REVIEW: The Sittaford Mystery

 The Sittaford Mystery
Author: Agatha Christie

Agatha Christie has been my favorite author since I was 9 and read my first Hercule Poirot novel (It was The Mysterious Affair at Styles, in case anybody is curious). I bought a box set of Poirot paperbacks at a garage sale for the exorbitant price of $4 (and spent a lot of time mowing the lawn that summer to pay my mom back for giving me the cash to buy books!) and was whisked away into Christie's golden age mystery world of waxed moustaches, sinister plots and murders at country estates. :) Flash forward mumble-mumble-ahem years, and I still LOVE Christie's style and characters. 

I always wanted to read all of Christie's writing....but could never find a comprehensive list. Back in the pre-internet days, I lived in a small town in BFE Kansas that had no bookshop and a very small library. I made a list of her novels using book lists in paperbacks I bought...and found many of her books over the years. I have a shelf filled with old, disheveled but much loved, paperbacks. But I could never find them all. And some were published under multiple titles....making it really rough to tell what book was actually which. :) 

But.....the internet is a wonderful tool....and I've finally started on my quest to read my way through Christie. In publication order (as best I can, with some backtracking when I find I have gone off track) and much meandering down rabbit holes when necessary (references to historical events, places, or phrases/language that is dated by almost 100 years of time passing). I'm loving it! 

I had to smile when I reached The Sittaford Mystery in my travels through Christie. This is a Christie novel that I had never read before. And not only that, it was the first Christie novel to be published under one title in the US and another in the UK. In 1931, the book was published in the United States as The Murder at Hazelmoor. Later that year, the book was published in the UK as The Sittaford Mystery. This story doesn't feature one of Christie's well-known detectives, but instead focuses on a group of people in two English villages following a blizzard. Throw in a supernatural element -- a session of "Table-Turning'' that hints at a murder -- and Christie weaves an interesting tale of cold, winter murder! 

Very entertaining mystery! I liked the fact that the characters were just randoms thrown in together and not Poirot/Marple, etc. This particular plot worked better that way. I listened to the audio book version of this story. Narrated by Hugh Fraser (who played Hastings in the Poirot television series), the audio is about 6.5 hours long. Fraser does an excellent job of narrating! 

I went down a bit of a rabbit hole on this one....    Table Turning. Before oujia boards became all the rage, spiritualists, magicians and charletans used table turning to contact the spirit world. Participants would sit around the table and when there was a spirit with a message, they would speak the alphabet waiting for the table to dip or move at the correct letter. Movement of the table or even raps were used as signals. Definitely a fun and easily manipulated parlor trick for amusement. Christie, of course, turned it to sinister, murderous ends! 

The television series Agatha Christie's Marple adapted this story in Season 2, Episode 4. I had never watched the show before....so was very interested to check it out. Jane Marple is played by Geraldine McEwan. I liked her portrayal of the character, but was disappointed in the episode. Significant changes to the plot were made....so many in fact that it really is no longer the same story. Ick. The story is great the way Christie wrote it --- why mangle it just to add Miss Marple in the mix?? It could easily have been kept mostly intact and Marple still interjected into the investigation....but they made major plot changes. Boo!

Moving on to the next book in my Christie adventure:  Peril at End House!  Hercule Poirot! 

 

REVIEW: Cat Me If You Can

 Cat Me If You Can
Author: Gemma Thorne

A day that starts out with a haunted jar of possibly demonic pickles can only get worse. Journi McCutcheon is a Soothsayer. She has investigated a lot of strange things since the Rise of Magic changed the world. A jumping jar of dills leads her to discover a heinous plan to rid the world of deviants and magic. Can she stop the evil plot before it's too late? 

I enjoyed this first book in the Hissing Booth Chronicles series! The characters are fun and entertaining. Journi is an intelligent and interesting main character. The plot kept my attention. There is plenty of action, humor and paranormal/magical action. Very entertaining!

I listened the audio book version of this story. The audio is a just a bit over 4 hours long and narrated by Lynn Norris. Norris reads at a nice pace and does a good job of voice acting. She definitely brought the characters to life! 

I look forward to finding out what happens next in this series! 

