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whatthekatdraggedin's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
khorrocks's review against another edition
3.0
As with any compilation of short stories (especially 15 of them), these are a bit of a hit or miss.
Some of the mysteries are very well done, but others didn't
The real mystery stories felt like other Agatha Christie books, but there were quite a few that felt more like romantic comedies? Not that they weren't good - just unexpected, and didn't seem to fit with the others.
Audiobook note: It threw me off when they switched narrators partway through the book. Not sure why they changed.
Some of the mysteries are very well done, but others didn't
The real mystery stories felt like other Agatha Christie books, but there were quite a few that felt more like romantic comedies? Not that they weren't good - just unexpected, and didn't seem to fit with the others.
Audiobook note: It threw me off when they switched narrators partway through the book. Not sure why they changed.
melmo2610's review against another edition
3.0
A collection of Agatha Christie short stories that for me were all across the board for me in terms of enjoyment. None of these stories feature Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple. These are all complete standalones. I enjoyed a few of the stories in this collection mainly the first handful of stories. The rest of this book was either just okay or ones I didn’t like at all. Girl On The Train is probably my favorite of this collection. Definitely not my favorite of the Agatha Christie collections I’ve read thus far.
readmore's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
shoelessmama's review against another edition
3.0
I don't know... were these short stories mysteries??? Well, whatever, it's Christie so I'm leaving it on the shelf.
The first eight stories were a fun escape. A little bit of whimsy, a bit of romance and a stretch of the imagination led me to read a few at a time. I got bogged down in the second half when the stories took a weirdly mystical turn. Of the last seven I want the minutes I spent reading "The Hound of Death" back as well as "The Call of Wings". Three more of the seven were still more supernatural than I would like but at least readable. The second to last story, "Magnolia Blossom", was not mystical but depressing and the very last story, "Next to a Dog" could have fit in with the first 8 stories. All in all it was kind of a strange assortment. I'm a little bit at a loss as to how/why these stories were hobbled together.
*Ahhhh, so I just read some other reviews and it seems that this is a collection of some of her early short stories. This explains the lack of mystery and her dabbling in some different ideas. After reading these I'm glad she left the mysticism alone (mostly) later on.*
The first eight stories were a fun escape. A little bit of whimsy, a bit of romance and a stretch of the imagination led me to read a few at a time. I got bogged down in the second half when the stories took a weirdly mystical turn. Of the last seven I want the minutes I spent reading "The Hound of Death" back as well as "The Call of Wings". Three more of the seven were still more supernatural than I would like but at least readable. The second to last story, "Magnolia Blossom", was not mystical but depressing and the very last story, "Next to a Dog" could have fit in with the first 8 stories. All in all it was kind of a strange assortment. I'm a little bit at a loss as to how/why these stories were hobbled together.
*Ahhhh, so I just read some other reviews and it seems that this is a collection of some of her early short stories. This explains the lack of mystery and her dabbling in some different ideas. After reading these I'm glad she left the mysticism alone (mostly) later on.*
rayne709's review against another edition
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Not usually a short story fan but I enjoyed a lot of these. They were nice quick little, sometimes kinda open ended, mysteries taking place throughout normal life. Might actually try other short stories now
melissasbookshelf's review against another edition
3.0
This is an interesting compilation of Agatha Christie's early short stories from the 1920's. There are about 15 stories that range from the simple crime with the happy ending to some bizarre horror stories. I listened to this on my MP3 and enjoyed the narration by Hugh Fraser and Christopher Lee. Each of the stories is around 20 minutes long which was nice because I could listen to a complete story while doing laundry or fixing dinner. Not the greatest stories she's written, but fun to listen to.
robinlovesreading's review against another edition
4.0
Please see the rest of my reviews on my blog at www.robinlovesreading.blogspot.com.
My Rating: 3.5 Stars
In this reissue of A Lover Too Many by Roy Lewis, Peter Martin's wife has been murdered. While not initially accused of the crime, there are a lot of questions to be asked. Part of the reason is that at one time Peter's wife left him for another. Peter himself has had his own dalliance with a woman named Shirley. Now that his wife has been found dead, these facts raise suspicion towards him. Peter is partner in a law firm, and now his job is at risk.
Inspector John Crow from Scotland Yard is now investigating, with Peter as the main suspect. Intent on proving his innocence, Peter hires a private investigator. However, things go horribly wrong when he is murdered in Peter's home. Will the nightmare that Peter is living ever end? By the way, the story was set in 1960s Scotland, so the approaches to the solving of this crime was handled far differently than it would be today
While I was very interested in the answers that would eventually be revealed, I found this story very difficult to get into. I struggled with Peter and some of the other characters. Also, I had to gloss over the legalese in this book. I felt it had no relevance to the story at hand. The first part of the book was told strictly from Peter's point of the book. The policing of the story takes up the rest of the book. After about 40% the book did gain traction and I was able to be entertained. While this may not quite be what I was looking for in a book, A Lover Too Many is the first in a new Inspector John Crow series, and that holds much promise.
Many thanks to Joffe Books and to Books n All Promotions for this ARC to review in exchange for my honest opinion.
My Rating: 3.5 Stars
In this reissue of A Lover Too Many by Roy Lewis, Peter Martin's wife has been murdered. While not initially accused of the crime, there are a lot of questions to be asked. Part of the reason is that at one time Peter's wife left him for another. Peter himself has had his own dalliance with a woman named Shirley. Now that his wife has been found dead, these facts raise suspicion towards him. Peter is partner in a law firm, and now his job is at risk.
Inspector John Crow from Scotland Yard is now investigating, with Peter as the main suspect. Intent on proving his innocence, Peter hires a private investigator. However, things go horribly wrong when he is murdered in Peter's home. Will the nightmare that Peter is living ever end? By the way, the story was set in 1960s Scotland, so the approaches to the solving of this crime was handled far differently than it would be today
While I was very interested in the answers that would eventually be revealed, I found this story very difficult to get into. I struggled with Peter and some of the other characters. Also, I had to gloss over the legalese in this book. I felt it had no relevance to the story at hand. The first part of the book was told strictly from Peter's point of the book. The policing of the story takes up the rest of the book. After about 40% the book did gain traction and I was able to be entertained. While this may not quite be what I was looking for in a book, A Lover Too Many is the first in a new Inspector John Crow series, and that holds much promise.
Many thanks to Joffe Books and to Books n All Promotions for this ARC to review in exchange for my honest opinion.