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3.63 AVERAGE
3.63 AVERAGE
mysterious
fast-paced
Haiku
...
Picking and choosing
Poirot takes on the challenge
Love a good myth theme
.
.
Nemean Lion?
Not exactly, LOL
What follows are gems
.
.
Mysteries, murders
Greek gods, girdles and apples
Hydra of gossip
...
Picking and choosing
Poirot takes on the challenge
Love a good myth theme
.
.
Nemean Lion?
Not exactly, LOL
What follows are gems
.
.
Mysteries, murders
Greek gods, girdles and apples
Hydra of gossip
This would be rather underwhelming... not all of it, but majority of it. Nevertheless, there's always time for a little Christie in my life.
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
As I've said before, I definitely prefer Agatha Christie in long form. I didn't enjoy these short stories as they had no time for character development and were not fleshed out satisfactorily. I also prefer a slightly more serious tone.
I'm not sure what was occurring in Christie's life when she wrote The Labours of Hercules, but she seemed to have adopted an extreme dislike for recreational drugs. There was also an underlying theme of religiosity in some of the stories, that really reminded me of Poirot's extreme sense of morality. These are not bad thing, just something that was noticable.
My Rating of the individual stories:
1. The Nemean Lion 1⭐ Dog kidnapping, not my type of crime.
2. The Lernaean Hydra 3⭐ Poirot investigates rumours that a doctor killed his wife.
3. The Arcadian Deer 2⭐Missing maid.
4. The Erymanthian Boar 1⭐Poirot hunts a fugitive in Switzerland.
5. The Augean Stables 1⭐ Poirot investigates a political scandal.
6. The Stymphalean Birds 3⭐ A story of blackmail in Europe.
7. The Cretan Bull 2⭐ Poirot investigate madness.
8. The Horse of Diomedes 1⭐Poirot investigates a cocaine dealer.
9.The Girdle of Hyppolita 2⭐ Poirot investigates missing art and the disappearance of a school girl.
10. The Flock of Geryon 2⭐ Poirot is enlisted to investigate a cult leader.
11. The Apples of Hesperides 1⭐ Poirot looks for a goblet.
12. The Capture of Cerberusa1⭐A night club draws the investigative interest of Poirot and inspector Japp.
On a positive note watched the film after reading the book and I loved it. I love the way some of the sorties were seamlessly weaved together in one location. Some things were changed, but only for the better in my opinion.
I'm not sure what was occurring in Christie's life when she wrote The Labours of Hercules, but she seemed to have adopted an extreme dislike for recreational drugs. There was also an underlying theme of religiosity in some of the stories, that really reminded me of Poirot's extreme sense of morality. These are not bad thing, just something that was noticable.
My Rating of the individual stories:
1. The Nemean Lion 1⭐ Dog kidnapping, not my type of crime.
2. The Lernaean Hydra 3⭐ Poirot investigates rumours that a doctor killed his wife.
3. The Arcadian Deer 2⭐Missing maid.
4. The Erymanthian Boar 1⭐Poirot hunts a fugitive in Switzerland.
5. The Augean Stables 1⭐ Poirot investigates a political scandal.
6. The Stymphalean Birds 3⭐ A story of blackmail in Europe.
7. The Cretan Bull 2⭐ Poirot investigate madness.
8. The Horse of Diomedes 1⭐Poirot investigates a cocaine dealer.
9.The Girdle of Hyppolita 2⭐ Poirot investigates missing art and the disappearance of a school girl.
10. The Flock of Geryon 2⭐ Poirot is enlisted to investigate a cult leader.
11. The Apples of Hesperides 1⭐ Poirot looks for a goblet.
12. The Capture of Cerberusa1⭐A night club draws the investigative interest of Poirot and inspector Japp.
On a positive note watched the film after reading the book and I loved it. I love the way some of the sorties were seamlessly weaved together in one location. Some things were changed, but only for the better in my opinion.
About to retire, Poirot accepts/seeks certain cases for fun, because they mirror the feats of the original Hercules. The stories are pretty good though a few are predictable (at least to a modern reader). Poirot seems to have a happy ending.
I return to this series quite frequently as it contains some of my favourite short stories. I see to discover something new each time no matter how often I read
I know I said after Poirot Investigates that Agatha Christie should stick to full-length murder mysteries and not do short stories about other crimes, but apparently she learned something in the two decades between these collections, because I really enjoyed this one! You have to be prepared for a large suspension of disbelief that Poirot would, after deciding to replicate the Labors of Hercules for his last twelve cases, run across (in order) twelve cases that so perfectly matched the Twelve Labors. But I found it fun to see how Christie adapted and modernized each of the different Labors to match some modern-day crime. None of the stories are, in and of themselves, masterpieces, but as a collection this was a nice departure from the usual Poirot mysteries.