50. Crooked House (1949)

Dear Agatha,

Another fun, twisty adventure.  I enjoyed reading something with a different person on the hunt, although I do love me some Poirot.  

So, there's this:

"More children suffer from interference than noninterference."

Gave me pause.  Not sure I agree.  I guess extreme interference and extreme noninterference are both harmful, in fact, that's why we have Peter.  His parental noninterference became neglect.  Anyway.

"We're all too fond of each other.  We're not like some families where they all hate each other like poison.  That must be pretty bad, but it's almost worse to live all tangled up in conflicting affections."

Interesting.  Dysfunction much?

I love metafictional comments like this, especially those that your works solidly rebut:

"Anyway...girls can't be detectives."

Thanks for another wonderful read, dear Agatha!

Always,

b.

49. Witness for the Prosecution (1948)

Dear Agatha,

What a crazy journey it has been, these past six or so months.  Our life was upended and we have moved over 1000 miles away back to our desert home in California.  Crazy series of events, for sure, leaving me out of my reading routine.  I have a couple of books - like this - that I read months ago - and never had time to blog.  And, because I'm 50 now, I honestly don't remember a lot abou them.  Please forgive me.

Getting back on track.

b.


PS - most of these were republications of short stories read elsewhere previously.

48. Taken at the Flood (1948)

{also published as There is a Tide}

Dear Agatha,

What a crazy journey it has been, these past six or so months.  Our life was upended and we have moved over 1000 miles away back to our desert home in California.  Crazy series of events, for sure, leaving me out of my reading routine.  I have a couple of books - like this - that I read months ago - and never had time to blog.  And, because I'm 50 now, I honestly don't remember a lot abou them.  Please forgive me.

Getting back on track.

b.

47. The Labors of Hercules (1947)

Dear Agatha,

What a crazy journey it has been, these past six or so months.  Our life was upended and we have moved over 1000 miles away back to our desert home in California.  Crazy series of events, for sure, leaving me out of my reading routine.  I have a couple of books - like this - that I read months ago - and never had time to blog.  And, because I'm 50 now, I honestly don't remember a lot abou them.  Please forgive me.

Getting back on track.

b.

46. The Hollow (1946)

{also published as Murder after Hours}

Ahhh, Agatha - how I loved this one!

Poirot put his hand gently on her shoulder.  He said:

"But you are of those who can live with a sword in their hearts - who can go on and smile - "

Henrietta looked up at him.  Her lips twisted into a bitter smile.  "That's a little melodramatic, isn't it?"


"It is because I am a foreigner and I like to use fine words."

That cracked me up, of course, Agatha.  I love your sense of humor in your work.

I am continually amazed at the creativity of your stories, at the pace you wrote and published, and by how much I learn when I read them (mostly about British culture, but still.)  This novel taught me what a monkey puzzle is.


Thanks again, dear Agatha.  On to The Labours...

b.

45. Sparkling Cyanide (1945)

{also published as Remembered Death}

I loved this one, dear Agatha - especially the structure of it, with the first half-dozen chapters being remembrances of Rosemary (rosemary means remembrance) by different characters.  In fact, I might just go back and re-read the chapter of the murderer now that I know whodunit...

Some of my favorite passages:

Race to George:  "I don't like it, George.  These melodramatic ideas out of books don't work.  Go to the police..."

George:  "These women who have children when they're over forty never seem to learn any sense.  Spoil the brats from the cradle by giving them every damned thing they want!"

"But like most people with an idea, George thought only of that idea."

"'What about the cyanide? Was there any container found?'

     'Yes.  A small white paper packet under the table.  Traces of cyanide crystals inside.  No finger-prints on it.  In a detective story, of course, it would be some special kind of paper or folded in some special way.  I'd like to give these detective story writers a course of routine work. They'd soon learn how most things are untraceable and nobody ever notices anything anywhere!'"

"'Moral:  every murderess was a nice girl once.'"

I loved this book, Agatha.  It definitely goes into the "read it again" file... if there's ever enough time.

Love,

b.

44. Death Comes as the End (1944)

Hello, Dame Agatha ~

Funny how I was able to get 3 of your novels read in January, giving me false hope that that would set the pace for the year.  And then February came, and... suddenly we're 1/3 of the way through March.

I'll be honest - I suspected I wouldn't like this book, set as it is in ancient Egypt.  But I was wrong.  Once I finally got past the first few paragraphs and odd names, I was hooked.  Wikipedia says "it is also the first full-length novel combining historical fiction and the whodunit/detective story, a genre which would later come to be called the historical whodunit."  So yeah - *that's* kind of cool!

