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This felt very victim-blame-y ??? When they’re discussing the girl who was murdered, they bring up that she was ‘mature for her age’ (Poirot used the word ‘sexy’… she’s 12-13) and said that could have been partly to blame for why she was killed. Mrs Oliver also said she didn’t like her and found her to be boastful and annoying, to which Poirot says ‘the personality of the victim is the cause of many a murder’. There was another comment earlier when two kids were caught making out and Mrs Oliver noted very unnecessarily that the 12 year old girl’s chest was well developed for her age……
How was this written by a woman?
How was this written by a woman?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Murder
Moderate: Ableism, Misogyny, Pedophilia
Sexual assault mention, sexualizing of minors, drug mention
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Well... every book by Christie can't be a grand slam, and this is one that falls short of expectations formulated by my vast enjoyment of everything else which I have read by her.
This story takes place from the perspective of Hercule Poirot- one of my favorite characters of all time who is recruited to find out who killed a young girl- Joyce Reynolds.
Joyce spouts off to the partygoers of a Halloween party that she had witnessed a murder, and, for this, is killed.
It later comes to be found out that Joyce actually did not see a murder take place, but, rather, she took another girl- Miranda's story and coopted it for herself.
This unfurls a web of subterfuge, lies, deceit, all stemming from the greed that is held in the hearts of those who ultimately perpetrated the crimes.
I thought that this story was very interesting, and as one of the later books of Christie's repertoire it was interesting to see her incorporate more violent deaths. This was a departure from her previous work .
The story, to me, although it was enticing and interesting to read through, felt a good bit convuluted, which is an unfortunate feelings as I typically regarding Christie's stories as very tight.
I as well did not care for most of the characters. Each one of them seemed like they were steeped in cynicism and malcontent which made them hard to like or cheer for. Even Poirot seemed like he was just going through the motions. It felt to me like he, and Christie were very tired, which was unfortunate. I typically love how I always feel like I am being guided through a mystery by a hyper-brilliant mind. This time I just felt like it was checking off boxes, which was ultimately a bit disappointing to me.
Overall, I love Christie's works, but, this one just felt very tired and uninspired to me. There were some clever parts, but, I feel that everything in this book was done better in her other works like this was a tired rehash of her tried and true moments.
I will still read her stuff, but, this one was a bit of a let down for sure.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death
challenging
mysterious
slow-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Child death, Fatphobia, Infidelity, Murder
dark
mysterious
I didn't like this one. The story was dark, creepy, and offensive towards those with mental health disorders. It gave me the icks
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Mental illness, Murder
Moderate: Infidelity
Minor: Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment
adventurous
dark
informative
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Mental illness, Classism
Minor: Fatphobia, Islamophobia
lighthearted
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:
Complicated
Not a terrible book, but I just can't see a reason to recommend it. I'm sure anyone who wants a good murder mystery could pick up any one of a number of other books, or a number of more noteworthy Agatha Christie books
There's something satisfying about the way the mystery spreads out before you over the course of the novel and then wraps itself up again by the end. But as already noted, there's plenty of other books that would give the same satisfaction. The plot itself is plain and with nothing much to say, the characters are all rather flat, and while the writing is fine it's also not a draw. The events of the novel play out in a very straightforward, predictable way, and Hercule Poirot's clue gathering becomes more than a little dull and repetitive by the end.
Ultimately, a decent book to pick up for next to nothing second-hand and spend some carefree time with, but not one to seek out for any reason.
There's something satisfying about the way the mystery spreads out before you over the course of the novel and then wraps itself up again by the end. But as already noted, there's plenty of other books that would give the same satisfaction. The plot itself is plain and with nothing much to say, the characters are all rather flat, and while the writing is fine it's also not a draw. The events of the novel play out in a very straightforward, predictable way, and Hercule Poirot's clue gathering becomes more than a little dull and repetitive by the end.
Ultimately, a decent book to pick up for next to nothing second-hand and spend some carefree time with, but not one to seek out for any reason.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Murder
Minor: Toxic relationship
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Minor: Child death, Murder
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
A good start to Agatha Christie’s books
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death
Moderate: Murder
Minor: Suicide
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Murder
Minor: Death, Infidelity, Mental illness, Suicide, Kidnapping, Toxic friendship