Reviews tagging 'Gun violence'

Dieci piccoli indiani by Agatha Christie

152 reviews

lomis's review against another edition

mysterious tense 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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Murder, Gun violence, Death, and Confinement

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.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Sexism, Murder, and Death

Moderate: Suicide, Gun violence, Medical content, and Violence

lavenderlilacs1912's review against another edition

dark mysterious fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

And Then There Were None is a stand alone mystery by Agatha Christie that is perhaps her most well-known. Ten visitors arrive on a seemingly deserted and isolated island at the invitation of their mysterious host. What looks to be a relaxing weekend in a modern home turns into a deadly game as each guest is accused of murder by an unknown voice. Then their pursuer starts to pick them off, one by one, all according to a children's nursery rhyme.

I've heard it said that And Then There Were None is one of Christie's best stories and I'd have to agree. It's also one of her darkest, as

none of the main characters make it out alive in the end and the murderer is never caught

. The setup and unfolding of the mystery is unique I can't say I've read any other mystery like it. Christie usually writes cozy murder mysteries, but I would argue that nothing about ATTWN is "cozy." Whereas her Poirot and Marple stories usually have a main character (usually the detective) who is, for the most part, above reproach, ATTWN is different. All the main characters are quite unsympathetic, each being guilty of individual crimes, in the killer's mind. This is quite a psychological murder mystery, where the reader is thrown into each character's head as they reflect on their situations and indeed their own perceived guilt or innocence. And in the end the ambiguity dissipates a little, as each person reveals that they were in fact guilty of their respective crime...they just didn't think so.

The events of the book read like a typical murder mystery, but I also think that ATTWN can also read like a precursor to the modern day slasher films. A cast of morally ambiguous characters getting picked off one by one is definitely a trope in modern horror, with a dash of mystery and psychological thriller thrown into the mix (in this case, though, the characters in ATTWN behave in more intelligent and resourceful ways than the characters in your run of the mill slasher). Yet, that comparison is complicated by the fact that

the "final girl" of ATTWN, Vera Claythorne is 1. Never shown confronting the killer and 2. Is the most damnably guilty and remorseless of them all, her death serving as the final act in the novel before the two epilogues

. 

Which brings me to the ending. That ending is probably the best ending to a book like this, it explains everything yet also offers up more opportunities for discussion, namely about the characters and the themes present throughout the book, namely murder, guilt, and innocence. In conclusion And Then There Were None is a classic for a reason and it's one I can return to and enjoy over and over again 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death and Murder

Minor: Alcoholism, Child death, Gun violence, Infidelity, and Addiction

The book was re published with noted changes from the original. In the original edition the poem and the title both contained the N-Word, while the 1st revision changed the wording from N-Word to "Indian". I read the most recent edition, which excises any racial themes from the poem altogether and changed the title. For an analysis of the racial themes of the book you can watch a YouTube video called "Crime and Colonialism: Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None."

chris_reads's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gun violence, and Murder

Moderate: Alcohol, Racism, and Religious bigotry

Minor: Antisemitism, Child death, Suicide, and Xenophobia

tinkithesquirelll's review against another edition

adventurous 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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body horror, Gun violence, Medical trauma, Racism, Suicide, Child death, Chronic illness, Kidnapping, Medical content, Sexism, Alcohol, Cursing, Death, Misogyny, Murder, Violence, Car accident, and Religious bigotry

sophiemar's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Antisemitism, Racism, Child death, Colonisation, Death, Gun violence, and Murder

Moderate: Alcohol, War, Suicide, and Blood

stuckinatimeloop's review against another edition

challenging dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Murder, and Suicide

Moderate: Child death, Racism, and Gun violence

Minor: Antisemitism

ann_cathrin's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Murder, and Suicide

Minor: Alcohol, Child death, Car accident, and Gun violence

sparklefarm's review against another edition

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

2024 read: A masterwork of mystery. I've read this so many times and still I was on the edge of my seat wondering who and howdunnit. I was reading a version from 1973 though which did mean I got some racial slurs thrown in with my story for free. Hopefully these have been ~amended~ with more recently published versions, and if not, BOO. It definitely marred the experience for me.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Gun violence, Suicide, Murder, and Racial slurs

ashybear02's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark mysterious tense 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

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Gun violence, Death, Suicide, Murder, and Child death