REVIEW: The Mysterious Mr. Quin

 The Mysterious Mr. Quin
Author: Agatha Christie

I have been learning so much about my favorite author by reading her stories in publication order! I have loved Agatha Christie's characters and classic mysteries since I was 9 years old and read my first Hercule Poirot novel. But up until my current reading project I had never read any of her short stories and several novels are new-to-me as well. And I keep having to backtrack to read some stories that were published first in magazines and then collected into book form later. 

I loved the early Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple short one-minute style mysteries! All of the stories were written and published in detective and fiction magazines and then published as short story collection books. Come to find out The Mysterious Mr. Quin is the same situation! 

Mr. Quin is a mysterious, almost supernatural man, who appears unexpectedly to help uncover the truth behind unsolved crimes. An older gentleman, Mr. Satterthwaite, finds himself a very willing accomplice as he likes looking into the everyday drama of human lives.

I listened to the audio book version of these stories. The audio is narrated by Hugh Fraser who played Hastings in the Poirot television series. He does a great job of narrating. Very enjoyable listening experience!

I did not realize until I had finished the book that The Mysterious Mr. Quin is another collection of stories first published in magazines. There are 12 stories in all. Here is a bit on each one: 

The Coming of Mr. Quin - This story was first published as The Passing of Mr. Quin in The Grand Magazine in March 1924. The very myserious Mr. Quin makes his first appearance at a country house where a man committed suicide by shooting himself years ago. Mr Harley Quin comes to the door saying his car has broken down....and by the time his chauffeur has repaired it, Mr. Quin has helped solve the mystery.

The Shadow on the Glass - Another country house. A ghost. And a murder. Quin appears to help Mr. Satterthwaite figure out the truth behind the shooting. First published in The Grand Magazine in October 1924. 

At the Bells & Motley - Mr. Satterthwaite is travelling but flat tires cause him to shelter from an oncoming storm at the local inn....and he meets up with Mr. Quin. The innkeeper states that the storm is very like one on the very day a local mystery started. Sleuthing follows, as usual. This story was first published in 1925 in The Grand Magazine. 

The Sign in the Sky - Mr. Satterthwaite attends a murder trial that ends in a finding of guilty and a death sentence. He then proceeds to a restaurant and finds his friend, Mr. Quin. It appears not all the evidence is what it seems....  This story first appeared in The Grand Magazine in July 1925. 

The Soul of the Croupier - Mr. Satterthwaite is in Monte Carlo. Mr Quin appears right on cue of course....and drama plays out at the roulette table. I admit I had to look up what a "Croupier'' is -- the person in charge of a gaming table, paying out money or tokens. There is no murder in this tale....just human drama. First published in Story-Teller Magazine in January 1927. 

The World's End - This time Mr. Satterthwaite has travelled to Corsica. He again miraculously bumps into his friend Mr. Quin and they solve the mystery of a missing opal. First published in Story-Teller Magazine in February 1927. 

The Voice in the Dark - World hopper Mr. Satterthwaite is now in the French Riviera at Cannes. Mysterious voices, a shipwreck and a vast estate create the mystery that Satterthwaite and Quin come together to solve. First published in Story-Teller Magazine in March 1927. 

The Face of Helen - This time Mr. Satterthwaite goes to the opera where he meets up with Mr. Quin and gets pulled into another love-related drama. The life of a beautiful woman hangs in the balance as Satterthwaite works to put all the pieces of the mystery together. First appeared in Story-Teller Magazine in April 1927. 

The Dead Harlequin - Mr. Satterthwaite buys a painting that depicts a Harlequin gazing in a window at his own dead body on the floor. The body is a likeness of his friend Harley Quin. So, he buys the painting and ends up pulled into a mystery. This is my favorite story from the collection! First published in Detective Fiction Weekly in June 1929. 

The Bird with the Broken Wing - Mr. Satterthwaite happens to be in the same room with a group of people having a séance, when a message comes through for him. He figures out the message and stumbles into yet another mystery. This story is one that did not first appear in a magazine. It was first published in The Mysterious Mr. Quin in 1930. 

The Man from the Sea - The setting is a Spanish island. Mr. Satterthwaite is walking on a high cliff enjoying the sights when he stumbles into a mystery. Quin of course makes an appearance as well. First published in Brittania & Eve magazine in October 1929. 

