Agatha Christie - The Seven Dials Mystery (1929)

This is the second mystery with Superintendent Battle and Lady Eileen Brent (Bundle). Of all Christie's female characters, I like Bundle the most. Fun, feisty and daring - she's the most engaging youthful character in all of Christie's books.

A group of friends staying in the country set eight alarm clocks to wake up a chronically oversleeping friend... this sets in motion murder, conspiracy and a race for Bundle to find the seven dials and stop whatever dastardly plans they have for England.

Agatha Christie - Destination Unknown (1954)

This is another of Christie's standalone spy thrillers.

Hilary Craven, amusing name since she's trying to kill herself in Morocco when the story begins,  is enlisted by a British agent Jessop to impersonate a missing scientist's dead wife. Scientists have been disappearing all over the world and Jessop believes Hilary is his best hope of locating where they've been spirited off to.

I really liked the journey across Africa and the different ideologies for the characters - these made up their different reasons for disappearing the way they did. They all thought they were going to their version of Utopia. In reality a very wealthy man was collecting 'resources' that the world would pay heavily to use. Christie wasn't blinded by the illusions thrown up to stop people seeing the realities of life - in the end it's always about money. Greed makes the world go round. Quite sad really, since money doesn't exist yet so much harm is done to acquire it.

Agatha Christie - Sparkling Cyanide (1944)

Christie loves her story-lines where heiresses are murdered for their fortunes. I wonder if it happened often in the 30s and 40s, or if she just didn't like beautiful self-involved heiresses.

Rosemary Barton dies at her birthday dinner - suicide by cyanide in champagne. Less than a year later her husband receives letters stating Rosemary was murdered and he calls in Colonel Race to help him figure out why and whom.

This was a good story - Race doesn't have much more than a cameo in it for most of the book. It's more him trying to convince George to leave things to the police. George doesn't and this gets him killed, so Race steps in to solve the murder, helped by Rosemary's sister Iris's fiance Anthony Browne.

I really like the name of one of the antagonists - Ruth Lessing. Her character was truly ruthless and foolish.

Agatha Christie - Death on the Nile (1937)

This is the 15th book in the Hercule Poirot mysteries and the second book featuring Colonel Race. It's one of my favourite of Christie's mysteries and one of the saddest.

The very poor Simon Doyle meets the equally poor Jacqueline de Bellefort, they fall passionately in love, get engaged and Jackie introduces him to her very wealthy best friend Linnet Ridgeway - who promptly steals Simon away.

Enter Egypt, three months later, on a cruise up the Nile. The newly wed Simon and Linnet are on their unhappy honeymoon as they're pursued by a vengeful Jackie. Poirot, also on the cruise, watches the drama uneasily as he suspects things are not quite what they seem. With Linnet's murder, the theft of pearls, the appearance of Colonel Race on the trail of a foreign agent, and far too many suspects who wanted Linnet dead - Poirot finds a very confusing case that taxes his little grey cells.

I'm always saddened by Linnet's death. She was spoiled and used to getting her own way, but she was only 20 years old and to kill someone so young for money is just so meaningless. Money is an imaginary concept, without worth. Linnet shouldn't have been murdered for it, especially not with the justification that she had betrayed a friend and stolen her fiance as the slim reason behind it all. People mature, they grow out of their feckless youth. Linnet would never have the chance.

I'm still quite fond of Colonel Race. He doesn't have Poirot's skill at puzzling out the truth, but he's such a comforting character. I've liked watching him develop through Christie's novels.

Agatha Christie - The Seven Dials Mystery (1929)

This is the second Christie novel featuring Superintendent Battle and Lady Eileen 'Bundle' Brent. It's set four years after the Secret of Chimneys in the 1920s.

Bundle, now a young lady, stumbles on a mystery that began whilst Chimneys was leased for the past two years. What's the significance of the seven clocks? What did Gerry Wade mean by the Seven Dials? Who killed Ronny Devereaux and what does it all have to do with a formula for steel?

