What do you think?
Rate this book
Roderick Alleyn #10
A Surfeit of Lampreys
Ngaio Marsh’s most popular novel begins when a young New Zealander’s first contact with the English gentry is the body of Lord Wutherford - with a meat skewer through the eye....
The Lampreys had plenty of charm - but no cash. They all knew they were peculiar - and rather gloried in it. The double and triple charades, for instance, with which they would entertain their guests - like rich but awful Uncle Gabriel, who was always such a bore. The Lampreys thought if they jollied him up he would bail them out - yet again.
Instead Uncle Gabriel met a violent end. And Chief Inspector Alleyn had to work out which of them killed him....
The Lampreys had plenty of charm - but no cash. They all knew they were peculiar - and rather gloried in it. The double and triple charades, for instance, with which they would entertain their guests - like rich but awful Uncle Gabriel, who was always such a bore. The Lampreys thought if they jollied him up he would bail them out - yet again.
Instead Uncle Gabriel met a violent end. And Chief Inspector Alleyn had to work out which of them killed him....
284 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1940
401 people are currently reading
2198 people want to read
About the author
Ngaio Marsh
223 books802 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
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 321 reviews
March 23, 2015
A prime example of the Golden Age Mystery from Britain between the wars. Pull out the whole standard toolkit: A slightly-threadbare, to-the-manor-born family finds that being bankrupt puts a real strain on the entire dotty household- Lady, Lord, bairns, domestics, butler & chauffeur. Even the usual bracing round of Charades won't lift the gloom.
An inconvenient and nasty murder disrupts the disruptions already at hand, the Yard investigates with eyebrow raised, and suspicions fly. Add some thirties Occultism, wisecracking younger set, and endless cups of tea in the drawing-room.
A truly lurching jolt in the finale sets the conclusion whirring confidently into view. A splendid time is guaranteed for all.
For mystery fans of the classic old school, this is a nice buttered scone at tea-time. One lump or two, Inspector ?
An inconvenient and nasty murder disrupts the disruptions already at hand, the Yard investigates with eyebrow raised, and suspicions fly. Add some thirties Occultism, wisecracking younger set, and endless cups of tea in the drawing-room.
A truly lurching jolt in the finale sets the conclusion whirring confidently into view. A splendid time is guaranteed for all.
For mystery fans of the classic old school, this is a nice buttered scone at tea-time. One lump or two, Inspector ?
January 1, 2016
A few years ago New Zealander Roberta Grey met the Lamprey family, a bunch of Micawberish English aristocrats, when she was an adolescent and they were living in her home country. She and Frid Lamprey were schoolmates, and before she knew it she'd fallen in love with the family and they seemingly did so with her. Soon, though, they had to move back to London as yet another of their "financial crises" overtook them -- a "financial crisis" representing one of those periods when none of their elderly and wealthy relatives had died, leaving them enough money to get through the next few years.
The Lampreys are, you see, complete scroungers. Mother and Father are just utterly useless, parasites upon society, while the kids have been expensively educated to ensure that, in the old English aristocratic way, they're quite unemployable. If they were alive today they'd doubtless be eligible for lots of high-paid City/Wall Street jobs, where they could earn a stack of money for being entirely unproductive. As it is, they're living in the UK immediately before the outbreak of WWII.
A few years have gone by and Roberta's parents have fairly recently died in a car crash. She's had to close up the family affairs in New Zealand and take herself on a months-long ship journey to Dear Old Blighty, where the plan is that she'll live with a Dear Old Aunty somewhere in deepest Dear Old Mumbleshire. But the aunt takes ill and the Lampreys step forward to say that they'd love to have Roberta come live with them for a month in the double apartment they own in London.
When she arrives, though, she discovers the Lampreys are facing the worst "financial crisis" yet, even though their response to it is to carry on spending as much of other people's money as they always have. Their last hope seems to be to butter up the elder brother of paterfamilias Lord Charles, the immensely wealthy but also immensely tight-fisted Gabriel, Marquis of Wutherwood and Rune. So Gabriel and his bonkers wife Violet are invited to the London apartments.
The trouble is that Gabriel refuses the family's entreaty for an advance and, as he's waiting crossly in the elevator to depart for home, someone sticks a long metal skewer through his eye and into his brain, thereby quite efficiently offing him. Soon enough, Chief Detective-Inspector Alleyn is on the job, alongside his usual stalwart sidekick, Detective-Inspector Fox.
Up to this point, Surfeit of Lampreys is one of the funniest detective novels I've read. Much of the humor and later the drama center around the fact that, even though Roberta may adore "her" Lampreys, it's quite obvious to anyone with an objective eye that really they're self-indulgent freeloaders, their various quirks and quiddities being not so much joyous expressions of eccentricity as a pain in the rear, especially to all those who've seen the Lampreys absorb "borrowed" money like blotting paper.
Marsh achieves this effect by keeping us mostly inside the viewpoint of either Roberta or Alleyn: Roberta is still, despite everything, in love with her witty childhood friends, although even she begins to wonder if she's made a big mistake -- it's she who draws the comparison with the Micawbers that I mentioned above. As counterpoint, we have Alleyn's view of them: "And what the hell," he asks at one point of Fox, "have you been telling that collection of certifiable grotesques about me?"
This tension between the two viewpoints of the Lampreys is what gives the novel such great wit: is the trusting Roberta right about the family, or is Alleyn's harder-headed antagonism a better guide?
This isn't a perfect detective novel. If the reader is to have any hope of working out who did the Dreadful Deed, s/he needs to have either a pencil and a stack of graph paper or a photographic memory; since I had neither to hand, I adopted the lesser-favored yah-de-yah-da technique, whereby I simply assumed the author must have got those bits right. Likewise, I felt that the actual murder method was so flipping complicated that the chances of it working out in real life must be next to zero. On the other hand, John Dickson Carr.
But, but, but, but, but . . . the novel has so much to offer to fans of Golden Age detective fiction. It's genuinely very readable and, as I say, intermittently quite funny enough that I was often laughing out loud. ("Yes," I told my wife waspishly more than once, "I'm just about to turn the light off.") I love the way that Marsh reveals what she really thinks about the Lampreys while yet letting Roberta's positive assessment of them stay at center stage. This is a very skilled satire set at a particular moment in time -- as the UK awaits the murderous assault from beyond the Channel -- when the old school of English society was really rather swiftly having to recognize the fact that extinction awaited just a few years down the line unless it could rapidly adapt. We suspect that all of the Lampreys -- with the possible exception of Henry, who's sure to marry Roberta (unless she suddenly gets herself a lick of sense) -- aren't going to be able to do that, that they'll emerge out of the other side of WWII just as broke, just as incompetent, just as charmingly parasitic, and just as unemployable as ever they were.
Bearing the surface of a straightforward mystery, this is actually a pretty effective social satire . . . while at the same time delivering as the mystery novel it purports to be. Marsh isn't everybody's cup of tea, but for me, with this one, she hits the spot just about right.
This is a contribution to Rich Westlake’s 1941 roundup at his Past Offences site.
The Lampreys are, you see, complete scroungers. Mother and Father are just utterly useless, parasites upon society, while the kids have been expensively educated to ensure that, in the old English aristocratic way, they're quite unemployable. If they were alive today they'd doubtless be eligible for lots of high-paid City/Wall Street jobs, where they could earn a stack of money for being entirely unproductive. As it is, they're living in the UK immediately before the outbreak of WWII.
A few years have gone by and Roberta's parents have fairly recently died in a car crash. She's had to close up the family affairs in New Zealand and take herself on a months-long ship journey to Dear Old Blighty, where the plan is that she'll live with a Dear Old Aunty somewhere in deepest Dear Old Mumbleshire. But the aunt takes ill and the Lampreys step forward to say that they'd love to have Roberta come live with them for a month in the double apartment they own in London.
When she arrives, though, she discovers the Lampreys are facing the worst "financial crisis" yet, even though their response to it is to carry on spending as much of other people's money as they always have. Their last hope seems to be to butter up the elder brother of paterfamilias Lord Charles, the immensely wealthy but also immensely tight-fisted Gabriel, Marquis of Wutherwood and Rune. So Gabriel and his bonkers wife Violet are invited to the London apartments.
