I've entered my Ngaio Marsh phase

Submitted by falling_fire t3_1262pkf in books

I started reading A.C. Doyle and Agatha Christie at 12, (which was probably too young, but c'est la vie lol.) I fell in love with mysteries written between 1880-1945. A large range, I know, but variety is the spice of life :). I've read all of R.A. Freeman's Thorndyke books and G.K. Chesterton's Father Brown stories. All this is to say is that I've done my time in the genre lol.

I ran into Ngaio Marsh's books on r/agathachristie where people were saying taking issue with the marketing phrase: "It’s time to start comparing Christie to Marsh instead of the other way around.” I had nothing to read so I started with the first of her books.

Y'all. They are so good! The characters are fun and realistic, the plots are interesting, and the descriptive passages are soooo great. The slang in the first books is a little hard for this American to understand, but I got used to it pretty quick. The little references to contemporary crime authors make me smile everytime.

Is it equal with Agatha Christie? Let's be real — Agatha Christie has such a distinctive style that if she's your pinnacle of writing, nothing will ever compare. (When Christie's good, she's very, very good but when she's off her game, it's bonkers.) Comparing other writers to Agatha Christie is a pretty bad way to sell things IMO, because her swarms of loyal readers will be disappointed.

But Ngaio Marsh is good. She's definitely inspired by Christie, but she moved past it into her own style that is so delightful. You go girl, recognize your influences and use them to improve!

I'm 10 books in and I'm so excited to keep going!

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Sir-Berticus t1_je7rbil wrote

I'm a New Zealand ecologist and I thought it was a pretty interesting coincidence that there's an mystery author with the same name as a native tree.

But she's a NZ author! Strange I'd never heard of her, love the genre. Thanks for the tip-off.

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falling_fire OP t1_je7t0op wrote

Happy to share! Quick question: is it pronounced Nigh-yo? That's what I've been saying in my head lol

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Sir-Berticus t1_je7ujq4 wrote

Most te reo speakers today will pronounce it like this, which is pretty close to how you're spelling it out! https://maoridictionary.co.nz/search?idiom=&phrase=&proverb=&loan=&histLoanWords=&keywords=ngaio

But the 'ng' at the start can really vary across the country, with different iwi pronouncing the consonant differently: Lake Wanaka in south island comes from the māori word "wananga" (wisdom), as Ngāti Tahu pronounce the 'ng' more like a "k" than a "n".

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falling_fire OP t1_je7wzsc wrote

Thank you so much! I was close enough that the only difference is my American accent lol

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thecosmicradiation t1_je8wpoj wrote

Marsh is extremely well known and respected in the NZ literary scene - there's even a crime writing award in her name!

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Sir-Berticus t1_jebehal wrote

Thanks, yeah I'm discovering it all now haha. Clearly had my blinders up!

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DoctorGuvnor t1_jeaeunc wrote

Not only an author but she and her father were hugely instrumental in live theatre in NZ.

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Monsieur_Moneybags t1_je7o5xp wrote

Of the "Big Four"—Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, Ngaio Marsh, Margery Allingham—I think Marsh is the best overall writer. Christie's plots often relied on some absurdities and her characters weren't all that well-developed. That doesn't mean Christie was a bad writer, just that she wasn't as good as Marsh.

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falling_fire OP t1_je7pajl wrote

Happy Cake Day! I'll have to read the other two before I can pass judgement but I'm inclined to agree.

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Doxie_Anna t1_je8oes4 wrote

Have you read Patricia Wentworth or Mary Roberts Rinehart? Those are two others I enjoyed. They are re-releasing so many Golden Age mysteries and since they are my favorite I’m in heaven.

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Dazzling-Ad4701 t1_je8wxms wrote

I'll take your ngaio marsh and offer you two in return: Edmund Crispin and Georgette heyer.

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sekhmet1010 t1_je9agpt wrote

I recently read Arabella , and i loved the humour in it so much! Which ones by her would you recommend?

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Oscarmaiajonah t1_je9fl5g wrote

Try "The Quiet Gentleman" by Georgette Heyer. Its the only one of hers Ive enjoyed, but I liked the humour in it, and the little murder mystery (although to be honest its easily guessed who the culprit is lol).

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Dazzling-Ad4701 t1_jebhhov wrote

I'm not as familiar with her murder mysteries, which were contemporary at the time. I've read several of them but don't recall the titles ;)

the reluctant widow is a regency spy story.

and the talisman ring is a murder story (sort of), and my personal favourite.

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Coast_watcher t1_je83o4n wrote

I keep looking for Ellery Queen. That was my guy growing up lol

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sekhmet1010 t1_je9c50i wrote

Which ones would you recommend i start with? I love this genre and have read almost all Agatha Christies. I have also read some Allingham and Tey, both of which i liked a lot.

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falling_fire OP t1_jea0ms1 wrote

Marsh wrote one series and I started at the beginning with "A Man Lay Dead." I thought that the second book, "Enter a Murderer," was better. But I'm a big supporter of reading series in order. By book 3-4 I was hooked.

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Amphy64 t1_jeaazut wrote

Thanks! Writing it down as one to get my mum for her birthday - it was her who gave me her Agatha Christie books to read as a child, too. She loves the French mystery writer Fred Vargas, very uniquely weird with a lot of eccentric characters, the first Three Evangelists one is probably a softer introduction than the first Adamsberg novel The Chalk Circle Man.

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FandomsGotMeHere t1_je9otx7 wrote

Yes, op please suggest which novel of hers should we read. Btw , can you please suggest some Allingham and Tey novels to read? Thank you!

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sekhmet1010 t1_je9t711 wrote

I have read 4 Tey novels and just the 1 Allingham.

So, for Tey i really liked all of them, but To Love and be Wise and The Franchise Affair were my favourites. Daughter of Time is another famous one, but i haven't read it yet. (The other two that i did read were A Schilling for Candles and Miss Pym Disposes )

The only Allingham i ever read was Hide my Eyes . I quite liked it, because you already know who the killer is right in the beginning, but it's all about when and how the story will resolve itself.

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suziquandary t1_je8mic1 wrote

If you like these authors you should try Patricia Moyes "Henry Tibbett" books, they're awesome.

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RobThorpe t1_jea7qos wrote

Time for John Dickson Carr!

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DoctorGuvnor t1_jeaem3t wrote

Have you discovered Josephine Tey yet? The Daughter of Time, Miss Pym Disposes, Brat Farrar and The Franchise Affaire are among the best detective/mystery stories ever written.

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GraniteGeekNH t1_jebvirs wrote

Her later books aren't as good - but that's the case with Christie, too.

other ideas:

Josephine Tey (don't start with "Daughter of Time" despite its reputation - and get a little familiar with Shakespeare's Richard III before you do read it)

Dorothy L Sayers is great - but her early stuff is borderline silly, later stuff is borderline academic so she's not to everybody's taste

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falling_fire OP t1_jedbuyj wrote

Also the case with my essays as each semester progresses lol.

Thank you for the recs!

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