Something's Afoot

I’ve been debating with myself over whether or not I should do murder mysteries for the book list for a little while now. I don’t know if any of you out there mind a little violence in your books or mind a discussion of books that are not quite up to “classic” standards. However, I’m of the opinion that a little mind candy never hurt anyone and there are some reasons why it wouldn’t be bad to be better acquainted with the author Agatha Christie. Dame Agatha Christie wrote over 80 detective books and plays in her time and has been dubbed The Queen of Crime. More copies of her books have been sold than any other author with the exception of Shakespeare and the Bible. Her Belgian detective Poirot is the only fictional character to have been given an obituary in the New York Times. Many of her books have been made into movies. And, for me, her books are quite entertaining with well constructed storylines and some have very shocking endings that probably should have been obvious. The three most entertaining and shocking books from Ms. Christie, for me, were The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Murder on the Orient Express, and And Then There Were None.
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd was written in 1926. This is a book that features her famous detective Hercule Poirot, a little Belgian who started out small and gained much notoriety later in his career and who had a somewhat bumbling sidekick, much like Sherlock Holmes. This case follows Poirot as he looks into the case of the death of a local wealthy gentleman. There are several suspects and missing men and misleading clues, all of which are common in murder mysteries. However, this was the most surprising murder mystery that I’ve ever read, and if I tell you why, it won’t be shocking any longer. Sorry.
The Murder on the Orient Express was written in 1934. This is another book that features Hercule Poirot. This particular case involves Poirot on the Orient Express, a train traveling through Europe. The train stops suddenly in the middle of the night in the mountains where no one could possibly have crept on without being noticed. One man is murdered and Poirot must discover who did it and why.
And Then There Were None was written in 1939. This book features ten people who receive letters inviting them to an island off the coast of England for a holiday. When they arrive, they hear a record read off their names and a dire sin that each has committed, saying that they have been brought to the island to pay for their sin. They notice a poem that reads:
Ten little Indian boys went out to dine; One choked his little self and then there were Nine.
Nine little Indian boys sat up very late; One overslept himself and then there were Eight.
Eight little Indian boys traveling in Devon; One said he'd stay there and then there were Seven.
Seven little Indian boys chopping up sticks; One chopped himself in halves and then there were Six.
And so on until there are no Indian boys left. Due to some unavoidable circumstances, the visitors are unable to leave the island, though they would like to when they start to die in correlation with the poem. I know, the poem isn’t very PC, but it was written long before political correctness was an issue. And, though it’s not as shocking as the Murder of Roger Ackroyd, it’s one of my favorites.
One last note. As I write up these blog posts, I do my best to not give away any secrets or plot endings. I hate it when people give away an ending for me, so I do my best not to give away an ending for anyone else and I hope that makes the book a more desirable read. If anyone would like to know more about a book or would like to have a nice long discussion about any of the books from the book list, I’m always here.