Hugh Fraser – Carol's Notebook

Cat Among the Pigeons by Agatha Christie

November 20, 2025November 20, 2025 by Carol1 Comment

I shouldn't actually like Cat Among the Pigeons. Spies and political intrigue are not usually my favorites, especially when it comes to a Christie novel, but this one is fun. Our set up is that during the revolution in a small Middle Eastern country, the king gave some jewels to his best friend to sneak out of the country. Those very valuable jewels end up at a girls' school in England, leading to a couple of murders and a kidnapping. Poirot doesn't show up until maybe two-thirds of the way into this one. The reader knows where the jewels are hidden but not who is after them or who the murderer is. A fun amateur sleuth puts together some of the pieces and heads off to London to ask for Poirot's help. This was a reread for me and I did remember a couple of the twists, but that doesn't make it less fun. This time I listened to the audio...

Hallowe’en Party by Agatha Christie

October 31, 2025October 31, 2025 by Carol1 Comment

This is at least the third or fourth time I've read Hallowe'en Party. Christie books are my comfort reads and this one is perfect for October. A girl is drowned in the apple bobbing bucket at a Halloween party after declaring that she once saw a murder. Ariadne Oliver, a guest at the party, turns to Poirot for help. Poirot begins with the question of what murder the girl could have witnessed, and turns up several potential cases. The plot moved along at a good pace and there were several turns. I knew the who the killer was, but it was fun getting there. I love the dialogue between Ariadne and Poirot....

Towards Zero by Agatha Christie

September 22, 2025September 22, 2025 by Carol1 Comment

One more Christie then I'll move on to other books for a while. This time around our detective is Superintendent Battle. While he's not as memorable as Poirot or Marple, he's a good guy and a solid detective. The story starts with a variety of seemingly unrelated events. In the prologue, would-be murderer is plotting out a murder right down to the last detail. But then we meet a schoolgirl, Battle's daughter, who is accused of theft at school, and we hear the story of a man who attempted suicide but was saved and has found a new job, but not happiness. Then there's the tennis player who is staying at his benefactress' seaside home with his wife - and his ex-wife. Tensions are elevated and murder becomes inevitable. We know a lot about the characters before the actual murder takes place, but that didn't help me solve it....

One, Two, Buckle My Shoe by Agatha Christie

September 9, 2025September 9, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

We all know I love Agatha Christie and Poirot has always been my favorite of her detectives, but I can't really pick a favorite when it comes to the stories. One, Two, Buckle My Shoe is not it, although it's a good one. A dentist dies of a gunshot wound in the middle of the day and it is believed to be a case of suicide by everyone, except Hercule Poirot who was a patient of his and had visited him the very same day. It's nice to have Poirot in at the very beginning, noticing potential suspects even before the crime is committed. As usual, Poirot observes and suspects far more than the police and doesn't take anyone's word as gospel. The mystery is solid with a nice mix of family drama and international tension - this was originally published mid- WW2. The characters themselves are a bit forgettable though. And, as always, Hugh Fraser does a fantastic job...

Crooked House by Agatha Christie

June 3, 2025June 10, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

Crooked House is one of Christie's stand-alone mysteries. We have three generations of the Leonides family all living under the roof of the wealthy grandfather, Aristide. When Aristide is murdered, all the household comes under suspicion. His granddaughter Sophia tells our narrator and her fiancé, Charles Hayward, that they cannot marry until the killer is caught. Charles' father happens to be the Assistant Commissioner of Scotland Yard, so Charles investigates from the inside along with assigned detective, Chief Inspector Taverner. The Leonides family members are an interesting, mostly unlikeable lot and any of them could have a motive - money, control. There are plenty of tensions and secrets. Charles makes a decent amateur sleuth and this one is more about uncovering family dynamics and tensions than concrete clues. The whodunnit is surprising, but makes total sense....

Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie

May 16, 2025May 16, 2025 by CarolNo Comments

Most Agatha Christie's are rereads for me, including Cards on the Table. I remembered the setup. Mr. Shaitana invites Poirot to a dinner party, promising to introduce him to one of his collections, murders who have gotten away with their crimes. It turns out there are four "murderers" and four of Christie's detectives, Poirot, Colonel Race, Superintendent Battle, and Ariadne Oliver, at the dinner. After dinner, they play bridge and by the end of the night Shaitana is dead. It's a clever mystery. We only have four suspects, but figuring out which one is guilty is not as easy as it seems. All of them have the same motive - Shaitana made several veiled references to the crimes and, if they were actually guilty, any of them may have been afraid he would go to the police. Poirot is the lead, but he does a nice job collaborating with the others. It's fun to see the different personalities and...