove he has in his possession, a glove that Shakespeare purportedly gave to his son, Hamnet. Jay decides to write a play based on this story. Time passes, the play is put on, it's a great success and then disaster strikes. There is a murder, the young actor playing Hamnet is seriously injured and the glove is stolen.
Enter, stage left, one Inspector Alleyn, who takes over the investigation with his favorite Inspector Fox at his side. And the investigation takes over for the remainder of the story.
I love Marsh's writing style. We get to meet the main characters as the story progresses. She takes time to flesh them out before we even get to the crime and then nicely and methodically we follow Alleyn as he solves the crime. I do love how Marsh takes the time to present the setting, the characters so that you can see them in your mind's eye and develop feelings for all of them. It's entertaining and enjoyable. The story flows and the characters, especially Perregrine, are more than cardboard cutouts. Most enjoyable and refreshing. (3.5 stars)
Marsh especially liked to set her stories in the stage and this one is no exception. Playwright / producer Perregrine Jay has a love affair with an old London playhouse, The Dolphin. It's been abandoned and he has a dream of owning it and setting plays, especially Shakespeare's plays, there. By happenstance, due to an accident while he is checking out the Dolphin, Jay meets the owner, reclusive millionaire, Vassily Conducis. Conducis agrees to renovate the playhouse and let Jay produce plays there.
Conducis also shows Jay a glove he has in his possession, a glove that Shakespeare purportedly gave to his son, Hamnet. Jay decides to write a play based on this story. Time passes, the play is put on, it's a great success and then disaster strikes. There is a murder, the young actor playing Hamnet is seriously injured and the glove is stolen.
Enter, stage left, one Inspector Alleyn, who takes over the investigation with his favorite Inspector Fox at his side. And the investigation takes over for the remainder of the story.
I love Marsh's writing style. We get to meet the main characters as the story progresses. She takes time to flesh them out before we even get to the crime and then nicely and methodically we follow Alleyn as he solves the crime. I do love how Marsh takes the time to present the setting, the characters so that you can see them in your mind's eye and develop feelings for all of them. It's entertaining and enjoyable. The story flows and the characters, especially Perregrine, are more than cardboard cutouts. Most enjoyable and refreshing. (3.5 stars)
April 9, 2018
Peregrine Jay has discovered the old Dolphin Theater that was glorious in its heyday but is now a ruined wreck after having lain disused for years and then suffered bombing damage in the Blitz 25 years earlier in Ngaio Marsh’s 1967 novel Death at the Dolphin. Excited to get to visit the old theater, Peregrine gets a key from the estate agent and goes inside to explore. Enchanted more and more by the theater, Peregrine doesn’t pay close enough attention and falls through a trap door on the stage that opens to a well of fetid, stinking water that has collected since the bomb. Just as he feels that he cannot hold on any longer and will drown in the slimy mess, a man comes in and pulls him out, getting his chauffeur to undress Peregrine and cover him with a heavy rug from the car. The man keeps apologizing and accepting the blame for Peregrine’s accident, taking him to an elaborate, elegant house, where the valet runs a bath for Peregrine and gives him a brand new set of high quality clothing.
Read the rest of this review and other fun, geeky articles at Fangirl Nation
Read the rest of this review and other fun, geeky articles at Fangirl Nation
November 16, 2025
perfect for in between theater nights
February 10, 2019
Ngaio Marsh в своем репертуаре! Но репертуар этот мне стал уже немного надоедать! В начале серии описывались разные события, связанные не только с профес��иональной деятельностью главного героя, и это выгодно отличало эти книги от многих других детективов и, я бы сказал, что это были книги, выходящие за рамки классического английского детектива (в хорошем смысле этого слова). Но чем дальше, тем стандартнее! Книга интересная, но когда привыкаешь к лучшему, хорошее перестает нравиться.
January 25, 2021
Twenty-fourth in the Inspector Roderick Alleyn cozy detective mystery series and revolving around a gentlemanly detective of Scotland Yard in the mid-1960s.
My Take
Poor Peregrine...stuck with all these temperamental actors, as he uses all his diplomacy to wring a performance from them AND keep them from destroying each other verbally. It's an interesting bit of conflict with various members of the cast in or out of relationships with each other. The backbiting...! Snobbishness contributes its own poison.