The trouble is that Gabriel refuses the family's entreaty for an advance and, as he's waiting crossly in the elevator to depart for home, someone sticks a long metal skewer through his eye and into his brain, thereby quite efficiently offing him. Soon enough, Chief Detective-Inspector Alleyn is on the job, alongside his usual stalwart sidekick, Detective-Inspector Fox.
Up to this point, Surfeit of Lampreys is one of the funniest detective novels I've read. Much of the humor and later the drama center around the fact that, even though Roberta may adore "her" Lampreys, it's quite obvious to anyone with an objective eye that really they're self-indulgent freeloaders, their various quirks and quiddities being not so much joyous expressions of eccentricity as a pain in the rear, especially to all those who've seen the Lampreys absorb "borrowed" money like blotting paper.
Marsh achieves this effect by keeping us mostly inside the viewpoint of either Roberta or Alleyn: Roberta is still, despite everything, in love with her witty childhood friends, although even she begins to wonder if she's made a big mistake -- it's she who draws the comparison with the Micawbers that I mentioned above. As counterpoint, we have Alleyn's view of them: "And what the hell," he asks at one point of Fox, "have you been telling that collection of certifiable grotesques about me?"
This tension between the two viewpoints of the Lampreys is what gives the novel such great wit: is the trusting Roberta right about the family, or is Alleyn's harder-headed antagonism a better guide?
This isn't a perfect detective novel. If the reader is to have any hope of working out who did the Dreadful Deed, s/he needs to have either a pencil and a stack of graph paper or a photographic memory; since I had neither to hand, I adopted the lesser-favored yah-de-yah-da technique, whereby I simply assumed the author must have got those bits right. Likewise, I felt that the actual murder method was so flipping complicated that the chances of it working out in real life must be next to zero. On the other hand, John Dickson Carr.
But, but, but, but, but . . . the novel has so much to offer to fans of Golden Age detective fiction. It's genuinely very readable and, as I say, intermittently quite funny enough that I was often laughing out loud. ("Yes," I told my wife waspishly more than once, "I'm just about to turn the light off.") I love the way that Marsh reveals what she really thinks about the Lampreys while yet letting Roberta's positive assessment of them stay at center stage. This is a very skilled satire set at a particular moment in time -- as the UK awaits the murderous assault from beyond the Channel -- when the old school of English society was really rather swiftly having to recognize the fact that extinction awaited just a few years down the line unless it could rapidly adapt. We suspect that all of the Lampreys -- with the possible exception of Henry, who's sure to marry Roberta (unless she suddenly gets herself a lick of sense) -- aren't going to be able to do that, that they'll emerge out of the other side of WWII just as broke, just as incompetent, just as charmingly parasitic, and just as unemployable as ever they were.
Bearing the surface of a straightforward mystery, this is actually a pretty effective social satire . . . while at the same time delivering as the mystery novel it purports to be. Marsh isn't everybody's cup of tea, but for me, with this one, she hits the spot just about right.
This is a contribution to Rich Westlake’s 1941 roundup at his Past Offences site.
September 23, 2018
This tenth novel in the Roderick Alleyn Series, published in 1941, was also known as, “Death as a Peer.”
Roberta Grey first met the Lamprey family in New Zealand, where she grew up. When she is orphaned, she goes to England, where the Lamprey’s had returned, to live with an aunt. However, when her aunt is taken ill, the Lampreys come and claim her, whisking her away to stay with them in London. There is Lord Charles, his wife Charlotte, the children Henry, Frid, Stephen, Colin, Patricia, Michael and a host of delightfully dottily named servants.
Roberta had always been a little in love with Lampreys – a large, charming, chaotic family, who are always on the verge of financial ruin. Indeed, when she stays with them, she discovers they are staying in two apartments, trying to hide from the bailiffs and, as always, under threat of financial ruin. It seems that the only thing that can save them is for Lord Wutherwood, brother of Lord Charles, to come and bail them out.
Gabriel, and his wife, arrive at the apartment block the following day. However, never a cheerful man, he has lost patience with his impecunious brother, and his many children, and is unwilling to help them. When there is a dreadful murder, almost everyone – including our old friend, Nigel Bathgate, attempt to tell Alleyn that the Lampreys are too delightful to ever murder anyone. Can Alleyn untangle the myriad of motives and suspects and see whether the Lampreys are, as everyone claims, simply unable to hurt anyone?
This is an enjoyable addition to the series, which I am really enjoying. Without doubt, Ngaio Marsh deserves her reputation as one of the four main Golden Age detective writers; her mysteries sit comfortably alongside those of Christie, Sayers and Allingham.
Roberta Grey first met the Lamprey family in New Zealand, where she grew up. When she is orphaned, she goes to England, where the Lamprey’s had returned, to live with an aunt. However, when her aunt is taken ill, the Lampreys come and claim her, whisking her away to stay with them in London. There is Lord Charles, his wife Charlotte, the children Henry, Frid, Stephen, Colin, Patricia, Michael and a host of delightfully dottily named servants.
Roberta had always been a little in love with Lampreys – a large, charming, chaotic family, who are always on the verge of financial ruin. Indeed, when she stays with them, she discovers they are staying in two apartments, trying to hide from the bailiffs and, as always, under threat of financial ruin. It seems that the only thing that can save them is for Lord Wutherwood, brother of Lord Charles, to come and bail them out.
Gabriel, and his wife, arrive at the apartment block the following day. However, never a cheerful man, he has lost patience with his impecunious brother, and his many children, and is unwilling to help them. When there is a dreadful murder, almost everyone – including our old friend, Nigel Bathgate, attempt to tell Alleyn that the Lampreys are too delightful to ever murder anyone. Can Alleyn untangle the myriad of motives and suspects and see whether the Lampreys are, as everyone claims, simply unable to hurt anyone?
This is an enjoyable addition to the series, which I am really enjoying. Without doubt, Ngaio Marsh deserves her reputation as one of the four main Golden Age detective writers; her mysteries sit comfortably alongside those of Christie, Sayers and Allingham.
September 2, 2024
This is one of my favorite Alleyn books. The Lamprey brood, aristocrats teetering on the brink of bankruptcy are in line to inherit a bundle from a much despised older brother. Lo and behold, the brother is murdered in a rather horrific manner and everyone falls under suspicion.
Enter "Handsome" Alleyn and his loyal sidekick, Fox, and the chase is on to discover the answer. Mix together a little black magic, a game of charades, and budding romance and you have a cracking tale from one of the masters of the golden age of British mystery, Ngaio Marsh. I have read many of the Marsh books and this one measures up to her standards. Alleyn has found his persona by this writing after a shaky start in the early books.
Highly recommended for the classic mystery lover.
Enter "Handsome" Alleyn and his loyal sidekick, Fox, and the chase is on to discover the answer. Mix together a little black magic, a game of charades, and budding romance and you have a cracking tale from one of the masters of the golden age of British mystery, Ngaio Marsh. I have read many of the Marsh books and this one measures up to her standards. Alleyn has found his persona by this writing after a shaky start in the early books.
Highly recommended for the classic mystery lover.
September 27, 2020
Oh what fun. The eccentric Lamprey family was a delight. Roberta Grey or Robin arrived from New Zealand to become embroiled in the murder of the unlikeable uncle with the Lampreys possible suspects. There are also the servants of the murdered Lord, Giggle the chauffeur and Tenterton the maid of the Lords wife Violet who is barking mad.
Inspector Alleyn appears on the scene with the faithful Fox and deciphers the clues to who is the murderer. Some excellent atmospheric descriptions of London and stormy weather. Lots of funny bits with the family speaking french to fix an alibi in front of a constable guarding them. Guess who is a fluent french speaker!
The reveal and grisly aftermath is excellent and the clues are there to who is the murderer. It was so difficult to find good servants in those turbulent times.
Inspector Alleyn appears on the scene with the faithful Fox and deciphers the clues to who is the murderer. Some excellent atmospheric descriptions of London and stormy weather. Lots of funny bits with the family speaking french to fix an alibi in front of a constable guarding them. Guess who is a fluent french speaker!
