Murder on the Marmora

Ocean Liner Mysteries #5

by Conrad Allen

George Porter Dillman and Genevieve Masefield, used to the grand opulence of the Cunard cruise line, are at first disappointed with the Marmora, a small, unimpressive ship that's part of the P&O shipping line, the company that now employs them as ship's detectives. They know that they're certain to encounter the same petty thefts and confidence tricksters they're used to dealing with, though they hope identifying the culprits among the 500 or so passengers will prove a little easier than it does aboard the great 2,000 passenger Cunard ships.

Their hope is misplaced, however, and they soon settle in to the routine of taking reports from agitated passengers and doing their best to recover whatever stolen jewelry or purloined cash the unfortunate travelers are missing. The cruise is certain to be unique in at least one respect, however: the Duke and Duchess of Fife, along with their two small children, are aboard, and the detectives' secondary task is to keep an eye on the royals and do their best to ensure their security.

When a dead body turns up, however, George and Genevieve know they've got their work cut out for them. Suspects abound, and on such a small ship keeping the demise of the poor victim a secret is proving tougher than they'd like. Through the eyes of Conrad Allen, a luxury cruise to Egypt in 1908 becomes a majestic voyage, albeit with murder in the mix, upon which readers will be eager to embark.

Genres: Mystery, Historical Fiction, Historical Mystery, Crime, Historical, Fiction, Cozy Mystery

288 pages, Hardcover

First published February 10, 2004

About the author

A pseudonym used by Keith Miles
Keith Miles (born 1940) is an English author, who writes under his own name and also historical fiction and mystery novels under the pseudonym Edward Marston. He is known for his mysteries set in the world of Elizabethan theater. He has also written a series of novels based on events in the Domesday Book.

The protagonist of the theater series is Nicholas Bracewell, the bookholder of a leading Elizabethan theater company (in an alternate non-Shakespearean universe).

The latter series' two protagonists are the Norman soldier Ralph Delchard and the former novitiate turned lawyer Gervase Bret, who is half Norman and half Saxon.

Reviews

[Jill · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the fifth book in this series featuring George Dillman and Genevieve Masefield. In this book they have moved from the Cunard ships to those of P&O, which are smaller ships, but it still seems that crime is just as rife. From the outset the purser is against them, but there is also a passenger from Genevieve's past, who is out to cause trouble for her. Not only are several passengers robbed, some are taken in by a fraudulent scheme, and a murder is committed, so our pair of detectives are kept busy.
In previous books I have found the culprits easier to determine, but this one really had me at a loss. There were several passengers I suspected, but found it hard to pin any person down. The ending didn't really surprise me, but without it being spelled out to me, I think I would still have been guessing.

[QNPoohBear · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dillman and Genevieve have left the luxurious Cunard Line and taken a job with the P&O Line on board the Marmora. The Marmora is a smaller ship than what they're used to, carrying vacationers to Egypt and Australia. The ship's purser, Brian Kilhendry, is openly antagonistic towards the detectives, particularly Dillman. Kilhendry claims he runs a clean ship and any petty crimes he can take care of right away with the help of his assistant, Martin Grandage. Kilhendry also hates Americans. Working separately as usual, the detectives acquire the usual sorts of quirky friends. Genevieve is befriended by mother and daughter duo Myra and Lillian Cathcart. Newly widowed, Myra is ready to do the things her cautious husband never wanted to do but her daughter is exactly like her father. Myra turns to Genevieve, the woman she wishes her daughter would be, for help bringing Lillian out of her shell. Dillman finds the company of Egyptologist Mr. Goss fascinating but the attentions of teenage Polly Goss, a young woman with her first crush, are a bit hindering. There's also a family of royals to keep an eye on; a testy German photographer and a vain French chef both determined to insinuate themselves with the royals. Genevieve's past threatens to catch up to her when she sees the last person she ever expected or wanted to see on this trip. When several female passengers are robbed, Dillman and Genevieve are puzzled. Then a much-liked passenger is found brutally murdered, Dillman is sure there is a connection. Can they figure it out before they reach Port Said and the villain gets away?

The plot of this book was so complicated that I never ever guessed at anything. I was very shocked at the reveal. I stayed up way way too late reading this book because I just couldn't put it down. The story sticks close to Dillman and Genevieve this time with a little point-of-view shifting. Occasionally the author takes the reader to the scene of the crime before Dillman and Genevieve find out about it. That was a bit jarring. It interrupted the flow of the narrative. The subplot about the royals was really not necessary. There are several red herrings before the conclusion. I wrongly suspected a character of nefarious motives because of their nationality and I apologize to them for that. The one big thing that disturbed me about this book is something that happened to Genevieve. It ruined the whole story for me, though it was accurate for the time. I was shocked at her decision and did not agree with it.

