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kerriem3's review
3.0
Fairly enjoyable mystery but a bit difficult to follow at times. As in previous novels, it takes awhile to get to the murder and to have Inspector Alleyn on the scene. Fortunately, the characters were interesting & kept me reading. The murder takes place (more than a 1/3 of the way in) during a ritual folk dance some of which was a little confusing to picture if not already familiar with those sorts of ceremonies. Marsh writes out the characters' slang / accents which also makes reading a little time-consuming. Overall, a clever whodunit, with a pretty solid solution.
stacielynn's review
4.0
A rollicking good tale as I have come to expect with a fab glimpse into that fascinating custom-- Morris dancing!
rjleamon11's review against another edition
4.0
Another entertaining audio outing. . .I've read this one numerous times and listened to it at least twice, but I guess I never reviewed it. Lots of Marsh's typical information about an erudite subject, and lots of her detailed characters. Funny echoes of Austen: it's a love match between an 18 year old and a 30 year old, and the story is really a tragic story of the caste system protecting itself (minor spoiler, I guess). Still: good stuff.
dknippling's review
4.0
English folk dancing...leads to MURDER.
Well, I had to say it. This is my first Ngaio Marsh and probably won't be my last. A solid mystery made up of enough moving parts that you might catch a piece or two and still not know how it was done. The opening was from the POV of a rather unpleasant character who is NOT the one to get killed later on, and I didn't care for it--it went on and on. But as soon as we were out of her head, the book became much more readable and fun. The plot revolves around a fictional example of English folk dancing, a sword dance in which a Fool is beheaded. Lots of cantankerous, old-fashioned English characters are involved. If you like Dame Agatha, you'll enjoy this.
Well, I had to say it. This is my first Ngaio Marsh and probably won't be my last. A solid mystery made up of enough moving parts that you might catch a piece or two and still not know how it was done. The opening was from the POV of a rather unpleasant character who is NOT the one to get killed later on, and I didn't care for it--it went on and on. But as soon as we were out of her head, the book became much more readable and fun. The plot revolves around a fictional example of English folk dancing, a sword dance in which a Fool is beheaded. Lots of cantankerous, old-fashioned English characters are involved. If you like Dame Agatha, you'll enjoy this.
oldcrossperson's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
karen_unabridged's review
3.0
Well, this one was an education. I love Marsh and the way she illuminates traditions and groups that I've never thought about. Mummers and mumming and Morris dancing are central to this tale. (And yes, I had to Google several terms whilst reading.)
med_librarian's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
The portrayal of an epileptic character is unfortunate. Also, this has forced me to learn about Morris dancing.
carolsnotebook's review against another edition
3.0
Death of a Fool takes place around the winter solstice. In South Mardian, a sword dance/fertility ritual/mummer play is performed every year, but this time, the fool (the father) is actually beheaded. I don't know anything about English folk dances, but the dance featured in Death of a Fool is interesting. Granted, it's a fictional dance, but the author tells us that she did use elements from a variety of traditional dances. Reading about the rehearsals, the performance, the costume and the history was fun. The dance is performed by the elderly blacksmiths, his five sons and a couple of other village men. They are also the most obvious suspects, especially the sons as they were the ones with the sword during the dance. Of course, the other performers have motives too. There are so many reasons to kill the old man: anger revenge, money, and just to get him out of the way.
Alleyn is called in to investigate. In a small town, everybody knows everybody's secrets, but no one wants to tell the cops. The clues are well-done, they make sense, even if I didn't catch them all. I liked all the characters, too, especially Dame Alice Mardian, the ninety-plus year old village matriarch. She's smart and funny and clearly is enjoying being up close to the investigation. There's also a young couple in love, as is often the case in Marsh's mysteries. The romance is always in the background, but does provide some motive.
Alleyn is called in to investigate. In a small town, everybody knows everybody's secrets, but no one wants to tell the cops. The clues are well-done, they make sense, even if I didn't catch them all. I liked all the characters, too, especially Dame Alice Mardian, the ninety-plus year old village matriarch. She's smart and funny and clearly is enjoying being up close to the investigation. There's also a young couple in love, as is often the case in Marsh's mysteries. The romance is always in the background, but does provide some motive.
caitibeth's review
2.0
So far, this has been the hardest of the Alleyn books to get through for me. It's set around a winter solstice dance that has been carried out for centuries and passed down through generations of families in a sort of mix of folk superstition and tradition. I found it a heavy slog; and that's before the classism, xenophobia, and ableism (or whatever you'd call its inaccurate portrayal of epilepsy) that lard it throughout. Alleyn makes quick work of the mystery, and so does the reader (it's always pretty easy when there's only one dislikable character...)
Still small bits of interesting character work, amidst the stereotypes. It's not quite a 1* book. But if it'd been the first book I read in the series I doubt I would have continued.
Still small bits of interesting character work, amidst the stereotypes. It's not quite a 1* book. But if it'd been the first book I read in the series I doubt I would have continued.