The reveal and grisly aftermath is excellent and the clues are there to who is the murderer. It was so difficult to find good servants in those turbulent times.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 21, 2023
Although I found the Lampreys somewhat annoying I nevertheless enjoyed this book. And I was surprised at the ending which always pleases me.
October 4, 2017
The pacing of Death of a Peer left me extremely frustrated. It took forever for the Peer to get murdered! He finally does get murdered and then it takes even longer for the plot to go anywhere. Arguably it never does.
I picked up this book primed to fall in love with the dashing Roderick Alleyn. He seemed a brilliant but much less awkward version of Sir Peter Wimsey...or Sherlock Holmes...or any other detective you may wish to pick. The problem is, he is also rather dull. The majority of this book is endless interviews going over the same things: where the characters were at the moment of the murder. I get that this is a chance to give The Astute Reader a chance to find the clue and solve the mystery themselves...but I was looking for brilliant deduction! Instead I got...run of the mill police work? The grand reveal, while dramatic, was also fairly predictable. Characters act exactly as you would expect them to.
I might have enjoyed the book more if I had liked the romance, but from the start I opposed it. I dislike Henry.
I will definitely need to find more Ngaio Marsh novels, however! The writing was lovely.
I picked up this book primed to fall in love with the dashing Roderick Alleyn. He seemed a brilliant but much less awkward version of Sir Peter Wimsey...or Sherlock Holmes...or any other detective you may wish to pick. The problem is, he is also rather dull. The majority of this book is endless interviews going over the same things: where the characters were at the moment of the murder. I get that this is a chance to give The Astute Reader a chance to find the clue and solve the mystery themselves...but I was looking for brilliant deduction! Instead I got...run of the mill police work? The grand reveal, while dramatic, was also fairly predictable. Characters act exactly as you would expect them to.
I might have enjoyed the book more if I had liked the romance, but from the start I opposed it. I dislike Henry.
I will definitely need to find more Ngaio Marsh novels, however! The writing was lovely.
August 17, 2016
There’s stuff to like about A Surfeit of Lampreys; the character portraits, the commentary on the family, the fact that it brings in Bathgate and ties some of that stuff together… but overall, I’ve totally lost my motivation to read Ngaio Marsh’s books. There’s a same-y feel to them, the characters aren’t nearly as brilliant as, say, Dorothy L. Sayers’, and it comes out feeling a little too heavy and flat, with not enough payoff. The mysteries are intricate, but everything just unravels so slowly.
I know other people think Ngaio Marsh is amazing, and I did enjoy some of the earlier books, but Inspector Alleyn feels kind of stale now.
Originally posted here.
I know other people think Ngaio Marsh is amazing, and I did enjoy some of the earlier books, but Inspector Alleyn feels kind of stale now.
Originally posted here.
March 8, 2020
Here is another story told like a radio play. There is a cast of women and men taking various characters, sound effects and people moving around as they speak. This is most effective. Of course they are all rich, titled persons away for a weekend at a fabulous mansion, except for the one who is away for ever.
June 4, 2024
Una novela detectivesca en el más puro estilo clásico, Ngaio nos entrega una historia que más allá del misterio nos envuelve con su temática.
Los lamprey son una familia inglesa como no hay otra, el padre Lord Charles el hijo segundo de una familia aristocrática tiene a su encantadora esposa y 6 hijos con personalidades únicas, en común todos son encantadores, llenos de energía pero poco prácticos para la vida real, cada legado o herencia que reciben se les diluye en las manos.
El elemento que eleva la narración es Roberta una joven neozelandesa, recién llegada a Inglaterra es acogida por los Lamprey en su primer encuentro con Inglaterra:
“En la mente de los que no las han visitado, todas las grandes ciudades están representadas por símbolos: Nueva York, por los rascacielos; París, por un río y un arco; Viena, por un río y una canción; Berlín, por una calle única. Mas para los coloniales ingleses, el símbolo de Londres es mucho más vulgar. Consiste en una pequeña figura, encaramada e inclinada, que representa a un elegante dios de la época victoriana, que lleva un nombre griego: Eros, de Picadilly Circus. ”
Por supuesto hay un crimen que sacude a todos, pues es el hermano mayor de Sir Charles Lamprey, el dueño de la fortuna de la familia, casado con una extraña mujer llamada Violet que estaba muy interesada en las ciencias ocultas.
La novela es muy entretenida, Roberta representa a una joven normal y en contraposición el mundo de los Lamprey es fascinante, ellos son dignos personajes de novela, solo piensan en sí mismos, son educados por naturaleza, tienen extravagantes comportamientos y viven azorados por los asuntos banales, aún cuando estan a un segundo de una ruina inminente, sin dinero en los bolsillos, viven en un elegante edificio donde ocupan dos pisos, tienen dos doncellas, mayordomo, chofer y una nanny vieja que gobierna a los hijos como si fueran bebes, aunque el más chico tiene ya 11 años, todo esto te hace olvidar el misterio y centrarte en la vida de la familia, en su halo aristocrático como si fueran de otro mundo.
La mejor novela hasta ahora que he leído de esta escritora.
Hay una parte donde el inspector Allyen, le pregunta a uno de sus subalternos si lee novelas policiacas, y él le contesta que no, porque es inverosímil que presenten muchos sospechosos cuando en la vida real, generalmente las pruebas siempre apuntan a una persona;
“En la mayor parte de los casos, sólo hay una persona sospechosa y nuestro cometido consiste en demostrar que es el autor del crimen.”
Los lamprey son una familia inglesa como no hay otra, el padre Lord Charles el hijo segundo de una familia aristocrática tiene a su encantadora esposa y 6 hijos con personalidades únicas, en común todos son encantadores, llenos de energía pero poco prácticos para la vida real, cada legado o herencia que reciben se les diluye en las manos.
El elemento que eleva la narración es Roberta una joven neozelandesa, recién llegada a Inglaterra es acogida por los Lamprey en su primer encuentro con Inglaterra:
“En la mente de los que no las han visitado, todas las grandes ciudades están representadas por símbolos: Nueva York, por los rascacielos; París, por un río y un arco; Viena, por un río y una canción; Berlín, por una calle única. Mas para los coloniales ingleses, el símbolo de Londres es mucho más vulgar. Consiste en una pequeña figura, encaramada e inclinada, que representa a un elegante dios de la época victoriana, que lleva un nombre griego: Eros, de Picadilly Circus. ”
Por supuesto hay un crimen que sacude a todos, pues es el hermano mayor de Sir Charles Lamprey, el dueño de la fortuna de la familia, casado con una extraña mujer llamada Violet que estaba muy interesada en las ciencias ocultas.
La novela es muy entretenida, Roberta representa a una joven normal y en contraposición el mundo de los Lamprey es fascinante, ellos son dignos personajes de novela, solo piensan en sí mismos, son educados por naturaleza, tienen extravagantes comportamientos y viven azorados por los asuntos banales, aún cuando estan a un segundo de una ruina inminente, sin dinero en los bolsillos, viven en un elegante edificio donde ocupan dos pisos, tienen dos doncellas, mayordomo, chofer y una nanny vieja que gobierna a los hijos como si fueran bebes, aunque el más chico tiene ya 11 años, todo esto te hace olvidar el misterio y centrarte en la vida de la familia, en su halo aristocrático como si fueran de otro mundo.
La mejor novela hasta ahora que he leído de esta escritora.
Hay una parte donde el inspector Allyen, le pregunta a uno de sus subalternos si lee novelas policiacas, y él le contesta que no, porque es inverosímil que presenten muchos sospechosos cuando en la vida real, generalmente las pruebas siempre apuntan a una persona;
“En la mayor parte de los casos, sólo hay una persona sospechosa y nuestro cometido consiste en demostrar que es el autor del crimen.”
September 2, 2019
Sept. 2019 reread via my dad's Kindle:
I read this mystery years ago and found upon rereading that while I remembered the Lampreys, I had no idea who the culprit was. I did manage to pick up on the most important clue but failed to see what Alleyn saw about what it meant. On another note - I find that this book was originally called "A Surfeit of Lampreys"; as with Agatha Christie books, I often believe I have found one that I haven't read before only to discover that it is just that the American edition had a different name... So, one book less in this series left unread.