Harlequin's Lane - Mr Satterthwaite is at yet another country house where he meets up with Mr. Quin. They investigate a murder. First published in Story-Teller Magazine in May 1927. 

The first story, The Coming of Mr. Quin, was adapted into a movie - The Passing of Mr. Quin - in 1928. 

I enjoyed these stories! They all center around lovers or relationships damaged by violence or unsolved crimes. Mr. Quin has a supernatural element to him, which adds a splash of extra fun to the tales. 

Mr. Satterthwaite is a bit of wealthy snob. He's big on class distinctions and proper behavior in the wealthy class and "lower'' strata. I see this theme repeated often in Christie's characters, and racist nuances pop in at times. Colonial opinions. Commentary on other cultures, races. Characters giving opinions on the poor, servants, lower and middle classes. I still love the stories, but they are definitely a product of 1920's-1930s upper class white European opinions. 

I'm really enjoying my journey through Christie's writings in publication order (Or as close to publication order as I can get) and researching whatever little rabbit holes I find on the way. And I'm loving reading Christie's works as a 52-year old and discovering little tidbits of social commentary and early 1900s nuances that I missed as a child/teenager reading these stories for the first time. The mysteries hold up and are just as much fun to read as they were back when I first read them.....but the social opinions and ideas expressed by some characters in the stories do not hold up to nearly 100 years of time passing. Thank God! 

I have yet to read Christie's autobiography or a biography on her...reading through all her fiction first. I'm curious as to one thing -- did Christie hold the opinions of her upper class characters? Or....was she  making thinly veiled social commentary??  I can't wait to find out! 

In my quest to read all of Christie, I'm going to skip over The Floating Admiral (1931) for now because Christie helped write it as part of the The Detection Club, a group of mystery writers. I'm going to read it -- and the other books written by the Club -- but focusing on works written only by Christie for right now. So...moving on to: The Sittaford Mystery (also published as The Hazelwood Mystery).   This is one I haven't read before -- can't wait!!!!

REVIEW: The Wife Upstairs

 The Wife Upstairs
Author: Rachel Hawkins

I enjoy re-tellings and modern remakes of classics. It's fun to see how a modern writer takes a familiar plot and makes it their own. The Wife Upstairs is Rachel Hawkins' new vision of Jane Eyre. Jane is a dog-walker in a posh Birmingham, AL neighborhood, Thornfield Estates. Then she meets Eddie Rochester, a widower. Eddie's wife and her best friend drowned in a boating accident. Jane is hiding some secrets, but then again....so is Eddie. 

I found this story interesting because there wasn't a single character that I liked. Everyone is a liar, self-absorbed or sneaky. But, really, doesn't every human being have an agenda? I don't want to give anything away.... All I'm going to say is that I got sucked right into this story because I literally disliked every character. But...I pretty much felt the same way about Jane Eyre. Edward is hiding his crazy wife and taking advantage. Jane is too Mary Sue. The servants are all gossips. Edward's rich friends are all classist bigots. The characters in this modern version are still very flawed, but in ways that are bit more recognizable. And a bit more evil. 

This tale had a few surprises along the way. It definitely kept my attention from start to finish. It isn't just an update of the plot we all know. There are marked similarities, but enough is different to make this a real update. 

This is the first book by Rachel Hawkins that I've read. I will definitely read more of her books. I like her writing style! 

I had both an ebook and audio book version of this new release. The audio is just over 8 hours long. Narrated by Emily Shaffer, Kirby Heyborne and Lauren Fortgang, the audio is very well done! 

Excellent twisty tale! I enjoyed it! 

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book. All opinions expressed are entirely my own**

REVIEW: Tales from the Hinterland

 Tales from the Hinterland
Author: Melissa Albert

This collection of 12 creepy fairy tales reminded me of my first reading of the original stories by the Brothers Grimm. I remember being shocked when I read the actual fairy tale stories where the evil stepsisters cut off part of their feet to make the glass slipper fit, people were executed inside barrels studded with nails, and witches ate children. Disney definitely cleaned things up a bit before making cute movies based on the old stories! Melissa Albert takes the feel of those old cautionary fairy tales and brings them into her Hinterland world. Perfect! I loved every single story! 

