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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
fast-paced
adventurous
challenging
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The story:
Mr Shaitana is a man who prides himself on knowing other people's secrets. So when he boasts to Poirot that he has a collection, not of objects related to murder, but of murderers themselves, the great Belgian sleuth is more than a little uneasy. Invited to a party to 'view the exhibits', Poirot is joined by seven other guests. Four of them are detectives, of one sort or another. So that must mean the other four are more than they seem...
Four players will sit down to a game of bridge. By the end of the night, there will be a murder that only one of them could have committed. But which?
My thoughts:
This month's theme for #ReadChristie2025 is 'Detectives', and we are spoilt with them in this book! Not only do we have Poirot, but we see the reappearance of two characters introduced in earlier novels — the solid and slightly stupid-seeming Superintendent Battle (who appears in five Christie novels, first in "The Secret of Chimneys", and who featured in last month's read, "The Seven Dials Mystery"); and the adventurous Colonel Race (who appears in four Christie novels, the first being "The Man in the Brown Suit"). We are also treated to the very first appearance of mystery novelist Ariadne Oliver (a character humourously based on Christie herself), who will go on to feature in six more Christie novels, all but one of them alongside Poirot.
This is a clever mystery, as there are almost no clues to go on... The very unlikable Mr Shaitana (we are not sorry to see him murdered!) invites eight people to a party — four 'detectives', represented by Poirot (private), Battle (Scotland Yard), Race (Secret Service [unconfirmed!]) and Oliver (fictional), and four alleged murderers. The two groups sit down to games of bridge in two separate rooms, with Shaitana sitting by the fire in the room with the murderers. By the end of the evening, he is dead, and with no one having entered the room, one of the four must have done it. But there is nothing to go on beyond the characters and histories of the four suspects, something which each of our detectives then goes about tackling in their own particular styles.
I thought perhaps that there was one twist too many at the end of this book, but it was good for each of the potential murderers stories to be resolved, and overall this is a really excellent mystery that keeps you guessing all the way!
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I didn’t like it as much as I hoped to. The blatant xenophobia and constant references to bridge were more than a little tiresome; however, Poirot was great here. I loved how he used small things to really plumb the depths of each suspects’ guilt, personality, and psychopathy. The whole idea of wolves in sheeps’ clothing, of how murderers can be hiding in plain sight, never suspected, never identified, never caught, is always fun, and I loved how the different characters were used to explore the idea of guilt, conscience, and what you will—and won’t do—to conceal a crime.
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Ännu en godbit läst från pusseldeckarnas drottning, Agatha Christie. Maj månads val till #readchristie2025 föll på Korten på bordet, under yrkestemat detektiver. Denna bok är ett av de avsnitt av Poirot jag minns mest. Tycker alltid de mordmysterier där offret dött i det öppna, rakt framför näsan på folk och utan att någon märker, är de mest intressanta. I denna är det ännu mer intressant, samt svårt att lista ut vem som är mördaren. Då alla de som var på plats runt bordet när offret dog, var mördare. På ett eller annat vis, hade alla haft fingret med i spelet för att ta livet av någon i deras närhet. Väldigt bra bok, och så intressant att få läsa om vad var och en av karaktärerna gjort, och hur detta ledde fram till mordkvällen. Riktigt pang slut som alltid, med oförutsägbara tvister 🃏