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rach 's review for:
Evil Under the Sun
by Agatha Christie
Another fun mystery in where I had no clue who the killer was until Poirot’s big reveal. I need to take some notes from him - whoever is the most likely killer is probably it, even if that person seems to have an alibi. The worst part of this story is what the real murderers did to the victim’s stepdaughter - not only allowing her to believe she killed her stepmother, but actively encouraging it. Luckily, Linda survived her suicide attempt, and even though she still felt guilt for wishing her stepmother dead, at least she was convinced her “witchcraft” didn’t have anything to do with it.
There has to be some commentary here on gender roles as they existed at the time. First of all, all the women seemingly disliked Arlena because she was too alluring and kind of dumb, and all the men seemingly liked her because she was beautiful and the seductive type. What did she really think? Did she just prefer the company of men to women? Did she like the power she had to bring men to her side? Or was she more of a tragic figure like Poirot framed her in the end - always being left behind and abandoned by men who grew bored with her, and willing to give anything to gain love and companionship?
I was also pretty annoyed at the end because I really enjoyed Rosamund Darnley’s independence and success as an unmarried business woman. I liked what Poirot had to say about her - she wasn’t unmarried because no man would have her, she was unmarried because she had met no man she wanted. To then turn around and have a man tell her, “if you want to marry me, you’ll have to quit your job and close down your business and move to the country,” and for her to AGREE with gusto to such a ridiculous request was just beyond frustrating. So basically, her whole life and business was just filler to kill time until the man she had always wanted finally realized he wanted her, too? That’s so weak. It’s hard to believe a woman wrote this.
There has to be some commentary here on gender roles as they existed at the time. First of all, all the women seemingly disliked Arlena because she was too alluring and kind of dumb, and all the men seemingly liked her because she was beautiful and the seductive type. What did she really think? Did she just prefer the company of men to women? Did she like the power she had to bring men to her side? Or was she more of a tragic figure like Poirot framed her in the end - always being left behind and abandoned by men who grew bored with her, and willing to give anything to gain love and companionship?
I was also pretty annoyed at the end because I really enjoyed Rosamund Darnley’s independence and success as an unmarried business woman. I liked what Poirot had to say about her - she wasn’t unmarried because no man would have her, she was unmarried because she had met no man she wanted. To then turn around and have a man tell her, “if you want to marry me, you’ll have to quit your job and close down your business and move to the country,” and for her to AGREE with gusto to such a ridiculous request was just beyond frustrating. So basically, her whole life and business was just filler to kill time until the man she had always wanted finally realized he wanted her, too? That’s so weak. It’s hard to believe a woman wrote this.