I read this mystery years ago and found upon rereading that while I remembered the Lampreys, I had no idea who the culprit was. I did manage to pick up on the most important clue but failed to see what Alleyn saw about what it meant. On another note - I find that this book was originally called "A Surfeit of Lampreys"; as with Agatha Christie books, I often believe I have found one that I haven't read before only to discover that it is just that the American edition had a different name... So, one book less in this series left unread.
Want to read
May 3, 2020Review to come.
PS: let me tell you one thing: hoping to read more books during self-isolation and work-from-home period during the time of the freaking WuHan virus outbreak probably doesn't work so good, I still have ton of unread and half-finished books to work on. *sighs*
PS: let me tell you one thing: hoping to read more books during self-isolation and work-from-home period during the time of the freaking WuHan virus outbreak probably doesn't work so good, I still have ton of unread and half-finished books to work on. *sighs*
February 14, 2019
2019 Reread
Upon reread, this was one of the more enjoyable non-Troy books. The Lampreys are charming, so this isn't one of Marsh's mystery novels where everyone is kind of terrible and unlikeable. I struggle more with those. Also, the New Zealand connection is interesting. I do think Alleyn shows up a bit late in this, narratively, but at least the Lampreys are entertaining in the interim.
And despite insta-love, I kinda liked the secondary romance this time around. Possibly because I was aware of the impending insta-love. And at least they knew each other when they were younger.
2016
Went back to this series, because apparently there is one coming up in a couple of books where Alleyn and Troy assess their marriage after being apart for most of the war. And I am interested about that. There is also something about reading about the time period from a contemporary.
A few things, the book about Troy and Alleyn's relationship after the war is somewhat going to suffer from the fact that we actually see shockingly little of it before the war. Which is sad. The other thing, is that while the Lamprey family is story charming, Ngaio Marsh does seem to like to have the murder not happen until midway through the book, and that seems late. If Alleyn doesn't show up until 2/3 of the way through, it doesn't feel like the best detective story.
Also, she really likes insta-love.
It's also one heck of a case of all the likeable people being innocent and the unlikeable ones being guilty.
Oh, and this is perfectly fine, but as I was reading it, I was fairly constantly thinking, "This is not as good as Dorothy Sayers," which is less than ideal. Although, to be fair, I was probably comparing a middly Marsh to my general adoration of Sayers. I'm sure it's at least as good as Five Red Herrings, say. Not sure that helps matters much though.
It's solid; it's also entirely skippable.
Upon reread, this was one of the more enjoyable non-Troy books. The Lampreys are charming, so this isn't one of Marsh's mystery novels where everyone is kind of terrible and unlikeable. I struggle more with those. Also, the New Zealand connection is interesting. I do think Alleyn shows up a bit late in this, narratively, but at least the Lampreys are entertaining in the interim.
And despite insta-love, I kinda liked the secondary romance this time around. Possibly because I was aware of the impending insta-love. And at least they knew each other when they were younger.
2016
Went back to this series, because apparently there is one coming up in a couple of books where Alleyn and Troy assess their marriage after being apart for most of the war. And I am interested about that. There is also something about reading about the time period from a contemporary.
A few things, the book about Troy and Alleyn's relationship after the war is somewhat going to suffer from the fact that we actually see shockingly little of it before the war. Which is sad. The other thing, is that while the Lamprey family is story charming, Ngaio Marsh does seem to like to have the murder not happen until midway through the book, and that seems late. If Alleyn doesn't show up until 2/3 of the way through, it doesn't feel like the best detective story.
Also, she really likes insta-love.
It's also one heck of a case of all the likeable people being innocent and the unlikeable ones being guilty.
Oh, and this is perfectly fine, but as I was reading it, I was fairly constantly thinking, "This is not as good as Dorothy Sayers," which is less than ideal. Although, to be fair, I was probably comparing a middly Marsh to my general adoration of Sayers. I'm sure it's at least as good as Five Red Herrings, say. Not sure that helps matters much though.
It's solid; it's also entirely skippable.
July 6, 2021
A nice pleasant little mystery. As usual, the victim did not inspire much pity, the culprit did not inspire much sympathy, and the two Charming Young People ended up together … a recipe for a satisfying ending. There was a bit too much “tracking the whereabouts of the suspects” (and without a map I didn’t try very hard to be honest), but I do love the ones where Alleyn appears on Police Business (rather than turning up as a random houseguest) because it means more time with Alleyn and Fox. There was a bit of class snobbery, but I feel like Marsh is generally better at rolling her eyes at the gentry using Alleyn as a mouthpiece, rather than being more dazzled by them like Sayers and Christie could be. I was very proud of myself for noticing a significant detail (not that it helped me figure out whodunnit), although on reflection it might just be that I might have read it before and I’m just vaguely remembering what happened. Hmmm … I’ll just choose to believe I’m becoming a better armchair detective.
April 3, 2014
Now there is something about a nice bit of vintage murder that is ever so slightly comforting, now I can’t say I have ever understood why this should be so – but it does seem to be the case for many readers. I love Agatha Christie – I have loved her forever, and remain a staunch fan, however, I wonder if Ngaio Marsh wasn’t a rather better writer. I discovered Marsh much later than Christie, and those novels I have read have been consistently good. Chief Inspector Alleyn and his trusty Inspector Fox are a fabulous police duo – Alleyn Marsh’s gentleman detective; a staple of golden age crime fiction.
“In after years Roberta was to find a pleasant irony in the thought that she owed her friendship with the family to one of those financial crises. It must have been a really bad one because it was at about that time that Lady Charles Lamprey suddenly got rid of all her English servants and bought the washing machine that afterwards, on the afternoon it broke loose from its mooring, so nearly killed Nanny and Patch.”
A Surfeit of Lampreys (US title Death of a Peer) opens in Marsh’s native New Zealand. Young New Zealander Roberta Grey – has been heartily welcomed into the bosom of the Lamprey family – a large, chaotic and endlessly charming, aristocratic family from England who are forever on the edge of complete financial ruin. As a young girl, Roberta watches with alternating dismay and exasperation as the family overspend while in funds, making pathetically inadequate attempts to economise when in the middle of another crisis. During these happy days – Roberta is regaled with horror tales of Uncle G – Lord Charles Lamprey’s childless elder brother – who controls the family purse strings. When Robin, as she is often called, is about sixteen – the Lampreys return to England, taking much of the colour from Roberta Grey’s life.
Four years later and Roberta arrives in England to live with an aunt. Newly bereaved, she is however delighted for an excuse to stay with her beloved Lampreys while her aunt recovers from an illness. The Lampreys are now living very comfortably on the entire top floor of an apartment building – in two formally adjacent flats. The eldest Lamprey son Henry and his sister Frid (Lady Friede) meet Robin off the ship and duly inform her that they are in crisis again. When Roberta is happily installed in Pleasaunce Court Mansions, she learns that the formidable Uncle G – and his very peculiar wife Aunt V have been summoned by Lord Charles, whose latest financial crisis is so severe he intends to appeal to his brother to bail him out. Just before the arrival of the Marquis and Marchioness of Wutherwood – a bailiffs man – aka a bum (not a term I had ever heard before) arrives at the flat and is ensconced in the kitchen – apparently to wait in vain for his money, he is closely followed by Lord Charles’ impoverished, whispering Aunt Kit. So in the best tradition of golden age mysteries – the scene is set for a domestic set drama full of eccentrics and those harbouring ill will.
Upon Lord Wutherwood’s arrival a bizarre charade is acted out by the older Lamprey siblings – it wouldn’t be a proper Ngaio Marsh without a nod to her theatrical leanings – before Lord Charles gets around to asking his dour brother for the money he needs. Soon after Lord Charles makes his request, his brother and sister in law make their departure – only they don’t get very far. As Lord Wutherwood is found slumped and horribly injured in the lift – the lift that is only ever used by the Lampreys – the servants naturally use the stairs. Within a few hours the Marquis’ injuries have proved fatal – and Lord Charles Lamprey succeeds to the title. Enter Alleyn and Fox – who start immediately to sift through the limited evidence, interviewing the various members of the household and their improbably named servants to establish everyone’s alibis. Alleyn is at his urbane best, a raised eyebrow at his suspects, a witty rejoinder with his colleagues – he charms more than he intimidates, yet Alleyn is as sharp as they come.