That Conducis is certainly an odd duck, what with his rescue of Peregrine, the theatre, and his insistence on Grove for his role. It's not just his actions, but his reactions, so static and unemotional with those odd pops.
It's Alleyn's upper class background, cultural knowledge, and his successful conclusion on a burglary that forces him into analyzing the protection for...the glove.
Marsh uses a restricted global subjective point-of-view with most of the perspective coming from Peregrine Jay and Alleyn.
My primary complaint is that Killer Dolphin is all tell, and it's not a fair whine, as Marsh wrote this so long ago, before show became so important. It particularly shows in Peregrine's "romance" of Emily. It was also rather tedious to keep track of who was doing what with whom.
There's some fascinating action that owes some of its reason to the past using flashbacks that add to the conflict and Killer Dolphin is more character-driven with its snarky, backbiting actors. Jeremy and Conducis certainly provide a contrast with the actors' passions. The nasty Trevor will put you off.
Other than the confusion over actor interactions, it's an easy and enjoyable read.
The Story
It was Jay's passion for the old Dolphin that encouraged Mr Conducis to finance the theatre's restoration...and that Jay be its artistic manager. It was another item belonging to Conducis that inspired Jay to write The Glove.
It's the publicity and historicity of that glove that leads to such trouble, to murder...
The Characters
Superintendent Roderick Alleyn is with the Criminal Investigation Department. Troy is Alleyn's wife. The rest of his team includes Inspector "Br'er" Fox; Detective-Sergeants Bailey, a fingerprint expert, and Thompson, the cameraman; and, Sir James Curtis, the Home Office pathologist. PC Grantley makes an impression. Divisional-Superintendent Fred Gibson is Alleyn's boss.
The Dolphin Theatre is...
...a derelict owned by Vassily Conducis, a wealthy man. Stanley Greenslade is Conducis' solicitor and the point man who is based at Consolidated Oils, Pty Ltd. Mawson is Conducis' chauffeur and manservant. M. Smythiman is Conducis' private secretary. The Kalliopie had been Conducis' yacht that sunk.
Peregrine Jay, a New Zealander, is an up-and-coming playwright enthralled with the history of the Dolphin as well as a director. Jeremy Jones is Jay's flatmate and a talented set designer with an eye for the historical.
Marcus "King Dolphin" Knight is an explosive actor playing Shakespeare. The mentally challenged, gambling-addicted Destiny Meade plays the Dark Lady. The nasty W. Hartley Grove plays The Rival, just as he plays Conducis to give him the role. The bitchy Gertrude "Gertie" Bracey plays Ann Hathaway, Shakespeare's wife. The young, talented, and nasty Trevor Vere plays Hamnet, Shakespeare's son. A newcomer, Emily Dunne, plays Joan Hart, Shakespeare's sister; she also helps out in Jeremy's store selling high class tatt. Charles Random plays Dr Hall.
Winter "Winty" Meyer is the business manager of the Dolphin. Henry Jobbins is the theatre's caretaker; he used to work at Phipps Bros. Drugs. Hawkins is part of security. Conway Boom is their public relations and press executive who is with Maitland Advertising. Mrs Blewitt is Trevor's drunk, irresponsible mother. Adolphus Ruby refurbished the Dolphin back in the mid-1800s.
Mrs Constantia Guzman is an American millionaire with no morals. The Unicorn is where Jay's initial production is playing. Messrs Slade and Oppinger are Jay's agents. Mrs Jancy is the landlady at The Wharfinger's Friend. Earl P Van Smidt is an authority on pyhsiognomy. Mr Grimball is a bum today and had been in possession at the Lampreys.
The Cover and Title
The cover is a range of blues with the center a wavering banner with the author's name, in a deco sort of font with parts of her name filled in with a darker, scratchy sort of blue. The top is gradated in blues with the title doing a reverse gradation of light to dark. There are rippling bars slanting inward from top to bottom in a blue sideways gradation with white scallops on the edges. At the very bottom is a blue banner with white text displaying the series information.
The title is all about the theatre, for it's a Killer Dolphin.
