Overture to Death (Inspector Alleyn Mysteries)

ISBN 10: 0786198478 ISBN 13: 9780786198474

Publisher: Blackstone Audiobooks, 2000

It was planned as an act of charity: a new piano for the parish hall, an amusing play to finance the gift. But its execution was doomed when Miss Campanula sat down to play. A chord was struck, a shot rang out, and Miss Campanula was dead. Who in the quiet village of Chipping would kill wealthy spinster Idris Campanula? Plenty of people, among them her fellow cast members from the troubled charity production. Miss Campanula was a spiteful gossip, gleefully destroying others' lives merely for her own excitement. But once Inspector Roderick Alleyn arrives, he quickly realizes that the murderer might have killed the wrong woman--and may soon stage a repeat performance. This case of sinister infatuation will test the sharp intellect and skill of the brilliant Alleyn.

About the Author:

Ngaio Marsh (1895-1982), born in New Zealand, wrote over thirty detective novels. Many of her stories had theatrical settings, as her real passion was for the theater. She was both an actress and a producer and almost single-handedly revived the New Zealand public's interest in live theater. In 1966 she was made Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire.

Review:

Admirably mysterious Daily Mail