Saturday, June 27, 2009

Agatha Christie again

Oi oi oi...I'm in a marvelous bit of an Agatha Christie rut. I tried to pick up "The Tenant of Wildfell Hall" by Anne Bronte, but I just couldn't get into it. There is something so addicting about mysteries...and I do love Christie. She seems to write in just my style. A bit too morbid at times, but nothing compared to what modern authors deal out.

My sister and have enjoyed the Tommy and Tuppence adventures greatly, as (except for "By the Pricking of my Thumbs" they are generally on the lighter end of Christie's work. "The Secret Adversary" which is the first Tommy and Tuppance story, is perhaps my favorite. They are the youngest then, just settling into their grove, and the mystery is an intriguing one. And Tommy and Tuppence are just so differant from Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot. They offer a totally differant perspective on things. Younger, and then later, a 40ish married couple (which was most unusual). And Tuppance is sometimes so outrageous and yet quick-witted...just hilarious to read. Tommy, on the other hand, is the level-headed, slower thinking, meticulous side of things. (In temperments, Tuppance would be a Sanguine-Choleric mix, and Tommy would be Melancholic-Phlegmatic).

A good Miss Marple was "Sleeping Murder." It was the last Miss Marple story written by Christie, and while not her most brilliant work, holds together nicely. I was less impressed by "The Mystery of the Blue Train" staring Hercule Poirot, which had a weak plot and needed more fleshing out.

To round things out is another Miss Marple: "A Murder is Announced." It has a nice cast of characters, and a very unusual resolution. Not quite on par with "Murder on the Orient Express" or "And Then There were None" but it's higher up in terms of the revealations at the end. Worth reading.

And now I'm settling down to reread "Why Didn't They Ask Evans?" also titled "The Boomerang Clue" which imho is one of the funniest of Christie's works, and is my sister's favorite. Features an original pair of detectives - a middle class auto mechanic and a titled daughter of the aristocracy set off on their own to solve a suspicious death at the golf course in their small Welsh town...

2 comments:

Adonnenniel said...

Yay for Christie!
I always find that once I get into an Agatha Christie mood, no other book, besides one of her delicious mysteries, will suffice. :)

Genevieve said...

Oh, I loved 'Sleeping Murder'! One of my favorites was 'Cards on the Table'-it was a little different because it only had four suspects, but it had so many amazing twists that I really enjoyed.