My Take
Poor Peregrine...stuck with all these temperamental actors, as he uses all his diplomacy to wring a performance from them AND keep them from destroying each other verbally. It's an interesting bit of conflict with various members of the cast in or out of relationships with each other. The backbiting...! Snobbishness contributes its own poison.
That Conducis is certainly an odd duck, what with his rescue of Peregrine, the theatre, and his insistence on Grove for his role. It's not just his actions, but his reactions, so static and unemotional with those odd pops.
It's Alleyn's upper class background, cultural knowledge, and his successful conclusion on a burglary that forces him into analyzing the protection for...the glove.
Marsh uses a restricted global subjective point-of-view with most of the perspective coming from Peregrine Jay and Alleyn.
My primary complaint is that Killer Dolphin is all tell, and it's not a fair whine, as Marsh wrote this so long ago, before show became so important. It particularly shows in Peregrine's "romance" of Emily. It was also rather tedious to keep track of who was doing what with whom.
There's some fascinating action that owes some of its reason to the past using flashbacks that add to the conflict and Killer Dolphin is more character-driven with its snarky, backbiting actors. Jeremy and Conducis certainly provide a contrast with the actors' passions. The nasty Trevor will put you off.
Other than the confusion over actor interactions, it's an easy and enjoyable read.
The Story
It was Jay's passion for the old Dolphin that encouraged Mr Conducis to finance the theatre's restoration...and that Jay be its artistic manager. It was another item belonging to Conducis that inspired Jay to write The Glove.
It's the publicity and historicity of that glove that leads to such trouble, to murder...
The Characters
Superintendent Roderick Alleyn is with the Criminal Investigation Department. Troy is Alleyn's wife. The rest of his team includes Inspector "Br'er" Fox; Detective-Sergeants Bailey, a fingerprint expert, and Thompson, the cameraman; and, Sir James Curtis, the Home Office pathologist. PC Grantley makes an impression. Divisional-Superintendent Fred Gibson is Alleyn's boss.
The Dolphin Theatre is...
...a derelict owned by Vassily Conducis, a wealthy man. Stanley Greenslade is Conducis' solicitor and the point man who is based at Consolidated Oils, Pty Ltd. Mawson is Conducis' chauffeur and manservant. M. Smythiman is Conducis' private secretary. The Kalliopie had been Conducis' yacht that sunk.
Peregrine Jay, a New Zealander, is an up-and-coming playwright enthralled with the history of the Dolphin as well as a director. Jeremy Jones is Jay's flatmate and a talented set designer with an eye for the historical.
Marcus "King Dolphin" Knight is an explosive actor playing Shakespeare. The mentally challenged, gambling-addicted Destiny Meade plays the Dark Lady. The nasty W. Hartley Grove plays The Rival, just as he plays Conducis to give him the role. The bitchy Gertrude "Gertie" Bracey plays Ann Hathaway, Shakespeare's wife. The young, talented, and nasty Trevor Vere plays Hamnet, Shakespeare's son. A newcomer, Emily Dunne, plays Joan Hart, Shakespeare's sister; she also helps out in Jeremy's store selling high class tatt. Charles Random plays Dr Hall.
Winter "Winty" Meyer is the business manager of the Dolphin. Henry Jobbins is the theatre's caretaker; he used to work at Phipps Bros. Drugs. Hawkins is part of security. Conway Boom is their public relations and press executive who is with Maitland Advertising. Mrs Blewitt is Trevor's drunk, irresponsible mother. Adolphus Ruby refurbished the Dolphin back in the mid-1800s.
Mrs Constantia Guzman is an American millionaire with no morals. The Unicorn is where Jay's initial production is playing. Messrs Slade and Oppinger are Jay's agents. Mrs Jancy is the landlady at The Wharfinger's Friend. Earl P Van Smidt is an authority on pyhsiognomy. Mr Grimball is a bum today and had been in possession at the Lampreys.
The Cover and Title
The cover is a range of blues with the center a wavering banner with the author's name, in a deco sort of font with parts of her name filled in with a darker, scratchy sort of blue. The top is gradated in blues with the title doing a reverse gradation of light to dark. There are rippling bars slanting inward from top to bottom in a blue sideways gradation with white scallops on the edges. At the very bottom is a blue banner with white text displaying the series information.
The title is all about the theatre, for it's a Killer Dolphin.
