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A Man Lay Dead
- Narrated by: Philip Franks
- Series: Roderick Alleyn, Book 1
- Length: 5 hrs and 18 mins
- Categories: Mystery, Thriller & Suspense, Mystery
Non-member price: $29.96
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Magnificent reading of old-style murder mystery
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Good story but sound quality issues
- By Anonymous User on 13-06-2018
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Good story but sound quality issues
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One of the best Marsh Novels
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Publisher's Summary
Wealthy Sir Hubert Handesley's original and lively weekend house parties are deservedly famous. To amuse his guests, he has devised a new form of the fashionable Murder Game, in which a guest is secretly selected to commit a 'murder' in the dark, and everyone assembles to solve the crime. But when the lights go up this time, there is a real corpse....
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What listeners say about A Man Lay Dead
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Anonymous User
- 26-05-2018
Not one of her best
Philip Feanks does a great job of narration, but even his characterisations and modulations cant hide the outrageous and distinctly implausible murder. It is, however, a nice introduction to Nigel Bathgate and Angela North. Perhaps this was a contractual obligation book.
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- Anonymous User
- 24-04-2017
Better than agatha
Country house murder with good characterisation and enough clues to guess the outcome. Lovely description of the setting
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- Laurence G. Byrne
- 25-02-2016
Classic Upper Crust Mystery
Any additional comments?
"A Man Lay Dead," although published in 1934, holds up well as an intriguing classic mystery. Like some others of its kind, the novel might have been batter read than heard. That is not to say it was not well performed,(It was.) but that there are so many characters, one practically needs a score card to keep them straight. As the book progressed and some of the red herrings were caught and set aside, it became easier to follow the development of plot and character.
I did get involved enough that I found it difficult to turn off the recording. This might be a great "read" for a long and otherwise dull car trip when one could listen to large sections at a time.
24 people found this helpful
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- Karen Williams
- 15-09-2016
Good Cozy Mystery Made Great With Franks Narration
What made the experience of listening to A Man Lay Dead the most enjoyable?
After exhausting the Hugh Fraser narrated Agatha Christie books, I turned my attention to Ngaio Marsh novels. I knew Inspector Alleyn from the 1990s Alleyn Mystery series, but nothing about the books. I decided to listen to the series in order. Lucky for me, Philip Franks narrates the first book in the series. He takes this 1934 detective story and makes it such fun. Franks' interpretation brings a breeziness to the story (especially in the way he voices Alleyn) that adds wit and charm. In a later novel, Artists in Crime, narrated by Franks, his interpretation of Alleyn's mother adds a dimension of character and wry humor that other narrators do not deliver. Mama Alleyn's analysis of the suspects is rewind and listen again funny. Franks delivers the lines as people actually speak. Franks performs this audiobook, he doesn't read it. The other predominant narrator in this series, James Saxon, seems to me, to read in such an overly melodramatic fashion that makes it much less enjoyable. In Saxon's readings, Alleyn comes across as stern and humorless, even though the books are filled with sardonic descriptions and conversations.
Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?
Not really, it's a good representation of the cozy mystery genre. I enjoy that genre for telling a story without being gory. The development of the characters is the jewel in this series. That being said, Marsh is probably a better representation of what society was like in the 1930s (that's the decade I'm currently on in this series) than Christie. Much more acknowledgement of sex, drugs and language than Christie.
What about Philip Franks’s performance did you like?
Everything. He's a gem and perfectly suited to this material. He's able to perform distinct voices (in a novel with a lot of characters) so that you know who is talking. Like Hugh Fraser, his female voices are very good (although Angela's voice changes from her first scene where she has a deep voice to a lighter "girlier" voice later that's much better). He interprets Alleyn, Fox, Bathgate and Angela in a way that makes you just love them.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
It was. I didn't, but I could have.
Any additional comments?
This is a solidly-crafted cozy mystery that brings a lightness and wink-wink, nudge-nudge, we're-all-having-fun-now element to it. Well worth the time and easy to listen to multiple times.** Audible: If you will re-record the Marsh novels with Franks reading, I will re-purchase every one of them - truly.** He's perfect.
