Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
I am shamed to confess this is the first Agatha Christie I have ever read. Found a couple old paperbacks in Half Price Books and picked them up. And read this one in maybe two days? Heartily enjoyed! She writes in such an engaging style and these books are just old-fashioned and British enough that it warms my heart reading something that's set in a slightly different time and place. This mystery was one of the classic "closed room" case where we know the villain was one of four people...but who was it? Christie's misdirection is simply wonderful and I was thrown off at the end where I thought I knew who the murderer was...but I was sadly mistaken! Poirot was not, though. That's another thing, Poirot is a fantastic character and I much enjoyed seeing him work this case. I was surprised that this book isn't focused just on him though - we get the viewpoints of quite a few other characters, which keeps the story fresh. Well done, and perhaps I will catch on to Christie's tricks as I read more of her books, but this one was a marvelous diversion.
One of the better Christie mysteries I've read lately!
Unfortunately this one is really racist, specifically in the highly negative stereotypical portrayal of the murder victim. It's really a shame, because aside from that this was a very entertaining mystery with lots of fun twists, but wowie, it's like glaring in your face racism coming up repeatedly (including a character using the slur d*go).
This was a very interesting case. I was thrown off by all the other murders. One of these days, I will get it right.
An eccentric man named Shantaina invites four investigators including Poirot and Ariadne and four possible murderers to a dinner party. He ends up dead and there are four suspects and many twists.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
A solid mystery novel, although I would have found it more enjoyable if I had been able to understand the many references to bridge.
Classic who done it. One of the best Christie stories.
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
This is an excellent story, definitely one of Christie's better novels.