Genre: Mystery
Warnings: Brits, Murder (obviously)
Pages: 247
Rating: 4/5
This is a really great mystery novel. It's quick, fascinating and fun. I've never read any Agatha Christie novels before now, but her other works are on my to-do list now.
I liked that the characters reminded me a little of the secondary characters in Doyles "Sherlock Holmes" stories, possibly because Christie was also an upper-crust Brit, although from two generations later. However the break from a sleuth main character was excellent, because the first person perspective lent a sense of urgency to the wholw thing. I enjoyed the shifts in perspective, which happened often enough and were well-placed enough to keep the identify of the murderer a secret from me.
Like I said, this book was quick. I finished it in one sitting, which is terrible for the sort of literary analysis more involved than "So who is killing everybody?" On the other hand, this novel didn't have to be ripe with flowery language to be interesting. This is common for mystery novels, but agonizing over the villain (or villains) is usually the only draw a good mystery novel uses, and the only one it needs. I found that to be the case here. As Christie herself pointed out, there's something truly impressive in a killer that manages to kill ten people in a way that keeps a casual reader interested.
Similar Books and Authors
"The Complete Sherlock Holmes" by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
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