Bundle, in her usual exuberant manner, bumbles about, often finding clues by accident. Enlisting the help of Jimmy, Lorraine and Bill, they inflict themselves on the ever tolerant Superintendent Battle who also seems to be involved in the mystery.

I really enjoyed it, but I don't believe there is a Christie I haven't liked. What I really  would have loved is for Christie to have written more mysteries featuring Bundle, who is just such an engaging character, I wanted her story to go on and on.

Agatha Christie - They Came to Baghdad (1951)

This is one of Christie's spy thrillers, inspired by her time in Baghdad with her archaeologist husband.

It begins with a secret summit of superpowers - set to meet in Baghdad. Only a powerful organisation - opposed to capitalism and communsim - is out to sabotage the talks. Enter Henry Carmichael, a spy who has information that could out the ring of saboteurs. Unfortunately, he dies in Victoria Jones' hotel room before he can tell anyone more than 'Lucifer Basrah Lefarge'. The first time I read this book I felt really depressed by Carmichael's death - he'd fought so hard to survive, chased across the Middle east, then dies in Baghdad just when he reaches safety. It just felt too cruel - and still does.

Victoria is only in Baghdad on a whim, wanting more adventure than her life had brought so far. After being filled in on the situation by Mr. Dakin (there's always a spider manipulating the spy web), Victoria leaps into the fray, carries on Carmichael's work, helps solve the mystery and meets her future husband archaeologist Richard Baker.

It's an enjoyable thriller. I've read it twice now and I know I'll read it again and again. It's just one of those annual books. No matter how many new books come out, there's only so many books that call to you and want to be kept on your shelf forever and always to be read at least once a year. For me, this is one of them.

Agatha Christie - The Secret of Chimneys (1925)

This is Christie's first book featuring Superintendent Battle.

Adventurer Anthony Cade agrees to deliver a manuscript to an English publisher for an old friend. To Cade, this seemed like a simple favour, only no-one wants the manuscript to be published. The resulting capers have Cade crashing a house-party at Chimneys, embroiled in the politics of Herzoslovakia, searching for a Royal murderer and finding the infamous Koh-i-Noor diamond.

The book was FUN! The characters were interesting and enaging. As a murder-mystery it wasn't in the normal thrill-dash-ride for the killer. It was a bit of a mad romp through the idiosyncrasies of politicians, fanatics and aristocracy. None of whom seem even slightly versed in day-to-day realities.

So bring on the full English breakfast (minus the kidneys) and enjoy the farce as Scotland Yard and the Sûreté try to solve a crime with the bumbling help of a cast of characters who think it is all a bit of a lark - as long as the drinks are never delayed by a dashed inconvenient murder.

Agatha Christie - The Man In The Brown Suit (1924)

 I read this Christie mystery at least once a year and it will always be one of my favourite-of-all-time novels. Not just because I'm half in love with Colonel Race either *sigh*. It's all of the characters, they feel so real and the adventure feels such fun. I'm there in Africa with Anne, I'm not just reading about it. I'm living the story.

Christie is one of the greatest authors ever, but I consider this in her top 10 best. The story is set in Africa (most of the time), with a master criminal who is charming and adorable, handsome dashing heroes and an in omnia paratus heroine - Anne. All of whom are searching for a murderer and Kimberley diamonds.

Anne is brilliant - she's so vibrant, ebullient, sparkling, vivacious... there just aren't enough words for how lively she is. You can feel Anne throughout the novel, everything she does and says. I couldn't relate to her one bit, I don't want to emulate her in any ways, I definitely didn't approve of the hero she chose for her husband - but I still adore her!

The only part of this novel that made me sad was the point where Colonel Race is described as a big game hunter (he's really British secret service, thankfully). I know everyone thought it was a fair fight back then, a bunch of guns and an unaware animal. But, I don't and never will. I know it continues today on private safari-slaughter sites in Africa and I'm appalled by it. Anyways, ending the rant - still a great novel!