Don't look for fairy tale endings in these stories. Every one of them is dark and creepy, but incredibly entertaining!!

As a fan of The Hazel Wood and The Night Country, I love the fact that the collection of tales mentioned in the books have been published. I'm going to go back and re-read from the beginning now! 

Although these stories are set in the Hinterland and are part of the series, the collection can be read as stand-alone stories as well. Someone who hasn't read the books but who loves dark fairy tales would still enjoy these 12 stories! 

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Flatiron Books. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

REVIEW: The Perfect Guests

 The Perfect Guests
Author: Emma Rous

What a fun, twisty story! It ended up being a binge read for me.....I couldn't put it down. Wickedly fun read!

1988: A young girl comes to stay at Raven Hall as a companion to the Averell's daughter, Nina. She loves it there and wants to stay. She's willing to do just about anything they ask...but it gets out of hand. 

2019: An out of work actress is invited to Raven Hall. A murder mystery weekend. Eight guests. Isolated at the out of the way estate. Turns out there is more going on than a simple weekend of play acting a murder story.....much, much more. 

I don't normally care for stories that use time jumps, but for this story it works. The story jumps back and forth from Beth's time to Sadie's, twisting the two timelines together to reveal what happened at Raven Hall. It had a bit of a "And Then There Were None'' feel to it. 

Portions of the plot were a bit melodramatic....but this was a very entertaining, engrossing read. Sometimes we all need a bit of a murder-y soap opera! And this definitely fit the bill for me. I needed something suspenseful and sordid....check and check! The entire time I kept thinking to myself how much fun it would be to join in a murder mystery weekend at an isolated country house....until things got a bit too real of course. 

This is the first book by Emma Rous that I've read. I'm definitely going to check out her other book, the Au Pair!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Berkley Publishing. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

REVIEW: All Creatures Great and Small

 All Creatures Great and Small
Author: James Herriot

 

I have loved the stories by James Herriot since I first started reading them in middle school. I enjoyed the television show as well back in the day. I'm delighted that Masterpiece is starting a new series on January 10, 2021. I bought season one online immediately and will enjoy each episode as it posts each week. 

I decided before watching the series I needed to revisit the books as well. My reading plan for 2021 did not involve a jaunt into James Herriot, but that's the joy of my "I read what I want'' pledge. Reading plan be damned -- I'm going to listen to James Herriot! :) I'm so glad I did! The new audio book series is narrated by Nicholas Ralph who plays James Herriot in the new series. He's scottish...so his accent is just lovely! He does a great job of bringing the story to life. Excellent job of narration! I can't wait to watch the television series, but I'm having a wonderful time listening to the books. Herriot tells the tale of his start in veterinary medicine in 1937. The economy was depressed and new veterinarians were having trouble finding jobs. Herriot paints a vivid picture of the stress and trials of being a new vet in a country area where they rely on the "old ways'' and are wary of new people and modern medical procedures and medications. 

As I have spent the last few years revisiting books and series I loved in the past, sometimes stories hit me differently as an adult after first reading them as a child or teenager. But, Herriot's books are still as magical and lovely to me now as they were 40 years ago when I first read them at 12 years old. 

There are two audio books in the series recorded by Nicholas Ralph so far. I hope he does the entire series. I listened to a review copy from Macmillan Audio, but I'm buying my own copy. This is an audio book that I will listen to over and over again. Delightful story!

**I voluntarily listened to a review copy of this audio book from Macmillan Audio. All opinions expressed are entirely my own**

REVIEW: The Unexplainable Disappearance of Mars Patel

 The Unexplainable Disappearance of Mars Patel
Author: Sheela Chari

This book is a fun adventure story for middle grade kids based on an award winning podcast. I love podcasts...so jumped right on this to try reading the book & I listed to a few of the season 1 episodes of the pod cast. Fun!

Mars Patel and his friends are super smart. They all have their own particular strengths and work together to solve problems that arise. Then two of their friends disappear....and they discover that other kids have also gone missing. A strange billionaire and popular podcaster seems to be giving hints about the situation. Where did the kids go? And why?

