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bethanie_l's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Fantastic book that kept me guessing until the very end! Nobody does it like Agatha Christie. The atmosphere is tense the entire time and the slow revelation of details is perfect. Highly recommend.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death and Murder
Minor: Antisemitism and Racism
_mariah_'s review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Suicide
Moderate: Child death and Racism
Minor: Antisemitism
doug1's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
Fast paced, but just a bit too much racism and sexism for me. Google the backstory and original title of this book for more disturbing information. This is my first and least Agatha Christie read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Gun violence, Racism, Death, and Misogyny
Moderate: Child death
isirla's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Ten people are invited to spend a glorious summer holiday on an island, called Indian Island. What they don't realize is they've been sentenced to die on the island for crimes they committed where the law can't touch them.
I used to love this book when I was younger and not at all aware of the original title of the book, back when there was no internet at our disposal to conduct research. I'm older now and still enjoyed the intrigue and the plot twist. But I can't give this book more than a 2-star rating. I saw the original cover and it makes me want to vomit quite frankly. And I'm very disappointed in Agatha Christie for continuing to have her book published under its original title in the UK even after the US changed it to this title (according to Wikipedia).
Open racism aside, I found the characters a bit... cookie cutter if that makes any sense. There's nothing really special about any of them. They're all pretty detestable so you don't really feel bad about them being sentenced to death by the court of this killer. If anything, I find the killer to be the most interesting character in the whole bunch!
I'll stick to books that reflect my values.
I used to love this book when I was younger and not at all aware of the original title of the book, back when there was no internet at our disposal to conduct research. I'm older now and still enjoyed the intrigue and the plot twist. But I can't give this book more than a 2-star rating. I saw the original cover and it makes me want to vomit quite frankly. And I'm very disappointed in Agatha Christie for continuing to have her book published under its original title in the UK even after the US changed it to this title (according to Wikipedia).
Open racism aside, I found the characters a bit... cookie cutter if that makes any sense. There's nothing really special about any of them. They're all pretty detestable so you don't really feel bad about them being sentenced to death by the court of this killer. If anything, I find the killer to be the most interesting character in the whole bunch!
I'll stick to books that reflect my values.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Racial slurs, Misogyny, and Racism
iactuallycantread's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
WTF
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, War, Violence, Death, Gun violence, and Suicide
Moderate: Genocide, Gore, and Child death
Minor: Racism and Racial slurs
The deaths aren’t described graphically but some are. these deaths include:megelizabeth's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
"There was something magical about an island - the mere word suggested fantasy. You lost touch with the world - an island was a world of its own. A world, perhaps, from which you might never return."
As a mystery, this is very solid, with a strong atmosphere and sense of place, an intriguing cast of characters, and great building of tension and suspense. I had various theories throughout, none of which were quite right, and felt satisfied, if not entirely shocked, with the ending. This book does some really interesting things, and I can definitely see why it has remained so popular and has influenced so much other work.
In talking about this book, I don't think you can ignore its racist history. Although I read a version with these traces removed, and I wouldn't have known had I not been prompted by other reviews to do some research, I do still feel uncomfortable with regard to the wider context of the book, and it's difficult to entirely separate the newer, revised editions from the original. I really would urge anybody who isn't aware to educate themselves accordingly, as plot-wise this is a great book, and I'm glad that I've now read it, but that doesn't mean we should discount its history.
As a mystery, this is very solid, with a strong atmosphere and sense of place, an intriguing cast of characters, and great building of tension and suspense. I had various theories throughout, none of which were quite right, and felt satisfied, if not entirely shocked, with the ending. This book does some really interesting things, and I can definitely see why it has remained so popular and has influenced so much other work.
In talking about this book, I don't think you can ignore its racist history. Although I read a version with these traces removed, and I wouldn't have known had I not been prompted by other reviews to do some research, I do still feel uncomfortable with regard to the wider context of the book, and it's difficult to entirely separate the newer, revised editions from the original. I really would urge anybody who isn't aware to educate themselves accordingly, as plot-wise this is a great book, and I'm glad that I've now read it, but that doesn't mean we should discount its history.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder, and Suicide
Moderate: Misogyny, Child death, and Racism
Minor: Alcoholism
joyolivia's review against another edition
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Death
Moderate: Racism
alisasreads's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
the language in the book caught me off guard at first.. you can obviously tell it was written a while ago, but when you get past that it's truly a great fast-read mystery novel. the first agathie christie i've read and i really enjoyed her way of writing characters, she gives them depth fairly quickly which gets you more invested in the story. the reveal wasn't shocking to me but it was very well thought out. wouldn't give it more than 4 stars though since its nothing mind-blowing, but still a very fun read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Murder, and Death
Moderate: Suicide, Gun violence, Medical content, and Violence
riley84's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia, Antisemitism, and Racism
kate_arts's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
It’s a find book and I understand why Agatha Christie is an important literary figure, but sometimes the British really are colonizers. This book could’ve worked just as well and been better without the racism. I also think it’s trying too hard to be cleaver and it doesn’t come off the way it’s intended. Definitely a classic but you could read other books and get the same vibes without the racism and it might even be a better story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Suicide
Moderate: Racism