“She was glad that Henry had no more than one and elevenpence in his pockets and that, instead of borrowing her proffered ten shillings and taking a taxi, he suggested they should go roundabout by bus and tube to Pleasaunce Court. Splendid sang Roberta’s heart, to mount the swaying bus and go cruising down Park Lane, splendid to plunge into the entrance of the tube station, to smell the unexpected sweetness of air that was driven through the world of underground, to sink far below the streets and catch a roaring subterranean train. Splendid, she thought, to sit opposite Henry in the tube and to see his face, murkily lit but smiling at her.”
A Surfeit of Lampreys is a brilliantly executed mystery – I loved the domestic setting and the characters were brilliantly entertaining and ever so slightly bonkers. Ngaio Marsh is actually much more than a great mystery writer, she was a darn good novelist - she doesn’t stint on the detail – she takes her time to describe the London her characters pass through, there’s a clear sense of her characters past’s. I enjoyed spending time in Marsh’s pre-war London, and her truly dotty aristocratic household. This really has whetted my appetite for more Ngaio Marsh – as I do have several others tbr.
“In after years Roberta was to find a pleasant irony in the thought that she owed her friendship with the family to one of those financial crises. It must have been a really bad one because it was at about that time that Lady Charles Lamprey suddenly got rid of all her English servants and bought the washing machine that afterwards, on the afternoon it broke loose from its mooring, so nearly killed Nanny and Patch.”
A Surfeit of Lampreys (US title Death of a Peer) opens in Marsh’s native New Zealand. Young New Zealander Roberta Grey – has been heartily welcomed into the bosom of the Lamprey family – a large, chaotic and endlessly charming, aristocratic family from England who are forever on the edge of complete financial ruin. As a young girl, Roberta watches with alternating dismay and exasperation as the family overspend while in funds, making pathetically inadequate attempts to economise when in the middle of another crisis. During these happy days – Roberta is regaled with horror tales of Uncle G – Lord Charles Lamprey’s childless elder brother – who controls the family purse strings. When Robin, as she is often called, is about sixteen – the Lampreys return to England, taking much of the colour from Roberta Grey’s life.
Four years later and Roberta arrives in England to live with an aunt. Newly bereaved, she is however delighted for an excuse to stay with her beloved Lampreys while her aunt recovers from an illness. The Lampreys are now living very comfortably on the entire top floor of an apartment building – in two formally adjacent flats. The eldest Lamprey son Henry and his sister Frid (Lady Friede) meet Robin off the ship and duly inform her that they are in crisis again. When Roberta is happily installed in Pleasaunce Court Mansions, she learns that the formidable Uncle G – and his very peculiar wife Aunt V have been summoned by Lord Charles, whose latest financial crisis is so severe he intends to appeal to his brother to bail him out. Just before the arrival of the Marquis and Marchioness of Wutherwood – a bailiffs man – aka a bum (not a term I had ever heard before) arrives at the flat and is ensconced in the kitchen – apparently to wait in vain for his money, he is closely followed by Lord Charles’ impoverished, whispering Aunt Kit. So in the best tradition of golden age mysteries – the scene is set for a domestic set drama full of eccentrics and those harbouring ill will.
Upon Lord Wutherwood’s arrival a bizarre charade is acted out by the older Lamprey siblings – it wouldn’t be a proper Ngaio Marsh without a nod to her theatrical leanings – before Lord Charles gets around to asking his dour brother for the money he needs. Soon after Lord Charles makes his request, his brother and sister in law make their departure – only they don’t get very far. As Lord Wutherwood is found slumped and horribly injured in the lift – the lift that is only ever used by the Lampreys – the servants naturally use the stairs. Within a few hours the Marquis’ injuries have proved fatal – and Lord Charles Lamprey succeeds to the title. Enter Alleyn and Fox – who start immediately to sift through the limited evidence, interviewing the various members of the household and their improbably named servants to establish everyone’s alibis. Alleyn is at his urbane best, a raised eyebrow at his suspects, a witty rejoinder with his colleagues – he charms more than he intimidates, yet Alleyn is as sharp as they come.
“She was glad that Henry had no more than one and elevenpence in his pockets and that, instead of borrowing her proffered ten shillings and taking a taxi, he suggested they should go roundabout by bus and tube to Pleasaunce Court. Splendid sang Roberta’s heart, to mount the swaying bus and go cruising down Park Lane, splendid to plunge into the entrance of the tube station, to smell the unexpected sweetness of air that was driven through the world of underground, to sink far below the streets and catch a roaring subterranean train. Splendid, she thought, to sit opposite Henry in the tube and to see his face, murkily lit but smiling at her.”
A Surfeit of Lampreys is a brilliantly executed mystery – I loved the domestic setting and the characters were brilliantly entertaining and ever so slightly bonkers. Ngaio Marsh is actually much more than a great mystery writer, she was a darn good novelist - she doesn’t stint on the detail – she takes her time to describe the London her characters pass through, there’s a clear sense of her characters past’s. I enjoyed spending time in Marsh’s pre-war London, and her truly dotty aristocratic household. This really has whetted my appetite for more Ngaio Marsh – as I do have several others tbr.
October 16, 2018
The Lampreys of the title are a charming but impoverished aristocratic family living well beyond their means. When ruin threatens, they invite wealthy Uncle Gabriel to visit and put on a party including a game of charades hoping they will have an opportunity to borrow money from him. Instead, Uncle Gabriel is brutally murdered and suspicion attaches to the family. Inspector Alleyn must dig beneath the frivolous facade and secret conspiracies of the Lamprey family members to find out the truth.
Not my favourite Marsh offering - the so called 'charming' antics of the family quickly become tiresome, especially coming from the irresponsible adult members. The plot mainly hinges on timings and movements of the suspects, and the questioning of the suspects on these points becomes rather repetitive. The final denouement is more exciting, but not really very believable.
Having said that, it's quite a pleasant read, the typical Golden Age setting of huge family homes with their servants and heirlooms is brilliantly depicted and Alleyn's sidekick Fox can always be relied upon for some amusing moments.
Not my favourite Marsh offering - the so called 'charming' antics of the family quickly become tiresome, especially coming from the irresponsible adult members. The plot mainly hinges on timings and movements of the suspects, and the questioning of the suspects on these points becomes rather repetitive. The final denouement is more exciting, but not really very believable.
Having said that, it's quite a pleasant read, the typical Golden Age setting of huge family homes with their servants and heirlooms is brilliantly depicted and Alleyn's sidekick Fox can always be relied upon for some amusing moments.
August 12, 2018
"There was no doubt the Lampreys were charmers who sported the grand style and didn't have a shilling. But when Lord Charles Lamprey's rich old brother met an untimely end, the question was raised -- were they also cold blooded killers?
"Some words by Shakespeare cue Inspector Alleyn in a case with many strutting players and one star -- a murderer."
~~back cover
The famous, beloved mystery writers are famous and beloved for a reason -- they're outstanding at what they do: characterization, description, plotting, wit and skulduggery. This book is no exception: beautifully limned characters, an almost-closed door plot that had everybody wondering, a chronology where minutes were of the utmost importance but which still left the reader guessing and avidly reading. The grand dame of mysteries has done it again.
"Some words by Shakespeare cue Inspector Alleyn in a case with many strutting players and one star -- a murderer."
~~back cover
The famous, beloved mystery writers are famous and beloved for a reason -- they're outstanding at what they do: characterization, description, plotting, wit and skulduggery. This book is no exception: beautifully limned characters, an almost-closed door plot that had everybody wondering, a chronology where minutes were of the utmost importance but which still left the reader guessing and avidly reading. The grand dame of mysteries has done it again.