The pod cast is fun and entertaining. This novelization was also fun to read! It definitely ends on a cliff hanger so I assume this will be a series. The characters are varied. The plot is fast-paced and interesting. I'm 52 -- definitely way out of the target demographic for this series -- but I still enjoyed it! I will definitely be reading more, and I'm listening to the podcast too. I feel like a rebel -- the podcast tells adults  not to listen that the story is for kids. ha ha -- I do what I wanna do! I'm gonna listen anyway! So there! 

:) 

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Candlewick Press. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

REVIEW: Bait and Witch

 Bait and Witch
Author: Angela Sanders

This book hit my favorite trifecta of reviewing -- a new-to-me author, the first book in a cozy series, and something fun and different! I love discovering new authors to enjoy especially cozy mystery writers. Cozies are my relax & just enjoy reading treat....and really enjoy trying a new writer and a new series! I haven't read a lot of cozies that involve magic or witches, so reading this book was fun! I usually go for culinary cozies or ones with cute pets. Nice to change from my usual sometimes!

The basics: after getting into hot water in a corruption case while working at the Library of Congress, Josie moves to Oregon to lay low for awhile. She should be able to hide pretty easily in a small town, right? Wrong. Not only does she discover her family's history of witchcraft, but her powers become active....and she finds a dead body. 

This story is fun and entertaining. I like Josie as a main character. She has a lot going on in life....and it seems more just keeps coming! The story moves at a nice pace and has more than enough humor, sleuthing, suspense and interesting characters to keep my attention. 

I'm definitely looking forward to the next book in this series! 

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Kensington. All opinions expressed are entirely my own**

REVIEW: Catastrophes & Heroes

Catastrophes & Heroes: True Stories of Man-Made Disasters

Author: Jerry Borrowman

The human race has come so far.....technology, transportation, medicine, science....our knowledge and skills have grown so much in the last 200 years. But with growth also comes mistakes and failures along the way. This book gathers 8 stories of disasters caused by mistakes, lack of judgement, poor planning or just plain faulty engineering. It isn't all dark and dismal though....the stories also feature heroes who stepped up to help save lives during these man-made disasters. 

Train wrecks. Dams breaking. Hurricane damage. The types of incidents are varied and the book goes in depth about what caused each disaster, the events leading up to the event, and the aftermath. Heroes who risked their lives to save others are also featured. All in all, an informative read and very interesting facts!

This is the first book by Jerry Borrowman that I've read. He has written several other books about historical events. I'm definitely going to read more! 

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Shadow Mountain Publishing. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

REVIEW: Fishing for Trouble

 Fishing for Trouble
Author: Elizabeth Logan

I mistakenly thought this was the first book in the Alaskan Diner cozy mystery series when I requested it for review. But, this is book 2. Thankfully the author does a great job of filling in details on characters and the setting so I followed along easily despite not having read the first book yet. 

I'm a sucker for any story set in Alaska...so I knew I would love this story even before I read the first chapter. In addition to the setting (which is like auto-love for me), I liked Charlie (the main character) and all the side characters. The background diner theme was fun. Who wouldn't want to eat at a place called The Bear Claw Diner?? I know I would be in there and ordering immediately! :) 

The plot moved at a nice pace and was suspenseful. The action and mystery start almost immediately, so the book kept my attention from start to finish.

All in all, a fun and entertaining cozy mystery! I already have the audio book of Mousse and Murder (book 1 in this series) checked out from my local library's digital site. I want to find out how this series starts! Can't wait for the next book!

**I voluntarily read a review copy of this book from Berkley Publishing. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

REVIEW: Bye Bye 2020 (A year in Books)

 

Every year I post a wrap-up of my reading for the year, and a goal for the coming New Year. 2020 brought a lot of changes to our household. Covid weirdness, my husband retired from his job (forced to really), and I went back to work full time.  Those changes meant I did less reading than in past years...but I made sure that my reading time meant something to me. I spent 2020 reading what I wanted to read....revisiting series I love......reading books that appealed to me....and started an Agatha Christie reading project I've been wanting to do for years. So, I read fewer books....but had more fun doing it! 

This is how the year rounded out. I read: 56 audio books, 9 books on kindle/kindle unlimited, 50 books from my local library, 25 books off my own shelves, 2 books on openlibrary,  and I reviewed 124 books. I dnf'd one book. 267 books -- that's not bad. Less than usual, but there was so much going on! 

