Marsh, Dame Ngaio

Marsh, Dame Ngaio (nī`ō), 1899–1982, New Zealand detective story writer. She was an art student, actress, and theatrical producer before her first novel, A Man Lay Dead, was published in 1934. Her many mystery novels, acute in characterization and literate in style, reflect her knowledge of the art studio and the theater. They include Artists in Crime (1938), Died in the Wool (1945), False Scent (1959), Killer Dolphin (1966), Last Ditch (1978), Photo Finish (1980), and her last book, Light Thickens, published posthumously (1982). She was made a Dame of the British Empire in 1966.

Bibliography

See her autobiography, Black Beech and Honeydew (1965).

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Marsh, Dame (Edith) Ngaio

(born April 23, 1895, Christchurch, N.Z.—died Feb. 18, 1982, Christchurch) New Zealand writer of detective stories. Originally an artist, she later acted in and produced Shakespearean repertory theatre (1938–64). She is known for her mystery stories featuring Inspector Roderick Alleyn of Scotland Yard. With novels such as Overture to Death (1939), Final Curtain (1947), Death of a Fool (1956), and Dead Water (1963), she helped make the detective story a respectable literary genre.