Vintage Mystery – Carol's Notebook

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie

June 16, 2026June 16, 2026 by Carol2 Comments

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd is just fabulous. There's a reason it's a classic. The first time through, you'll be surprised by the twist. On rereads, you'll appreciate how clever Christie is and how entertaining her characters can be. Hercule Poirot has retired to the country to live in anonymity and grow vegetable marrows, which I think are a type of zucchini. It's not going terribly well. But then we have a couple of deaths in town, a suicide followed shortly by a murder, and Poirot gets to put his little grey cells to work. Our narrator is Dr. James Shepherd, the local doctor, who knew both of the dead people quite well. From him we learn about Mrs. Ferrars' suicide, which town gossip is sure was due to the guilt she felt from poisoning her husband. We also learn that she disclosed some information to Roger Ackroyd in a letter the night he was killed. Shepherd acts a little like...

The Circular Staircase by Mary Roberts Rinehart

June 9, 2026June 9, 2026 by Carol2 Comments

A couple of weekends ago we went to the Pittsburgh Book Fest, which was so much fun! One of the events I signed us up for was a presentation about Mary Roberts Rinehart, who was born and raised in Allegheny City, which eventually was annexed by Pittsburgh, and then built a house in Sewickley following the success of The Circular Staircase. She led a fascinating life, if you ever get the chance to read about her. Pitt actually holds the archives of her papers. So, I listened to The Circular Staircase in preparation. I've read it before but didn't actually remember any of it. Rachel Innes is a wealthy woman who has been the guardian of her niece and nephew for a long time. They are both young adults now and the three of them have decided to rent a place for the summer, and taken Rachel's maid with them. The mansion, belonging to a banker and his family who...

The Labors of Hercules by Agatha Christie

April 10, 2026May 4, 2026 by CarolNo Comments

Poirot has a friend over one evening and the topic of names comes up. The man points out that Hercule Poirot is hardly a Hercules. This gets Poirot to thinking and he decides to prove that he is indeed able to live up to the name by solving twelve cases to rival the Twelve Labors of Hercules. The rest of the book is a collection of short stories featuring cases that connect with each of the Labors. Yes, some of the cases are a stretch, but I enjoyed it. I won't go into detail about the stories. Like most collections, some are better than others. I've read them before, but only remembered a couple of the solutions. Poirot is Poirot, quirky, overbearing, vain, but his caring side comes through in several of these. I listened to the audio and Hugh Fraser does a fabulous job as always. It did make me think I should go back and read about Hercules,...

A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie

March 27, 2026March 27, 2026 by Carol2 Comments

I love that Miss Marple is bored on her vacation at the Golden Palm resort on St Honoré in the West Indies. The weather is always the same, lovely and warm, and the nothing interesting ever happens. She spends most of her time knitting and observing those around her. She also ends up listening to a lot of her fellow guest, Major Palgrave's, stories. When the major ends up dead, apparently of natural causes, Miss Marple is sure that his death was a murder and connected to a story he told her. She puts on her little old lady act and starts investigating. She does rope in an assistant, Mr. Rafiel, a grouchy, wealthy elderly man in a wheelchair. He's really a great character and I love how he and Miss Marple work together - both older and underestimated, but with their own outlooks and resources. We've got a nice batch of varied suspects and a lot of undercurrents of...

Félicie by Georges Simenon

March 19, 2026March 19, 2026 by Carol1 Comment

Félicie is only the second Maigret book I've read and I don't think I have a good feel for the character or the writing yet. This time around an old man is found murdered in his cottage in a picturesque village outside of Paris. The actual focus of the book though, is his young housekeeper, Félicie, who was the only other resident of the house and who inherits it, to everyone's surprise. Félicie is infuriating for Maigret, but has his full attention. She's headstrong, impetuous, angry, and trying desperately to control what she allows Maigret to see and know, but there's more going on than she realizes. Maigret's team is methodical, while his instincts tell him to keep arguing, cajoling, and spending time with Félicie. Turns out he's right and the clues she unwillingly gives him lead to the solution. I listened to the audio and thought the narrator did a good job with Maigret's voice and keeping the other characters...

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

March 5, 2026March 5, 2026 by Carol2 Comments

Yes, I've read Murder on the Orient Express several times. Yes, I've watched the movies, also multiple times. But somehow I always enjoy it. We all know the plot. Hercule Poirot is a last minute addition to the first class carriage on the Orient Express from Istanbul to Calais. All the other rooms are taken, unusual for winter, The following morning, the train is stuck in the snow and one of the passengers, an American named Ratchett, is found dead in his bunk, stabbed multiple times. Of course, I know the whodunnit and it's not one you can forget, but it's always fun watching Poirot collect all the clue, lies, and red herrings. His friend/ company director, Monsieur Bouc, sits in on the questioning and you have to admire how quickly he jumps to conclusions only to have them just as quickly upended by Poirot. He's a good character, light-hearted, but in the the end his position allows him to...