Rating: 
Summary: Country house murder just after WWII
Review: WWII has ended at last, and Chief Detective-Inspector Alleyn is coming home from his wartime work on the far side of the world. His wife Troy, free of her wartime work of mapmaking, takes on a portrait-painting job in the country to pass the last 3 weeks before Alleyn's return. Some realistic character development is presented throughout the story, as both Alleyn and Troy are nervous about their relationship after more than 3 years of enforced separation.Troy is to paint Sir Henry Ancred in the character of Macbeth. (Troy asks him about the superstition that it's an unlucky play - while he avoids speaking the name, he says it was far from unlucky for *him*.) Sir Henry is 75, handsome, a cooperative sitter - and lively, as the frequent interfamily bouts of temperament, and his recently-installed young mistress (or fiancee?) Sonia Orrincourt, bear witness. Most of Sir Henry's family - those not still on active military service - live in the Ancred mansion, and generally make a point of demonstrating how highly-strung they are. They've suspended their normal feuds to ally against Sonia. Sir Henry keeps matters stirred up, having not only his own formidable artistic temperament, but indulging a rich oldster's hobby of revising his will at regular intervals - and publicly presenting Sonia with valuable family jewelry soothes no feathers. Sir Henry's 10-year-old grandaughter Patricia, is currently out of favor due to a rash of crude practical jokes - but did an elder relative engineer them to discredit her? Fenella and Paul, as distant cousins, want to marry, over the old man's objections. How much would they - or their parents on their behalf - want to secure their inheritance? Cedric, as next in line to the title (and with an overdone effeminate manner, a stock figure in Marsh's work) is a disappointment to his grandsire, and may be cut to the bare bones of the entailed estate now that Sir Henry might remarry. In contrast to the usual stereotype, Sonia is more a more sympathetic character than most of the family - no pretentions as an actress or a person, making a refreshing change from most of the Ancreds. On the evening of Sir Henry's birthday, everything comes together: Alleyn is due back, Troy's painting is complete, Sir Henry's solicitor is present to make a new will - and sure enough, one of the party is found dead in suspicious circumstances. Alleyn must finally face his personal problem with keeping Troy and his work in separate compartments. Inspector Fox, once again, is shown to be a full partner on the police team, not merely a sidekick and foil.
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