May 22, 2020
The mystery is less important than the setting. In the mid-60s, director Peregrine Jay visits a 19th century abandoned London playhouse. He falls into a trap on the stage that has filled with water, and clings desperately to the rotting stage floor until wealthy businessman Conducis (think Ari Onassis) rescues him. In short order, Conducis, who owns the property, puts Jay in charge of the restoration and reopening of the Dolphin Theatre. He also shows Jay a glove whose provenance supports the idea that it was made by John Shakespeare for his grandson Hamnet. As the first play in the renovated Dolphin, Jay writes, casts, and directs his own play based upon the relic: The Glove.
Marsh was involved in theatre in New Zealand, and several of the Inspector Alleyn mysteries have been set against that backdrop. My favorite is The Light Thickens, but Killer Dolphin runs a close second. She was excellent in her descriptions of the emotional toll mounting a show can exact from everyone involved. The language assigned to the actors doesn't quite seem real, but according to his own diaries people like Noel Coward actually did call everyone 'darling' so perhaps Marsh was on the mark. This is definitely still an England where class counts. In many ways Marsh's Inspector Alleyn resembles Lord Peter Wimsey without the constant chattering. Alleyn moves comfortably among every social set he meets, makes highly literate remarks about Shakespeare, etc. If the overall affect of the character is less than Sayers achieved with Wimsey, it is due to the higher quality of Sayers' style.
Very enjoyable read (actually a reread, I usually hit it every few years).
Marsh was involved in theatre in New Zealand, and several of the Inspector Alleyn mysteries have been set against that backdrop. My favorite is The Light Thickens, but Killer Dolphin runs a close second. She was excellent in her descriptions of the emotional toll mounting a show can exact from everyone involved. The language assigned to the actors doesn't quite seem real, but according to his own diaries people like Noel Coward actually did call everyone 'darling' so perhaps Marsh was on the mark. This is definitely still an England where class counts. In many ways Marsh's Inspector Alleyn resembles Lord Peter Wimsey without the constant chattering. Alleyn moves comfortably among every social set he meets, makes highly literate remarks about Shakespeare, etc. If the overall affect of the character is less than Sayers achieved with Wimsey, it is due to the higher quality of Sayers' style.
Very enjoyable read (actually a reread, I usually hit it every few years).
April 29, 2024
I thoroughly enjoyed this classic murder mystery set in the theatre. A slow but engaging build-up as we meet the characters & intrigue is created with valuable relics & eccentric collectors. Alleyn is an elegant detective, the writing is beautiful, dialogue on point & the theatre world lovingly depicted. The murder comes late for modern reading tastes but I enjoyed being immersed in the world. The director’s passion & actors’ tantrums ring true.
December 8, 2025
Very entertaining. Interesting location, a crumbling theater to be restored. Interesting characters: actors, a playwright, a craftsman, a theater manager, and a couple of money men— and their relationships to each other and to the play which must go on. Oh and a possibly Shakespearean artifact.
Marsh is always on particularly good ground when working in the theatre. Her knowledge and love of it all comes through.
Marsh is always on particularly good ground when working in the theatre. Her knowledge and love of it all comes through.
March 26, 2020
The beginning was very slow. I think I had read more than 1/3 of the book before the murder occurred. And, then to cover all that ground again because of the questions of the police...
I love Shakespeare so I was intrigued by the idea of Hamnet's glove and the play.
But I'm getting a bit tired of the style of writing.
And the guilty party was not that difficult to sort out.
I love Shakespeare so I was intrigued by the idea of Hamnet's glove and the play.
But I'm getting a bit tired of the style of writing.
And the guilty party was not that difficult to sort out.
January 5, 2019
A derelict theater restored to its former glory, a gifted young playwright, a company of outlandish actors, and eccentric tycoon, a glove that belonged to Hamnett Shakespeare, and Superintendent Alleyn and Inspector Fox!
April 27, 2022
I must admit I’m not as fond of Marsh’s mysteries which take place in a theater. But I don’t ever tire of Alleyn and Fox. Your typical twists abound along with romantic involvement and annoying characters. Lol.
July 3, 2020
1966. NZ. 3.5. Re-read.
Read
March 19, 2017How often do you end up spending several hours in an airport terminal that has a used bookstore? I would have been remiss if I had not taken the chance to reread some classics like this one.