One of the things I admire about your writing, Agatha, is the depth of the characters you create in just 175 or so pages, all along crafting a detective story littered with clues and surprises and death along the way.  This was short - but it was absolutely filled with murder and mayhem and twists and turns along every page.  And while it was set thousands of years ago in a completely different region and culture, it just goes to show that there's nothing new under the sun.  People love, people hate, people are inclined to evil and ambition and pride... then or now.

I loved Hori and the ending of the novel... I was worried for a little bit there.  And all the people who died... whatever - except one.  Aw.  :(

I have to say, though - this isn't my favorite cover!

Thanks for the fun again, dear Agatha. 

Hungry for more,
b.

43. Towards Zero (1944)

{also published as Come and Be Hanged}

Agatha!  This book was so much fun!  Seriously, this might be one of my favorites.

When you read the account of a murder - or say, a fiction story based on murder, you usually begin with the murder itself.  That's all wrong.  The murder begins a long time beforehand.  A murder is the culmination of a lot of different circumstances, all converging at a given moment at a given point.  People are brought into it from different parts of the globe and for unforeseen reasons... The murder itself is at the end of the story.  It's Zero Hour."

That comment by Superintendent Battle at the end of the story brings Mr. Treves's comment at the beginning of the story full circle:

"Even now," thought Mr. Treves to himself, "some drama - some murder to be - is in course of preparation.  If I were writing one of these amusing stories of blood and crime, I should begin now with an elderly gentleman sitting in front of the fire opening his letters - going, unbeknownst to himself - towards zero..."

That of course, is exactly how the novel played out brilliantly. 

One more amusing thing - I love how Battle gave nod to Poirot, who makes no appearance in this novel, but he is certainly there in spirit - inspiring Superintendent Battle.

Loved this, Agatha, reading it in nearly one sitting (finished over two days).  Thanks for the ride.

b.

42. The Moving Finger (1942)

{also published as The Case of the Moving Finger}

Ah, dear Agatha... I loved everything about this book - except the title.  I thought the title was dumb.  I thought a better title would've been something to do with a Poison Pen... 

BUT...

Then I googled the reason for the title and wise ol' Wikipedia told me:

The book takes its name from verse 51 of Edward FitzGerald's translation of the Rubáiyát of Omar Khayyám:

The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ,

Moves on: nor all thy Piety nor Wit

Shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,

Nor all thy Tears wash out a Word of it.

The poem, in turn, refers to Belshazzar's feast as related in the Book of Daniel, where the expression the writing on the wall originated.

The title shows in the story figuratively and literally. The anonymous letters point blame from one town resident to another.^[3] The Scotland Yard agent determines the envelopes were all "typed by someone using one finger" to avoid a recognisable 'touch'.^[6]

So I am back to loving everything about this novel.

It does make me smile to think this is called a Marple mystery.  Miss Jane doesn't show up until the novel is 75% through, and the narrator - very likable Jerry - does most of the crime solving, although admittedly it does take Miss Jane to point it out.

I found Megan's character intriguing enough to make me want to read this again someday, paying more attention to the aspect of her relationship with Jerry.  There are some dated ideas in here, of course, but nothing to make me like it any less.

As always, dear Agatha, thanks for the fun! 

b.

41. Murder in Retrospect (1942)

{also published as Five Little Pigs}

So I've been working on this little project of mine - reading all your published books in publication order - for three years now.  I'm roughly halfway there.  I think I've been reading at a decent pace, but boy I'd better step it up a bit if I don't want to say that it took me a decade to finish all of them.  (I know, my math is off, but that's called hyperbole.)

I'm starting 2019 off well enough on a good reading pace, although peak tax season hasn't really hit yet.  Still, I'm going to set a personal goal to get 24 Christies completed this year, finishing the project in 2020.  2 Agathas : 1 other book per month.  We shall see how it goes.

It took me a reeeeeeally long time to finish this book.  I just had the hardest time getting into it and distractions, as usual, abound.  I did enjoy it when I finished it, though, and wrapped up the next book, The Moving Finger, quite quickly after that.  And look how cool their covers look side-by-side!  They aren't next to each other on the bookcase (alphabetized, you know), so I'm glad I noticed it.

That's all I've got for this one, dear Agatha.  :)  Plugging along.

Always,
b.