Mystery – Page 79 – Carol's Notebook

Lord Edgware Dies by Agatha Christie

November 24, 2018 by Carol11 Comments

Jane Wilkinson wants to be rid of her husband, Lord Edgware. She asks Poirot to see him, to convince him to grant her a divorce. At the same time, she talks about how she would go about killing her husband if need be. As the title makes it clear, Lord Edgware does die. Jane, however has an ironclad alibi - but she was also observed at the scene of the crime. As always, Christie gives us several suspects and possible motives and two more dead bodies. She provides us plenty of clues, but also enough red herrings to keep us guessing. This time around we have several characters who are actors, which makes it even more difficult to tell who is lying. The final solution was well done, believable but with a perfect twist. Hastings is our narrator here, and I read the version narrated by Hugh Fraser, which was perfect. Hastings gets made fun of by Poirot for not understanding, but...

Much Ado About Murder by Elizabeth J. Duncan

November 14, 2018 by Carol8 Comments

I finished Much Ado About Murder a few days ago, but then I couldn't remember if I finished it or not. I had started another book on my Kindle, which meant I must have finished it, but then I had to look back and see who the killer was. The book obviously didn't leave much of a lingering impression, or at least the reveal didn't. I like the setting, a hotel/theater in the Catskills. I also like Charlotte. She's from England and is a very talented costume designer. Due to the turnover of directors and her friendship with the Director of the Board, she is to some extent in charge of the theater. Between the actors, director and costume staff, we've got a lot of characters, several of whom had motive for killing Edmund, because of course Charlotte's right—it was murder. I guess overall it was just fine. The characters were fine, each had their bit of backstory that made them possible suspects....

Cherringham #4-6 by Matthew Costello and Neil Richards

November 1, 2018 by CarolNo Comments

I enjoyed this second collection of Cherringham novellas. Cherringham itself is a good setting, a typical small English town with its bar and bakery, its quirky townsfolk and always a murder or theft or something going on. Jack and Sarah make a good team. They are both smart and talented in their own ways. Jack is a former police detective and knows the ins and out of solving crimes. Questioning people comes naturally to Sarah and as at least a semi-local she knows a lot of people, she's also the one who does the computer research and occasional hacking. In "Thick as Thieves," a potentially valuable artifact is found on a farm. It is put in a retired professor's safe but is stolen over night. Sarah had been covering the story of the artifact for the town's paper and is of course curious. Her computer skills definitely come in helpful here, as do Jack's stake out abilities. I can't say I...

Sparkling Cyanide by Agatha Christie

October 26, 2018 by Carol6 Comments

I love the title Sparkling Cyanide. Christie's titles don't tend to be particularly noticeable, but Sparkling Cyanide stands out. It captures clearly the method of murder - cyanide in the champagne, and it's a bit glamorous. Rosemarie died a year ago, presumably suicide. She was a beautiful woman, but her death benefitted several people. Her husband, George, truly loved her, in spite of her affairs, and has come to believe that she was actually murdered. Any one who was at the dinner the night she died could have done it - her lover or his scorned wife, her sister Iris who stands to inherit, the husband's trusted secretary, or a rather shady "friend" who, a year later is making moves on Iris. George organizes a second dinner party, with the same people, hoping to force a confession. It all goes terribly wrong when George is killed too. Colonel Race, a friend of George's, helps in the investigation. He doesn't actually do much, but he is on...

Death and the Dancing Footman by Ngaio Marsh

October 25, 2018 by Carol10 Comments

I love mysteries, but if I had to narrow the genre down to my favorite type, I'd pick vintage mysteries. Even narrower, I'd go with country house mysteries, preferably at Christmastime, but winter will do. Death and the Dancing Footman is one of those. Our Inspector Roderick Alleyn doesn't show up until about 2/3rds through. Usually that annoys me, but Marsh tends to make it work. This time around, it gives us plenty of time to meet all of the guests. Jonathan Royal is the owner of the country house and the host of the house party. He is rather not a good person. He's invited a group of people who will quite clearly not get along well. The Compline family consists of the mother Sonia and her two sons, William who is excessively devoted and Nicholas, her favorite. William is engaged to another guest, Chloris Wynne, who used to be engaged to Nicholas. Sonia's friend, Hersey Amblington, who owns a spa and...

The Mysterious Mr. Quin by Agatha Christie

October 24, 2018October 25, 2018 by Carol7 Comments

The Mysterious Mr. Quin is a collection of short mystery stories, by they're a slight departure from Christie's norm. Mr. Satterthwaite, is upper class, single, a man who loves his comforts and is rich enough to afford them. He enjoys life's dramas, watching rather than participating. Satterthwaite is both the main character and the sidekick. It's his reasoning and actions that solve the mysteries, but it's Harley Quin who mysteriously show up at just the right time, asks just the right questions. Mr. Quin is a touch supernatural, he seems to intercede on the behalf of the dead, those whose mysteries still need solved. These stories are not typical Christie. They're more romantic, with love often triumphing. They're a little dreamy, the plots don't have the precision of Poirot, but the conclusions do seem logical. It's a good collection, but not necessarily what I'm looking for when I'm picking up a Christie. And I have to say I like this Harley Quin better...