Dillman finally has a personality and allows his passions to shine through. He's intelligent and thoughtful as well as caring. I liked how he handled Polly's crush with a delicate touch, not wanting to hurt her. I also liked knowing about what interests him. The ending absolutely surprised and delighted me.

Genevieve's backstory comes out in full, finally. We see another side of her - more vulnerable and softer. I especially liked how she was able to draw out Lillian and help the young woman though she had other things to worry about. I did not like how she handled her unexpected encounters and completely disagreed with her decision. It might be accurate but it's not right.

I'm dying to read the next volume now.

[Ruth Armstrong]

Easy to read. Not bad.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the best of the series so far, in my opinion! With this, I’m firmly on board with George and Genevieve’s future cruise ship adventures.

I liked the stronger focus on George and Genevieve this time around, with fewer unnecessary side jaunts following unpleasant or irrelevant supporting characters. This, plus the smaller size of the Marmora, allowed them to work in closer proximity and I actually felt like they were a pair, despite them continuing to work separately undercover.

George continues to be charming and intelligent, handling difficult situations adeptly and with grace without letting himself get trampled on. His constant professionalism and inward aloofness made him feel distant in past books, but he forms an actual friendship with the Egyptologist Mr. Goss and his family this time around that made him feel more human. We find out more about Genevieve this time as well, and finally know the story of her past.

More importantly, there’s exciting progress in their romantic relationship by the end of this book - hurrah! I actually mentioned in a review of the author’s other Railway Detective series that George and Genevieve’s relationship felt like a non-romance for the most part, and that’s been something that’s bothered me until now; we’d be lucky to see them exchange more than a smile and a hug usually, and I was starting to wonder if they were really romantically involved. Well, I wonder no more! It’d be nice if they get a chance to work as an actual couple in a later volume, just for a change.

Speaking of changes, we have a break in pattern elsewhere on the Marmora - no more Mr. Nice Purser. Brian Kilhendry is frankly an arrogant, self-absorbed and racist little man, and it was as unpleasant to read about him as it must’ve been for George to have to work with him. While his bullheaded insistence on obstructing George and Genevieve made my blood boil, it did make him a far more memorable character than the other nice Cunard pursers, who all seem to blend into one in my mind. And it certainly did make the mystery that much more challenging to solve, which was fun.

On the whole, the supporting cast was more memorable and vivid than usual - we had the Princess Royal and her family, the German photographer who seems creepy at first glance, the charming young ex-Harrow student who may be running a Ponzi scheme, mother and daughter duo Myra and Lillian Cathcart (the latter of whom started off insanely irritating but went through an impressive growth arc), a vain French chef and the kindly Egyptologist and his family.

While many of them had moments where they were hindrances, none were more dangerous to my blood pressure than Nigel Wilmshurst and his wife, Araminta. What made the whole experience particularly unpleasant was that Genevieve turned into a doormat every time Nigel or Araminta were involved - she’s never been strong at handling her unwanted suitors, despite always telling George she can handle it alone, but there were almost dire consequences to her ridiculous insistence that everything is fine this time. I was appalled at her (frankly brainless and silly) decision to brush what happened near the end under a rug - it was the one dark spot to this otherwise great 5th book. I’m as frustrated as George that the villain never received just punishment.

At least her past is finally dead and buried, hopefully - I wonder if the next book will take our intrepid duo to Australia?

[Eden · Rating 5 out of 5]

2022 bk 284. This series keeps getting better and better, just when I thought it had settled into a set pattern, Conrad Allen turns the tables with a different type of mystery and a conclusion that I did not anticipate. He even moved our detective duo to the P & O lines from the Cunard Line and throws in a non-cooperative purser - and no meetings with the Captain. An intriguing mystery.

[Laura Edwards · Rating 3 out of 5]

A 3.5 One of the better books in the series. And of the two culprits, one was on my suspect list, but the other was completely unexpected. Nice twist. At the very end, however, Allen tries his hand at a romantic scene and I had to laugh. Definitely not his forte.

[Susan in NC · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars for this (I assume) final book in the series. Conrad Allen is a pen name for the prolific historical mystery writer Edward Marston, who often writes in series of six books; this is book 6 in the series about the golden age of ocean cruising, in which we’ve followed the adventures of ship detectives Genevieve Masefield and George Dillman.

