‘Out flew the web and floated wide; The mirror crack’d from side to side; ‘The curse is come upon me,’ cried The Lady of Shalott.’ – Alfred Tennyson Well, it had to happen sooner or later… I’ve finally read an Agatha Christie book that I didn’t particularly enjoy. I finished this feeling underwhelmed and a […]
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Opening sentence: “I forget everything between footsteps.” If you’re planning on giving The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle a read – and I think you should – maybe allocate a little more time than usual. Coming in at just over 500 pages, it’s a longer novel anyway but let this picture give you an idea […]
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Opening sentence: “My dear M. Poirot!” Cards on the Table has an interesting line in the foreword by Agatha Christie: ‘(this) was one of Hercule Poirot’s favourite cases. His friend, Captain Hastings, however, when Poirot described it to him, considered it very dull!’ Interesting, as when I started reading I feared I was going to […]
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Published by HarperCollins 24th January 2019 / 400 pages Opening sentence: “I see a man coming through the falling snow.” It’s no secret that I love a bit of Agatha Christie so when I kept seeing reviews of The Hunting Party saying that in plot and tone it evoked the great lady herself, I couldn’t […]
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Five Little Pigs by Agatha Christie Opening sentence: “‘Do I remember the Crale case?’ asked Sir Montague Depleach. Today would have been Agatha Christie’s 128th birthday, so it’s only fitting that I post about one of her marvelous books! Five Little Pigs sees legendary detective Hercule Poirot take on an interesting case. He gets a visit from Carla […]
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Published 23rd August 2018 by HarperCollins / 400 pages Opening sentence: “Hercule Poirot smiled to himself as his driver brought the motorcar to a stop with satisfying symmetry.” Sophie Hannah is a successful crime writer who, since 2014 (with permission from the Christie estate), has been writing new Hercule Poirot stories in the voice of […]
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The Craftsman by Sharon Bolton Opening sentence: “On the hottest day of the year, Larry Glassbrook has come home to his native Lancashire for the last time, and the townsfolk have turned out to say goodbye.” Mix a good old-fashioned murder mystery with elements of witchcraft and yes, I’m going to be interested. I heard […]
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