March 28, 2021
Ngaio Marsh loved the theatre, and in this 1967 novel she lets her passion have free reign. An old, ruined theatre is miraculously restored, its opening production given generous backing, and with a unique artifact to engender more publicity, it is a dream come true for young playwright and theatre director Peregrine Jay. For a situation which started with a nightmare, this murder mystery shows off to best advantage Marsh’s deep knowledge and passion for the dramatic life, as it ranges from the first sight of a theatre which gleams only in Peregrine’s imagination through to a challenging cast of characters all with their own agenda. The main setting of a dilapidated theatre being transformed into the dream building is well established down the smallest detail of the dolphin decoration in this well written book, as it stands surrounded by a London of the night, complete with shady eateries. The characters who form the main body of the suspects are the cast of the play depicting Shakespeare, ranging from the temperamental lead actor, through the effective leading lady, to a difficult child star. With a skillful designer and a mysterious wealthy backer, when a tragedy occurs “Inspector”, now Superintendent Roderick Alleyn has a full list of suspects to investigate when he is called in to sort out many questions. This is a dramatic mystery in all senses, and a well constructed novel of red herrings, histrionics and vivid characters constructed with a sure hand.
The novel opens with Peregrine trying to obtain the keys to allow him to view The Dolphin which is for sale in its wrecked state. There is reluctance to let him go unsupervised; there has been considerable damage, the stage presents a particular danger, there is a rumour of a tramp’s death in the ruined theatre. Peregrine insists, and with the help of a passing worker effects an entrance. He allows himself to imagine the theatre in its glorious heyday, but soon finds himself in a desperate situation. His mysterious rescuer wants to do more than restore him to safety. He wants to become a benefactor with a seemingly unlimited generosity, even offering the use of a precious item which inspires Peregrine to write a play and Jeremy Jones, his flat mate, to design a replica and the set for the opening production of the refurbished Dolphin theatre. All seems to be going well, with publicity and eventually a cast preforming well together. A success seems to be a well in hand, until a series of events has Alleyn and his squad on the scene and investigating.
It is always a satisfying read when a novelist seems to be really enjoying themselves, indulging their real interest in constructing a narrative in a familiar setting with a cast of memorable people. From the “Cast of Characters” list at the beginning of the story, through to the “empurpled” face of the temperamental Marcus Knight, this is a terrific read of theatre, drama and mystery. I found it a really enjoyable read which kept me guessing until the end, annoyed at the child actor, watching Peregrine’s pride in everything going well, and generally appreciating the construction of this novel. One or two of the offstage stories are a little difficult to credit, but overall this is a splendid book of its time, represents a challenge for Alleyn, and is a good example of Marsh’s later work.
The novel opens with Peregrine trying to obtain the keys to allow him to view The Dolphin which is for sale in its wrecked state. There is reluctance to let him go unsupervised; there has been considerable damage, the stage presents a particular danger, there is a rumour of a tramp’s death in the ruined theatre. Peregrine insists, and with the help of a passing worker effects an entrance. He allows himself to imagine the theatre in its glorious heyday, but soon finds himself in a desperate situation. His mysterious rescuer wants to do more than restore him to safety. He wants to become a benefactor with a seemingly unlimited generosity, even offering the use of a precious item which inspires Peregrine to write a play and Jeremy Jones, his flat mate, to design a replica and the set for the opening production of the refurbished Dolphin theatre. All seems to be going well, with publicity and eventually a cast preforming well together. A success seems to be a well in hand, until a series of events has Alleyn and his squad on the scene and investigating.
It is always a satisfying read when a novelist seems to be really enjoying themselves, indulging their real interest in constructing a narrative in a familiar setting with a cast of memorable people. From the “Cast of Characters” list at the beginning of the story, through to the “empurpled” face of the temperamental Marcus Knight, this is a terrific read of theatre, drama and mystery. I found it a really enjoyable read which kept me guessing until the end, annoyed at the child actor, watching Peregrine’s pride in everything going well, and generally appreciating the construction of this novel. One or two of the offstage stories are a little difficult to credit, but overall this is a splendid book of its time, represents a challenge for Alleyn, and is a good example of Marsh’s later work.
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