11 people found this helpful
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- Kindle Customer
- 18-11-2016
classic detective story, done well
if you read Ngaio Marah, you know own what you are getting: a solid mystery (logic pizzzle) with a teeny bit of character development for the detective thrown.in over many novels. I love these books and two classic British detective genre. there is a very good reason Marsh ranks up there with Christie and Sayers.
here, the narrator/voice performer does am excellent job with the different characters.
5 people found this helpful
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- James & Noreen Tichenor
- 29-06-2017
Page turner.
Page turner. Suspenseful great audio book. I love the twists, turns and details of the select stars like Marsh.
2 people found this helpful
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- Brian Chafin
- 16-04-2017
Too many cliched
Save us from murders at British weekend house parties. And save us from mysterious gangs of foreigners. The introductory Alleyn novel had included these and other overworked British mystery themes. Alleyn himself is clever and intelligent but not well developed as a character. In short, give this a miss unless you are set on reading the whole series.
2 people found this helpful
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- Cynthia Johnson
- 30-09-2016
great start to a series.
I enjoyed this story. i like that there was a sub plot also. The narrator does a fairly good job. Got lost as to who was speaking a few times but overall very good. The solution was unique.
2 people found this helpful
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- April P. Kane-Warnke
- 27-01-2020
A very good story
The voices of the characters are great. The story is both entertaining and intellectual. The story is a bit on the long side.
1 person found this helpful
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- notlad
- 05-04-2019
The narrator is absolutely perfect.
This is a great book and the narrator performs so well that I could listen to him all day.
1 person found this helpful
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- jcollins@gprep.org
- 08-11-2017
A great example of the classic “murder at the manor “
Ngaio Marsh invites us to join a fascinating cast of characters as they play “Murder” during a weekend in Sir Hubert’s country home. Predictably, the game turns deadly but the plot’s twists and turns were unexpected. Inspector Alleyn is, as always, urbane, witty, brilliant AND very human. Philip Frank’s performance is a delight. Each character’s voice is unique and consistent. Frank always manages to resist caricature. I thoroughly enjoyed this book!
1 person found this helpful
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- Sharon
- 19-11-2016
Oh well....
First listened to "A Surfeit of Lampreys." Delightful characters. Kind of confusing story but that really didn't matter. Chose that as Marsh's reported best. Liked it sufficiently to start from the beginning of the series. Flimsy. Weak. Dull. On to something else...
2 people found this helpful
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- Michelle C
- 05-04-2017
excellent as always
wonderful narration, excellent story. What more could you want from old school classic detection fiction.
10 people found this helpful
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- Elizabeth Godfrey
- 03-03-2018
Entertaining Characters!
Philip Franks is brilliant as the narrator & the Russian/Polish side story was really entertaining. Loved it.
5 people found this helpful
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- Jackx
- 15-07-2018
A classic!
Good plot on the whole. Well read and entertaining. Ending is ridiculous and implausible. But still for all that a good easy listen up to that point. Writen in the Agatha Christie country house murder mystery style.
3 people found this helpful
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- Molly Bones
- 02-01-2018
Enjoyable light listening
Not her best story, but entertaining none the less. Excellent narration and presentation, easy listening.
1 person found this helpful
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- Ruth
- 28-12-2020
Surprising A good listen
This is my first Ngaio Marsh listen, it will not be my last Phillip Franks was an excellent Narrator. The story kept me listening with all its twisted and turns. Written with wit as well as a who done it. A good listen.
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- Michael Hirst
- 27-12-2020
Doesn't work well as an audiobook
The plot is dense and overcomplicated - had I been reading a physical book I would probably be rereading pages as I went along til I made sense of it - not practical with an audiobook. The performance is fine, it definitely didn't work for me in this format, I'm not sure it would suit me even in text as I wasn't keen on the characters, but I think it would be easier to keep a grip on what happens in text.
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- Libby Hall
- 29-02-2020
A truly brilliant narration by Philip Franks
For 20ties 30ties escapist comfort reading you can't beat Ngaio Marsh. They are well written and there is much in the attitudes of the main characters to help overcome any squeamishness at the inequality and snobbery of the background. Philips Franks is one of the few truly brilliant narrators. Wonderful at all the voices and accents, and he is able to make the female characters sound female and not like a man being camp.. I wish he'd narrated more of the early Marsh's.
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- Paul A. Adams
- 25-01-2018
Enjoyable
Kind of old school detectives, but I do very much like it and would read another.
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