Dead Water (novel)

Dead Water is a detective novel by Ngaio Marsh; it is the twenty-third novel to feature Roderick Alleyn, and was first published in 1964.

Dead Water
First edition
AuthorNgaio Marsh
LanguageEnglish
SeriesRoderick Alleyn
GenreDetective fiction
PublisherCollins Crime Club
Publication date
1964
Media typePrint ()
Preceded byHand in Glove 
Followed byDeath at the Dolphin 

The plot concerns a murder in a small coastal village, where a local spring believed to have miraculous healing properties is enriching many of the local residents who cater to those seeking healing they cannot find elsewhere. Miss Emily Pride, an old teacher of Alleyn's, inherits the place from her sister and comes to inspect her new property with plans to stop what she considers to be the vulgar exploitation of gullible and desperate people. Miss Emily begins receiving anonymous threats, apparently from locals who are upset by the proposed interruption of their new-found prosperity. After Miss Emily is physically attacked, Alleyn arrives to protect his beloved old teacher but soon the situation escalates to murder.

Television adaptation

This novel was adapted in 1994 for the television series The Inspector Alleyn Mysteries, with Patrick Malahide as Roderick Alleyn and Belinda Lang as Agatha Troy. The TV film relocated the novel's original Cornish setting to a Scottish island. Margaret Tyzack played Emily Pride and Jane Lapotaire Elspeth Cost.


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