Review: Colour Scheme

Colour Scheme by Ngaio Marsh
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This was a very different novel than the other Alleyn novels I have read. It is set in New Zealand and includes Maori tribes, suspected fifth-columnists (spies), and a British family. There is no sign of a major crime until well into the book, but the suspicions and conflicts among the characters make for a compelling story anyway.

The cove of this edition, which is from the editions of Marsh's novels that I have been reading, pictures a tropical drink with skulls on the paper umbrella. I like this graphic for a mystery novel, but it has nothing at all to do with this particular novel.

I am counting this book toward the Read Harder Challenge for the category of  "a book that is by or about someone from an indigenous culture" as much of it is set in a Maori community and many of the characters are Maori.