October 21, 2021
Aahhh, only the jolly good aristocrat could live such a careless lifestyle like the Lampreys. Only the Lampreys could go to New Zealand without prior skills, knowledge nor temperament to farm, only to be bailed out by a generous offer on said farm. Then, only the Lampreys could follow that by burning through that money in ill-advised and ill-luck business ventures. Of course , the Lampreys being what they are, face another hardship depending solely on their luck. What do you know, their rich Uncle is murdered right after said uncle angrily refuses to bail out the Lampreys (the Uncle, though miserly, does give the Lampreys sound advice). Only now they have to convince Chief Detective Alleyn of their innocence.
Though the murder method is a bit fantastical,I thought the case is quite interesting. The hints are subtly, very subtly written. This is the se cond time that I have failed to guess the murderer out of the seven Ngaio Masrh’sbooks that I’ve read so far. So well done. The Lampreys as a caricature of a carefree, extravagant and bumbling English aristocrats are just hilariously absurd.
Solid 4 stars.
Though the murder method is a bit fantastical,I thought the case is quite interesting. The hints are subtly, very subtly written. This is the se cond time that I have failed to guess the murderer out of the seven Ngaio Masrh’sbooks that I’ve read so far. So well done. The Lampreys as a caricature of a carefree, extravagant and bumbling English aristocrats are just hilariously absurd.
Solid 4 stars.
December 31, 2022
Delightful right from the title. Perfect light holiday listening.
April 28, 2024
Not just a great title.
January 7, 2022
Another delightful little murder from Ngaio Marsh that I devoured in one long afternoon/evening of reading. The Lampreys are SO likeable and charming that they made the book but ruined the murder as I didn't want any of them to be guilty! (Well, except maybe Frid who WAS a bit grating at times.) I just loved spending time with the Lamprey family, and seeing them through Roberta's adoring eyes. They gave her a pet name of course, Robin, and she has been with the family for years, ever since Frid invited Robin home for the holidays back in New Zealand. Robin loved the family and the family loved Robin and she became a happy accessory for many of the school breaks, until the Lampreys returned to the old family pile in London when the next infusion of cash came from a long distance aunt who's demise couldn't have been more timely. That's not even the beginning of the mystery!
It's when Robin ventures to London after she tragically loses both her parents. She's reunited with the Lampreys and barely a full day passes when there's a murder! The family is in dire straights once again, and their uncle Lord Wutherford (old money bags) won't pay out. There's a shouting match between the brothers in the library, stodgy old miser won't cough up and storms out after giving his younger brother a dressing down, and the next thing you know they find his dead body in the lift. Enter Alleyn and Fox and even eventually Nigel Bathgate. The interviews are almost entertaining as each of the Lamprey's tries a different tactic with Alleyn, who struggles not to be amused and taken in by the family charm along with everyone else.
He does uncover the murderer, of course, and it is a satisfying ending, but I have to say I wasn't as excited to play along in discovering the culprit on this one because I just enjoyed all the suspects so much! So five stars for an incredible cast of characters, three stars for the murder plot that suffered slightly for it, landing at a solid four stars. Will definitely revisit for another read someday just because it was so fun.
It's when Robin ventures to London after she tragically loses both her parents. She's reunited with the Lampreys and barely a full day passes when there's a murder! The family is in dire straights once again, and their uncle Lord Wutherford (old money bags) won't pay out. There's a shouting match between the brothers in the library, stodgy old miser won't cough up and storms out after giving his younger brother a dressing down, and the next thing you know they find his dead body in the lift. Enter Alleyn and Fox and even eventually Nigel Bathgate. The interviews are almost entertaining as each of the Lamprey's tries a different tactic with Alleyn, who struggles not to be amused and taken in by the family charm along with everyone else.
He does uncover the murderer, of course, and it is a satisfying ending, but I have to say I wasn't as excited to play along in discovering the culprit on this one because I just enjoyed all the suspects so much! So five stars for an incredible cast of characters, three stars for the murder plot that suffered slightly for it, landing at a solid four stars. Will definitely revisit for another read someday just because it was so fun.
September 4, 2022
Tenth in the Inspector Roderick Alleyn vintage detective mystery series and revolving around this roving Scotland Yard detective in 1939. The focus is on the happy-go-lucky yet poor Lampreys. The story was first published in 1940.
My Take
Lemme get this out of the way — the title creeps me out! What's weird is that I actually like eating barbecued eel, but that idea of a surfeit . . . ick.
Whew.
The story begins with the set-up in which Roberta first meets the Lamprey family in New Zealand and becomes great friends with them . . . due to one of their many financial crises.
Marsh uses third person global subjective point-of-view from Roberta's, the Lampreys', and Scotland Yard's perspectives, allowing us to listen in on everyone. Somehow, though, Alleyn does a much better job of listening and putting those timelines together, sigh.
It's too funny how Marsh informs us of the Lampreys' financial crises from the rogue washing machine to why buying a second car was a good economic move. Thankfully, Lady Charles is going to pawn her pearls on her way to the manicurist. Won't the manicurist be pleased, lol. Alleyn has his own thoughts on their approach to money.
I can't really blame Uncle Gabriel from being so furious with his brother and his family. They are clueless and don't care. Lady Charles' comment about how expensive it is to travel certainly shows that attitude — and Uncle Gabriel has the proof of it, lololol. Then there's the family attitude about all the title changes. Nope, they simply do not care.
Part of their laissez-faire attitude comes from rescue showing up when truly needed. Of course, some of that "rescue" is from Uncle Gabriel bailing them out. It really brings home the difference in how much money it takes to survive today when you read how much money the Lampreys need to avoid the bailiff, lol.
I can't wait until the Lampreys learn that the constable sitting with them in the drawing room can speak French, lol. They think they're being so clever, *more laughter*. Fox is thrilled and wants to have chats with Gibson to improve his own French.
The Lampreys really do think they're putting one over on Scotland Yard, and then we read of Alleyn and company discussing their ploys.
Roberta's comment about the Lampreys being funny but not witty has a nice ring of truth to it.
Alleyn coughs up that he enjoys his work with his interest in people.
It's not so much action but the characters and their verbal interactions that move the story along.
I must say I prefer the Lampreys' approach to life (not the financial aspect, though) to Uncle Gabriel's. He's so very depressing!
Hmm, I'm wondering if there's a surfeit of red herrings, especially when Alleyn refers to Tinkerton's lies.
It's an unexpected wee hours conversation that tips Alleyn the wink. What Alleyn works out is so very plausible. And I'd obviously make a lousy criminal, lol. I'm just not that twisty.
The Story
It's a deeply saddening event that sends Roberta to England to live with an aunt. Fortunately, the Lampreys are crazy enough to do a haka to welcome Roberta to England — it cheers her up no end.
Moving to England hasn't changed the Lampreys. They're still amazingly "poor", and they're placing a lot of hope (and plots) to encourage Uncle Gabriel to cough up a rescue.
The Characters
Chief Detective-Inspector Roderick Alleyn is with CID at Scotland Yard. His mother's maiden name is Blandish. George is Alleyn's older brother. Nigel Bathgate, a journalist, is friends with Alleyn and the Lampreys.
Scotland Yard
Alleyn's team includes Inspector Fox, a.k.a. Br'er Fox; Detective-Sergeant (DS) Bailey specializes in fingerprints; DS Thompson is the photography expert; and, Dr Curtis is the police surgeon. The constables include Gibson and Martin and DS Campbell.
Roberta "Robin" Grey is a New Zealander who became friends with Frid Lamprey. Aunt Hlda in England has offered to take Roberta in. Uncle George Alton became rector of Lumpington-Parva.
The Lampreys
Lord Charles Lamprey is a younger brother and has no clue about finance. Imogen, Lady Charles, a.k.a. Immy or Charlot, née Ringle, is his equally clueless wife. The children include Henry; Friede, a.k.a. Frid, who is Roberta's school friend and quite the drama queen; the plotting twins, Stephen and Colin; Michael, a.k.a. Potty; and Patricia, a.k.a. Patch. Nanny Burnaby has been with them forever, as has Baskett, the butler. Dent is Lady Charles' maid, and she knows a good pawnshop. Mayling is their chauffeur. The maids include Ethel and the nosy Cora Blackmore. Mrs James is the cook.