This started off with two interesting twists for me - our two detectives, who’ve always worked on luxurious Cunard vessels making Atlantic crossings, are now on the P & O liner Marmora - still luxurious, but making stops in Marseille, Egypt, and finally, Australia. EDIT: this is only the fifth book, sorry! There are more books in the series

So, new line, smaller ship, new longer cruise route. Also, our two detectives, until now universally adored - throughout the series, the author tells us at length how gorgeous, witty, charming Genevieve is, and George is just as handsome, smart, tough, etc. Finally, a bit of conflict enters their Teflon existence - first, the Marmora bursar has no use for them on his ship, and resents their presence, especially George. Kilheaney (I think that was the name, an Irishman) doesn’t like Americans (George), and thinks of Cunard as the enemy, so resents both detectives. Plus, their reputation as effective professionals precedes them, and he resents that as well. We learn there is more to his story, of course. Also, Genevieve spots a very unpleasant man from her past among the passengers, so she’s on pins and needles much of the time.

The action - a murder, assorted burglaries, a financial scam - takes place during the England to Egypt leg of the voyage.

There are the usual characters fawning around both detectives, who try to maintain the facade they are just fellow passengers, better to keep an eye on things. That always makes for complications that tax the creativity and charm of both detectives, but here, there is a bit more sadness underlying the deception, as they gather clues about the murder victim’s last movements. They learn he’d engaged the feelings and raised the hopes of a couple of widows. Some poignant scenes, I thought. There’s also a Princess Royal and her family aboard, and providing extra security for the royal party adds extra work for our detectives, although not much is really done with this plot angle, but that’s ok for me - terror against royalty on the high seas would have been a whole other thriller, I think!

The man from Genevieve’s past is thoroughly nasty, but even he comes across as rather pathetic by the end, and the author ends on a positive and exciting note with a real twist as to the murderer. Fun and entertaining lighter historical mystery conjuring the glamor of ocean cruising in the Gilded Age.

I had previously read this author’s previous series on The Domesday Book, and could see trying his other series as audiobooks, entertaining but not too deep - good to knit along with! My only complaint would be check your narration; I’m picky about my narrators, they can add or take away a lot. This series was mostly good, but he did a horrible job with younger female characters, and there were always a few in every book - he made them squeaky and whiny!

[Moravian1297 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Author Edward Marston/Conrad Allen really shakes things up in this, book number five of the Ocean Liner Mysteries/Dillman & Masefield series.
This particular ocean going adventure sees our intrepid, sea faring detectives, George Porter Dillman and Genevieve Masefield jumping ship as it were, from employment with the Cunard Line to P&O (Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company to give it it's full title, but I'll stick with P&O for now), and aboard the P&O cruise ship, the Marmora. Where it sets off from Tilbury Docks, London to its destination of Perth, Australia, stopping off along the way, at the Mediterranean port of Marseille in Southern France and Cairo, Egypt, among other places, but the other stops aren't really pertinent to the story, so they can be dismissed.

So, along with a new employer and route for George and Genevieve, it was also the first time that we see a ship's purser, one Brian Kilhendry taking an instant dislike to the pair, with Dillman in particular feeling the full force of the Irishman's seemingly unwarranted ire. We eventually find out however, that because Kilhendry had once been turned down for employment, as a ship’s purser, by the Cunard Line, he now childishly hates anyone who was employed by them and because he was rejected by the family of an American woman he once loved, he also despises Americans! Jeezo! A double whammy for poor auld George Porter Dillman then, he was certainly going to have his work cut out trying to win over the Marmora's curmudgeonly and emotionally immature purser!
Thankfully the same couldn't be said for the ship's deputy purser, Martin Grandage, who was the polar opposite of his bigoted boss, and every other purser which Dillman had sailed with, helpful, amiable and extremely approachable.

Unfortunately we also had a Royal party on board ship, namely the Princess Royal, her husband, the Duke of Fife, and their brood of spoiled, over privileged brats, cue much and I mean much, royal a*se licking. Ooft! It was bad, really, really bad, especially one pair of mother and daughter, royal sycophants whom Genevieve Masefield had befriended, Myra and Lilian Cathcart. Who’s groveling and ass kissing was particularly nauseating.
Throw that in, along with the fact that the book's murder didn't happen until the end of chapter seven, so all we'd had up until that point, was 'romance' guff, like who fancies who, and I was seriously starting to think, oh dear! Have I came to the first book in the series, that's nothing but utter trash? Nothing but slushy romance twoddle, royal ass kissing, descriptions of posho's evening wear, a few thefts and an angry, gammon purser?! WTF? Eddy, c'mon?!!
Thank the LORD then, that the afore mentioned murder, EVENTUALLY came along! Saving the story and very much saving my sanity! **swipes sweat from brow** Phew!