Agatha Christie - The Pale Horse

I recently watched the BBC Marple adaption of The Pale Horse and I was confused by the storyline, things were so convoluted! So I went to the library and borrowed the book. Firstly, no Marple in the story! Ariadne Oliver makes brief appearances, but the main character is Mark Easterbrook, a historian. I found his bungling manner quite endearing, although I did think he was never going to solve the mystery.

It wasn't my favourite Christie, I understand why the adaption was so convoluted, the book itself seems to go in so many different directions before it wraps up into the solution. A bit like real life really, although a tad hard to follow - also like real life. I don't think the adaption needed Marple - Easterbrook and Ginger, his co-opted sleuth, were quite capable of getting themselves into mischief without her guidance.

Still, it was a Christie and that automatically makes it better than most of the other mystery books out there. I was disappointed that Ariadne wasn't eating apples continuously  - but if this came after Hallowe'en Party I forgive her.

One last thing, a white cockerel is killed during a magic ritual in the story. I found it uncomfortable and skipped those pages, so just be warned if you don't like animal abuse - and who does, honestly?

Agatha Christie - Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories (1985)

I really enjoyed these short stories. Most of them were told by The Tuesday Night Club, a regular group of meetings at Miss Marple's home to drink sherry and talk about murder mysteries. All of the mysteries baffled the tellers when they occurred and some of the murderers escaped justice. But, as Miss Marple says, there's always justice, it just comes in different forms.

What was great about this book was that Christie would have one of the characters tell the tale and give all the clues and you'd have the chance to work out who the murderer was, and how they murdered, just like the other characters - only without the sherry and Miss Marple. I managed to completely work out half of the murders and a few more I guessed, but several left me baffled until Miss Marple would provide the solution and then I'd have a Doh! moment as everything fell into place.

They were a lot of fun and great for when you're waiting and just need to fill a few minutes of time. Each story is only a few pages long and focuses completely on each mystery. I noticed that one of them was used in the latest Miss Marple television episode "The Secret of Chimneys". They took the tale "The Herb of Death" and mixed it with a non-Marple novel, Chimneys, which had very little resemblance to its original story. It wasn't very well done, they would have been better off sticking to the actual story, which was more interesting, but that's television.

Agatha Christie - The Moving Finger (1942)

It's a gripping little tale, very unlike the Marple television episode with Geraldine McEwan (my favourite Miss Marple). But that's how it goes when books become film. Many of the witty lines were intact, often said by different characters, and Marple herself doesn't appear til near the end of the book. Mostly the book focuses on Jerry, and is told from his point-of-view, as he convalescents in Lymstock, a small and rather inocuous little country town - or so he thought.

Poison pen letters, suicide, murders - smoke screens, as Jerry puts it. But he doesn't quite put it all together until Marple comes along and asks those famous, or infamous, questions that make him think. Marple is an interesting character. I hold her in esteem. She just doesn't trust people and expects the worst, even though she's quite kind to them. Marple is a watcher. She watches humanity and knows the faults will out themselves because they always do. People are people and they do bad things for stupid reasons like greed, hate, envy, lust. Her devout cyncicism must be difficult to eternally endure, but she does so with such aplomb and a skein or three of wool.

My hat is off to Miss Marple. I love her character. If I was ever in trouble I'd want her in my corner.

So the book - brilliant. Very twisty. If I hadn't watched the episode I wouldn't have known the murderer. There were a lot of very undesirable characters in the novel. People you knew could be the one, but a conspiracy on that scale would be ludicrous/impossible/cluedo-esque!

Read Christie's books. There's a reason why she's one of the greatest authors of the 20th century. She's fun and relaxing. Her books wrap you up and keep you in their little world until you're ready to face the real one. The best part, in her books the petty sneaky evil people are punished and truth triumphs. A sad discrepancy from real life where the opposite is more prominent.

You can read odd bits about the book in this Wiki.