The combined flats on the top floor of Pleasaunce Court Mansions is the Lampreys' home in England. Stamford is the porter. Mr Gremball, Grimball, is the bum who's come to live with the Lampreys.
London
Uncle Gabriel Lamprey, Lord Wutherford and the Marquis of Wutherford and Rune, is the older brother and a real skinflint. Who knew this state could be inherited? "Violet", Lady Wutherford, (Glapeera Zadody, half-Hungarian and half-Russian) is his nutjob of a wife who is interested in the occult. Grace Tinkerton is Aunt V's loyal maid. William Giggle is their chauffeur. Deepacres is the family estate in Kent. The London house is in Brummell Street. The Moffats are the butler and housekeeper.
The extremely poor Lady Katherine Lobe, a.k.a. Auntie Kit, is another nut; she's also Lady Charles' second cousin and Lord Charles' aunt. I think Gibson is Aunt Kit's butler. Auntie Kit always wears Great-aunt Caroline's pearls. Cousin Ruth was another Lamprey savior.
New Zealand
The Tea Moana Collegiate School for Girls is where Roberta met Frid. Deepacres, a.k.a. Mount Silver Station, is the name of the Lampreys' estate.
A bum is a gentleman in a bowler hat who comes to stay until you pay your bills. The Lampreys frequently entertain bums, lol. Sir David Stein was a bad choice of business partner. Mary appears to be Henry's London girlfriend. One of the Lampreys' charades is of Jael and Colonel Sisera Blimp. Dr Kantripp is the Lampreys' London physician. Sir Matthew Cairnstock is a brain doctor. Isadore Z. Nathan, a.k.a. Uncle Izzy, is a pawnbroker. Aunt Violet believes she's protected. Marguerite Luondman of Gebweiler and Anna Ruffa of Douzy were medieval witches. The Compendium Maleficorum is in Aunt V's library. There is a reference to a similar case, the American Crowbar Case with Phineas P. Gage, as well as Mr J Collyer Adam's case of the man with the knife in his forehead. The Frantock case is referenced. Old Lady Lorrimore had recommended the Nedbrun Nursing Home in Devon. Rattisbon is the Wutherwood solicitors. Messrs Hungerford, Hungerford and Butterworth are Violet's solicitors. Benham-Kaye, a.k.a. B-K, is a schoolmate in Mike's form.
The Cover and Title
The primary color of the cover is a reddish coral with its various areas of gradation. The upper block of color moves from the dark of the sides and top to lighter at the bottom and serves as the background for the title which gradates from white to a paler coral. The stretched banner across the middle is in a pale pink with the author's name in her trademark art deco font of deep maroon, textured lines, and white. The bottom is a slanting array of one-sided scalloped rays of white angling from the bottom out to the sides. In between those rays is a gradient of maroon to reddish coral. In the bottom center, the graphic has a deep gray green background with a gold-piped bed cushion on which a jeweled golden crown sits. Below it is a pale pink arch with the series info in white.
The title is a reference from Tinkerton regarding Nanny's raising up this Surfeit of Lampreys.
My Take
Lemme get this out of the way — the title creeps me out! What's weird is that I actually like eating barbecued eel, but that idea of a surfeit . . . ick.
Whew.
The story begins with the set-up in which Roberta first meets the Lamprey family in New Zealand and becomes great friends with them . . . due to one of their many financial crises.
Marsh uses third person global subjective point-of-view from Roberta's, the Lampreys', and Scotland Yard's perspectives, allowing us to listen in on everyone. Somehow, though, Alleyn does a much better job of listening and putting those timelines together, sigh.
It's too funny how Marsh informs us of the Lampreys' financial crises from the rogue washing machine to why buying a second car was a good economic move. Thankfully, Lady Charles is going to pawn her pearls on her way to the manicurist. Won't the manicurist be pleased, lol. Alleyn has his own thoughts on their approach to money.
I can't really blame Uncle Gabriel from being so furious with his brother and his family. They are clueless and don't care. Lady Charles' comment about how expensive it is to travel certainly shows that attitude — and Uncle Gabriel has the proof of it, lololol. Then there's the family attitude about all the title changes. Nope, they simply do not care.
Part of their laissez-faire attitude comes from rescue showing up when truly needed. Of course, some of that "rescue" is from Uncle Gabriel bailing them out. It really brings home the difference in how much money it takes to survive today when you read how much money the Lampreys need to avoid the bailiff, lol.
I can't wait until the Lampreys learn that the constable sitting with them in the drawing room can speak French, lol. They think they're being so clever, *more laughter*. Fox is thrilled and wants to have chats with Gibson to improve his own French.
The Lampreys really do think they're putting one over on Scotland Yard, and then we read of Alleyn and company discussing their ploys.
Roberta's comment about the Lampreys being funny but not witty has a nice ring of truth to it.
Alleyn coughs up that he enjoys his work with his interest in people.
It's not so much action but the characters and their verbal interactions that move the story along.
I must say I prefer the Lampreys' approach to life (not the financial aspect, though) to Uncle Gabriel's. He's so very depressing!
Hmm, I'm wondering if there's a surfeit of red herrings, especially when Alleyn refers to Tinkerton's lies.
It's an unexpected wee hours conversation that tips Alleyn the wink. What Alleyn works out is so very plausible. And I'd obviously make a lousy criminal, lol. I'm just not that twisty.
The Story
It's a deeply saddening event that sends Roberta to England to live with an aunt. Fortunately, the Lampreys are crazy enough to do a haka to welcome Roberta to England — it cheers her up no end.
Moving to England hasn't changed the Lampreys. They're still amazingly "poor", and they're placing a lot of hope (and plots) to encourage Uncle Gabriel to cough up a rescue.
The Characters
Chief Detective-Inspector Roderick Alleyn is with CID at Scotland Yard. His mother's maiden name is Blandish. George is Alleyn's older brother. Nigel Bathgate, a journalist, is friends with Alleyn and the Lampreys.
Scotland Yard
Alleyn's team includes Inspector Fox, a.k.a. Br'er Fox; Detective-Sergeant (DS) Bailey specializes in fingerprints; DS Thompson is the photography expert; and, Dr Curtis is the police surgeon. The constables include Gibson and Martin and DS Campbell.
Roberta "Robin" Grey is a New Zealander who became friends with Frid Lamprey. Aunt Hlda in England has offered to take Roberta in. Uncle George Alton became rector of Lumpington-Parva.
The Lampreys
Lord Charles Lamprey is a younger brother and has no clue about finance. Imogen, Lady Charles, a.k.a. Immy or Charlot, née Ringle, is his equally clueless wife. The children include Henry; Friede, a.k.a. Frid, who is Roberta's school friend and quite the drama queen; the plotting twins, Stephen and Colin; Michael, a.k.a. Potty; and Patricia, a.k.a. Patch. Nanny Burnaby has been with them forever, as has Baskett, the butler. Dent is Lady Charles' maid, and she knows a good pawnshop. Mayling is their chauffeur. The maids include Ethel and the nosy Cora Blackmore. Mrs James is the cook.
The combined flats on the top floor of Pleasaunce Court Mansions is the Lampreys' home in England. Stamford is the porter. Mr Gremball, Grimball, is the bum who's come to live with the Lampreys.
London
Uncle Gabriel Lamprey, Lord Wutherford and the Marquis of Wutherford and Rune, is the older brother and a real skinflint. Who knew this state could be inherited? "Violet", Lady Wutherford, (Glapeera Zadody, half-Hungarian and half-Russian) is his nutjob of a wife who is interested in the occult. Grace Tinkerton is Aunt V's loyal maid. William Giggle is their chauffeur. Deepacres is the family estate in Kent. The London house is in Brummell Street. The Moffats are the butler and housekeeper.
The extremely poor Lady Katherine Lobe, a.k.a. Auntie Kit, is another nut; she's also Lady Charles' second cousin and Lord Charles' aunt. I think Gibson is Aunt Kit's butler. Auntie Kit always wears Great-aunt Caroline's pearls. Cousin Ruth was another Lamprey savior.