The murder of an eccentric, but pleasant and generally popular stamp collector, Walter Dugdale, not only saved the day, but really kicked the story on. I say ‘generally’ because there were a couple of passengers whom really hadn’t warmed to the bearded Mr Dugdale whatsoever. Namely dour faced German photographer, and appropriately named, Karl Jurgen Lenz, whom somewhat erroneously thought of himself as a ’ladies man’, the particular ’lady’ in question being, none other than the afore mentioned Myra Cathcart! Which was not only much to the annoyance of her daughter, Lilian, but also to Walter Dugdale, whom also had eyes for the widowed Mrs Cathcart. And Dugdale’s other nemisis was opinionated French chef and accomplished pianist, Claude Vivet. Both had been on the wrong end of a tongue lashing in their own language from the independently minded and bilingual Dugdale, much to their severe chagrin, and it certainly opened the door to them as suspects, a little too obviously though perhaps? From then on in however, the book was exciting, suspenseful, amusing and back to the series' all round best. But I’m still lamenting the fact, that the murder should’ve happened much, much earlier.

There were also many subplots along the way, which not only kept things interesting, but kept my morale soaring high too! These included, the fact that Genevieve Masefield's former fiancé, Nigel Wilmshurst and his new wife, Araminta were coincidentally on board ship, on their honeymoon. But this didn't stop the odious toff from forcing himself upon Genevieve. Precipitating one of the most necessary and highly anticipated beatings from George Dillman that I've ever had the pleasure of reading, haha! And although it was somewhat expected, the highly egregious reaction to Wilmshurst's arrest from the fawning purser Kilhendry, had me, along with Dillman, spitting feathers, and I was actually hoping that the ex Pinkerton detective would smack him too and throw him in the cells along side the errant aristocrat.
We also had what seemed like a philanthropic financier, Roland Pountney, who seemed like he wanted everyone to be able to share the wealth by advising them on where to invest their money, namely his current venture of a palatial hotel in Cairo, Egypt. And when the affable and seemingly independent (from Pountney) Sir Alistair Longton concurred with the agreeable financial salesman, that the 'too good to be true' investment, was indeed 'true' and he had in fact invested a large sum of his own cash, the money from other passengers started to flow. They were however, eventually exposed by Dillman as a father and son team of con men, whom when caught, hilariously thought it was marvelous larks, and after shaking George's hand, went to their cells with contented smiles on their faces!

I was slightly disappointed, even although it was extremely inevitable, that the murderer, or one of them at any rate, was not the purser, Brian Kilhendry, but his duplicitous deputy, Martin Grandage. Aye, Kilhendry was always going to change his tune about Dillman and Masefield, it was somewhat inescapable haha. But nevertheless, keep the stories coming, this one however, did give me a scare by slow burning just a tad too long, but it finished with style and a great deal of panache! Three to go….. then I can start on Eddy’s ‘Restoration’ series, woohoo!!

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is something of a conventional series, which rarely offers surprises, but they are a pleasant - if unexciting - read. It is 1908 and George Dillman and Genevieve Masefield are working for P&O in this outing, rather than the more luxurious Cunard ships. They have a new pursur to deal with, who is not a fan of their detective skills.

There are royal guests on board, as well as Genevieve's ex-fiance, along with a spate of thefts as well as a murder, so plenty to keep our detective duo busy. Genevieve's distress at seeing her ex-fiance does, at least, bring the characters a little more to life, as they tend to be quite two dimensional. As such, this was more enjoyable than the previous book in the series and, as always, the cruise ships create a good setting.

[Robert Hepple · Rating 4 out of 5]

First published in 2004, 'Murder on the Marmora' first appeared under the pen-name Conrad Allen before being published under the more bankable pen-name of Edward Marston. The series features a team of two detectives employed to work on Ocean Liners during the opening years of the 20th Century, and is the 5th in the series. In this volume, George Dillman and his partner Genevieve Masefield are employed by P&O, having worked for Cunard in earlier novels. This means a change to smaller vessels as well as a switch away from the Atlantic route, with the subtle changes that this brings to plot development. That said, it is of course character-driven since Marston makes great use of exotic backgrounds to bring forth eccentric characters. And it works - this is really enjoyable.

