A review by lefthandedmatt
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie

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

4.0

I went into this expecting a difficult read given its age. Other books I've read from the 1930s have been struggles given the aged writing styles. But surprisingly, this is a breeze. Christie's writing is conversational and easy to digest. It doesn't rely on flowery descriptions or confusing language.

On the flip side, her writing also isn't particularly... good. It's plain and often overly simplified. Characters have the barest of personalities. Most dialogue follows a pattern of "x said angrily: 'That makes me angry!' y said suspiciously 'This is very suspicious'."

But it works! The story is completely engrossing and has a fantastic central mystery. It kept me coming back and is clearly the inspiration for an entire subgenre of "murders in an isolated mansion" stories. I'm quite eager to explore more of Christie's tales.

I came pretty close to guessing who the killer was, but it caught me by surprise!
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