New Zealand
The Tea Moana Collegiate School for Girls is where Roberta met Frid. Deepacres, a.k.a. Mount Silver Station, is the name of the Lampreys' estate.
A bum is a gentleman in a bowler hat who comes to stay until you pay your bills. The Lampreys frequently entertain bums, lol. Sir David Stein was a bad choice of business partner. Mary appears to be Henry's London girlfriend. One of the Lampreys' charades is of Jael and Colonel Sisera Blimp. Dr Kantripp is the Lampreys' London physician. Sir Matthew Cairnstock is a brain doctor. Isadore Z. Nathan, a.k.a. Uncle Izzy, is a pawnbroker. Aunt Violet believes she's protected. Marguerite Luondman of Gebweiler and Anna Ruffa of Douzy were medieval witches. The Compendium Maleficorum is in Aunt V's library. There is a reference to a similar case, the American Crowbar Case with Phineas P. Gage, as well as Mr J Collyer Adam's case of the man with the knife in his forehead. The Frantock case is referenced. Old Lady Lorrimore had recommended the Nedbrun Nursing Home in Devon. Rattisbon is the Wutherwood solicitors. Messrs Hungerford, Hungerford and Butterworth are Violet's solicitors. Benham-Kaye, a.k.a. B-K, is a schoolmate in Mike's form.
The Cover and Title
The primary color of the cover is a reddish coral with its various areas of gradation. The upper block of color moves from the dark of the sides and top to lighter at the bottom and serves as the background for the title which gradates from white to a paler coral. The stretched banner across the middle is in a pale pink with the author's name in her trademark art deco font of deep maroon, textured lines, and white. The bottom is a slanting array of one-sided scalloped rays of white angling from the bottom out to the sides. In between those rays is a gradient of maroon to reddish coral. In the bottom center, the graphic has a deep gray green background with a gold-piped bed cushion on which a jeweled golden crown sits. Below it is a pale pink arch with the series info in white.
The title is a reference from Tinkerton regarding Nanny's raising up this Surfeit of Lampreys.
August 1, 2025
Originally published on my blog here in June 1998.
This is one of my least favourite Ngaio Marsh novels. The crime is puzzling enough and the solution typically ingenious, and Roderick Alleyn is his usual urbane self; the problem is that I find it impossible to have any sympathy for the family at the centre of the story, the Lampreys.
The Lampreys are an upper class family always suffering from financial crises, yet unable to work or to save because of their frivolous background. Marsh keeps on emphasising the point that all who meet them cannot help but love them, because of their charm; this didn't come across to me at all. Returning to England following some years in New Zealand, they invite the head of the family to their London flat, where they hope to charm him into giving them some money. Following a grotesque set of charades and planned supposedly charming and spontaneous appeals from the various members of the family, he has a furious row with Lord Henry and leaves, only to be brutally murdered in the lift on the way down.
Under suspicion, the Lampreys show themselves at their worst, speaking French to discuss the crime in front of the PC they patronisingly assume won't be able to understand; the identical twin sons refusing to admit to which of them went down in the lift with the victim; lying about the refusal to give the money to them and so on.
The inability of the Lampreys to do anything of any use to anyone, their total parasitism on the "lower classes", and the way in which everyone looks on their egotism as charming because they are from the aristocracy - these all amount to good arguments for a socialistic view of the class system. I'm fairly sure Marsh didn't mean it that way, and it probably felt different at the time (though if I were reading this during the war and had experienced the hardship of the Depression I don't think I'd have felt very charitable towards them). It's difficult to read it without projecting 1990s attitudes, but I do hope we have moved on.
This is one of my least favourite Ngaio Marsh novels. The crime is puzzling enough and the solution typically ingenious, and Roderick Alleyn is his usual urbane self; the problem is that I find it impossible to have any sympathy for the family at the centre of the story, the Lampreys.
The Lampreys are an upper class family always suffering from financial crises, yet unable to work or to save because of their frivolous background. Marsh keeps on emphasising the point that all who meet them cannot help but love them, because of their charm; this didn't come across to me at all. Returning to England following some years in New Zealand, they invite the head of the family to their London flat, where they hope to charm him into giving them some money. Following a grotesque set of charades and planned supposedly charming and spontaneous appeals from the various members of the family, he has a furious row with Lord Henry and leaves, only to be brutally murdered in the lift on the way down.
Under suspicion, the Lampreys show themselves at their worst, speaking French to discuss the crime in front of the PC they patronisingly assume won't be able to understand; the identical twin sons refusing to admit to which of them went down in the lift with the victim; lying about the refusal to give the money to them and so on.
The inability of the Lampreys to do anything of any use to anyone, their total parasitism on the "lower classes", and the way in which everyone looks on their egotism as charming because they are from the aristocracy - these all amount to good arguments for a socialistic view of the class system. I'm fairly sure Marsh didn't mean it that way, and it probably felt different at the time (though if I were reading this during the war and had experienced the hardship of the Depression I don't think I'd have felt very charitable towards them). It's difficult to read it without projecting 1990s attitudes, but I do hope we have moved on.
March 2, 2021
Uni assignment reading. Annnnnnd of course the poor servant murdered the rich ass guy. And the main rich ass family is portrayed as "irresponsible" with money but ultimately have a heart of gold. And of course they get a slap on the wrist and still call themselves poor, while poor people are portrayed as money greedy deviants. The classist massage is enough to choke me. But there's still casual racist things, honestly by this point with this module's assigned reading I'm doing a challenge for them about how many of them doesn't have casual racist remarks about asian people (if not full on racist like Sign of Four). So far i came up with only one book the British authors could go on a whole book without making us the butt of their joke.
September 16, 2023
This is said to be Marsh's most popular book, and I can see why. Her narrative style is to get you deeply involved with the characters who will figure in the mystery, with the actual crime occurring well into the book. When Inspector Alleyn and Fox do appear, you expect it, but it wouldn't be critical to your enjoyment of the book if they didn't show up!
The Lamprey family are reminiscent of the sort of people Nancy Mitford wrote about, only they are a lot kinder. Marsh occasionally brings back characters from previous books, and I am sort of hoping to find out what happens to this family later on!
The Lamprey family are reminiscent of the sort of people Nancy Mitford wrote about, only they are a lot kinder. Marsh occasionally brings back characters from previous books, and I am sort of hoping to find out what happens to this family later on!
June 22, 2017
Ghastly murder; nothing cozy about it. Entertaining Lamprey family based on real family friends Marsh adored. Nigel makes a brief appearance. Marsh has a real way with her characters; mystery is secondary, but well done. Considering this was published in the1939-1940 era there is very little in the book to suggest the turmoil of Europe and a pending war. There is a passing reference that someone might be "one of them Nazzys."
December 19, 2022
Death of a Peer AKA Surfeit of Lamprey, which is a more distinctive title.
The Lamprey's are a carefree family, facing good and bad fortune with impunity and humor. When their rich uncle is murdered in the lift, they face the investigation the same way. There's not a lot of Alleyn in this book, which is too bad, but Roberta Grey and the Lampreys are so fun it's always a pleasure to read anyway.
The Lamprey's are a carefree family, facing good and bad fortune with impunity and humor. When their rich uncle is murdered in the lift, they face the investigation the same way. There's not a lot of Alleyn in this book, which is too bad, but Roberta Grey and the Lampreys are so fun it's always a pleasure to read anyway.
June 22, 2017
A Golden Age Mystery replete with poor but profligate aristocrats, dotty aunts, precocious children, sarcastic teens, the credulous journalist Nigel Bathgate, Inspector Alleyn (dubbed "Handsome Alleyn" by the press) and his ever-stolid "B'rer" Fox.
August 18, 2016
A first-rate mystery! The Lamprey family members are engaging and quirky, the Inspector Alleyn a top notch detective. It was a bit slow going in the beginning but as the murder commenced I was sorely tempted to flip to the ending to find out the culprit, I didn't of course!
September 4, 2017
My least favorite in the series (I hope this is the low point!) The mystery is well-plotted, but the family is full of totally unsympathetic characters. Even the 'charming outsider' stoops to lying. Skip it.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 321 reviews