[Pamela · Rating 4 out of 5]

George and Genevieve have changed to work on the P&O line on a long trip from England to Australia. Their work is complicated by an Irish chief Purser who doesn't like Americans and four members of the English Royal family on board as far as Egypt. Genevieve has the shock of discovering that her ex-fiancée is aboard on his honeymoon.
Within two days thefts have begun and then a murder before the ship even reached Gibraltar. The mysteries of sorting through the thefts, con men and the anxious ex-fiancée trying to keep his secret makes for a complicated voyage.

[Martin Hollands · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent read, and probably my favourite Marston tale to date as good as the Railway Detective series maybe.

The characters have become well rounded and I enjoyed plotting my way through the tale. I suspected how many aspects were going to turn out, however I wasn't correct on all of them.

I have now read the first five of the Ocean Liner stories in a little over a fortnight, and have ordered the last 3 for the coming weeks.

[Lydia · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of my favourites of the series so far. I appreciated that Genevieve’s storyline was different than her usual issues with admirers. The drama with the ex-fiancé gave more interest to her character’s backstory. Of the two murderers, one was suspected but the other was a surprise.
I felt like the reveal of the criminals and the fact that they hid the stolen items in the royal family’s luggage was wrapped up too quickly at the end and I would have liked that to have been drawn out a bit more.

[Andree · Rating 3 out of 5]

This one felt a bit tedious, given the obstructionist purser. I was mildly interested in Genevieve coming face to face with her ex fiance, until that got dialed up to a million, drama-wise. A fairly interesting cast of characters. Though, if you're reading this for the deveopment of the romance, I wouldn't. Part of the problem is the protagonists spend so little time together on-page (given the set-up), that any forward momentum doesn't feel earned.

[Helen Birkbeck · Rating 4 out of 5]

Even though the plots are similar and the type of character you find on a ship at this period is limited, the author still manages to come up with enough interest and a good enough storyline to hold one's attention. It's a shame there are quite a few typos in the series, and not starting every line of dialogue by a different person on a new line is a surprising error, but fiction publishers don't tend to use proofreader these days.

[Jerry Summers · Rating 4 out of 5]

Favorite of the series so far. George and Genevieve are in their first P&O steamer from England to Egypt when Murder strikes again. With our upcoming visit to Egypt I was intrigued by the Egyptologist discuss and travel for health. Genevieve had to battle demons or ex-fiancé. Throw in some Royal family and bob’s your uncle.

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another solid episode in this ocean going series of mysteries. This time George and Genevieve are on a P&O liner bound for Australia. As always an interesting group of characters, some villains to keep the pair on their toes. There is a murder - of course and I didn't guess the perpetrator. I enjoy the light escapism this series provides.

[Kay Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reasonable "who did it" for the thefts. The murder felt tagged in. Still no character development for the main characters.

The revelation about why Genevieve's previous engagement ended was a lazy case of labelling her ex as a cheating man no woman would want to be married to. No subtlety and not very interesting. Completists may keep on with the series. I'm less keen.

[Stephen Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another magnificent addition to the series

This is another magnificently constructed story that greatly adds to this amazing series. This thriller is full of wonderful characters, and plenty of suspense. A truly captivating read.

[Phillip Barnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

The usual Edward Marston fare.

Another good oceanic who done it, with a few twists. Very similar storyline, as previous books, which may easily become repetitive, if continues. Worthy of reading though, just for the different characters on board ship this journey.

[Gary McCracken · Rating 3 out of 5]

Follows a similar story as the first 4 books in the series however it was different enough to still be enjoyable, I really like these stories as they go in to just the right amount of detail about each character etc so you feel part of the story.

[Carla · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another great cozy mystery for my summer reading list. Love this series.

[Tambra · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book, im reading them all. Could not put it down, great story.,

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am really enjoying the ocean liner murder series.

[Donald · Rating 3 out of 5]

Genevieve has a run in with her ex fiancé and we have royalty on board, so that m8xes things up a little on this one. They are a little formulaic now...

[Megan Bowbrick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice easy read for people who enjoy detective books. The storyline has lots of interesting characters and a good twist at the end.

[Aspin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this one. It was a fast moving and very entertaining story. Happy ending as well.

[Amelia · Rating 4 out of 5]

this is the only book that i’ve read from this series but i was able to get into it without feeling like i was missing much from the previous books. it is an interesting plot that keeps you guessing

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like Edward Marston. I'm chugging through the liners and the trains.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best in the series so far....