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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
2.5 rounded down. Agatha Christies depictions of native guile are always a bit cringe worthy and this was more in line with her thrillers than the mysteries. Poirot appears for only the last few chapters and the story relies on ridiculous plot devices. Not character driven at all either. A short, unsatisfactory book.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Not the best Poirot, and very dated in parts, but thoroughly enjoyable nonetheless.
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-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
It felt like Hercule Poirot was an afterthought, adding him into the end. I would have preferred this to be a stand alone and let the other characters solve the mystery and murders.
I liked the writing, but the plot of "Cat Among the Pigeons" did bore me after a while. I'll still try some more books my her though ;)
Cat Among the Pigeons is a story of murder and hidden treasure at an internationally acclaimed boarding school for girls. It's a gripping novel that reads more like a spy thriller than most Poirot books. The detective in question doesn't even show up until almost , making this far from your classic Christie mystery. It's still a fun read, though. I've read it twice now and thoroughly enjoyed myself on both occasions.
Before you pick up a copy, you should be aware that, like many Christie novels, this book reflects prejudices and word-views from the time period and place in which it was written. There's some casual glorification of "the English way" and some casual dismissal of other countries and their cultures, especially France and the Middle East. It's not a major part of the book by any means, but it shows up regularly in off-hand comments since the setting is an international boarding school. I was pleasantly surprised that the book didn't fully embrace these lines of thinking as you can see in this exchange when a Detective presents two of the school's teacher with the idea that one of their students may have been sneaking out to meet a boy:
If lines like Miss Johnson's will bother you, don't read the book as they're not always shot down so excellently. But if you can look past them and you enjoy a good mystery thriller, then give this one a look!
Spoiler
three fourths of the way through the bookBefore you pick up a copy, you should be aware that, like many Christie novels, this book reflects prejudices and word-views from the time period and place in which it was written. There's some casual glorification of "the English way" and some casual dismissal of other countries and their cultures, especially France and the Middle East. It's not a major part of the book by any means, but it shows up regularly in off-hand comments since the setting is an international boarding school. I was pleasantly surprised that the book didn't fully embrace these lines of thinking as you can see in this exchange when a Detective presents two of the school's teacher with the idea that one of their students may have been sneaking out to meet a boy:
Miss Johnson gasped. "Well, yes, the idea did come into my head for just a moment. One of our Italian girls, perhaps. Foreigners are so much more precocious than English girls."
"Don't be so insular," said Miss Bulstrode. "We've had plenty of English girls trying to make unsuitable assignations." (page 74)
If lines like Miss Johnson's will bother you, don't read the book as they're not always shot down so excellently. But if you can look past them and you enjoy a good mystery thriller, then give this one a look!