All in all, a good reading year despite everything else. 

This year -- I want to continue my quest to read Agatha Christie in publication order. I'm having fun! Agatha has been my fav author since I was 9, but I had never read any of her short stories before. I'm taking my time and enjoying my journey through her writing. I stop to go down any rabbit hole I find interesting along the way -- researching historical events, her life, slang of the era....whatever I want. Loving it! The earlier stories I have read so far have held up remarkably well despite being published about 100 years ago. I'm enjoying the differences I find in language, social norms, racial/cultural biases...and the nuances of human behavior that are still very much the same. 

In 2021, I want to read more books off my own shelves. I have a lot of books....I need to start reading and gifting some to others to free up shelf space. Making room on my shelves frees up space for ..... new books! So, I remain on my book buying ban for this year, until I have read more books I already own. Gifted books, ebooks, etc are not banned.....I'm just not ordering lots of new lovely books until I have read and given away more of what I already have. Otherwise, my entire house will be filled with books! 

Because I have gone back to work full time and my reading time is at a premium, I am paring back the number of books I request for Review. I only want 10 pending at any time....  Right now, I have 20 on my shelf at NetGalley. Going to pare that down to 10, and then The Rule goes into effect.  I can only have 10 pending books on NetGalley -- if there are 10 on my Shelf, then I have to review something before I can request another book. Period .I read for enjoyment -- and I review every book I read. I do not want reviewing to become "work'' because that makes reading a chore, rather than a relaxing, entertaining break from work. I am also going to limit reviews to books, authors, genres and concepts that fit my personal taste. I'm only going to read what I enjoy. I'm going to pass on books/authors that publishers contact me about, but that I really wouldn't choose to read otherwise. This benefits everyone -- I enjoy the book and they get more positive reviews. It definitely keeps the DNFs to a bare minimum. In 2020, I only had one....and it was a library book not a review ARC. Hopefully in 2021 I have no DNFs at all! 

I'm setting my Goodreads goal this year at 100 books. I usually read a lot more than that -- but working full time is slowing my reading. I want to enjoy myself...not feel forced to read faster. 

That's a wrap! Bye 2020. Can't say I'm sorry to see you gone. Movin' on to the new! 

REVIEW: Death by Drowning

 Death by Drowning
Author: Agatha Christie

Death by Drowning is the final story of the Tuesday Night Club. Quite some time has passed since the dinner party where the group last gathered. Miss Marple, Sir Henry Clithering, Dr Lloyd, Actress Jane Helier, Colonel Bantry and Mrs. Bantry have all gone their separate ways after sharing mysterious stories with each other. Miss Marple calls at Sir Henry's house one morning to relate a tale.....a story of a drowning case. Did a poor girl in trouble commit suicide? Or....did someone kill her?

This story is my favorite of the 13 stories featuring the Tuesday Night Club. The story is a bit more involved, and it's a bit more Christie-esque (Village gossip, several suspects, bit of sleuthing to get to the truth, a few red herrings....) than some of the shorter stories. A very nice close to this series of stories featuring Miss Marple. And, it shows that human nature, drama and problems are a bit different in modern society, but still very much the same. When an unmarried girl comes up pregnant, nosy people who ought to mind their own are still pretty quick to take up sides......the man is a pig, the girl is a slut, she's trying to trap a rich man, oh the poor guy who actually loves her being a dunce, etc etc  That story still plays out much the same. And then.....if the poor girl is found dead.....all the usual suspects are still rounded up. Man accused of fathering the child. Man who was in the friend zone but loved her and would have married her, etc etc. Almost 100 years has gone by....but this story is still a familiar one in real life. 

Death by Drowning was first published in 1931 in Nash's Pall Mall Magazine. All 13 of the stories featuring the Tuesday Night Club were gathered into novel form (The 13 Problems) in 1932. The stories (just like the earliest Hercule Poirot tales) were first published in magazines over a year or so. Then Christie added a few segues to tie the stories together a bit more and put them out as a book. Smart move. And the short little mysteries are a great intro to the character of Miss Marple. 

I have been a huge fan of Agatha Christie since I was 9 and read my first Hercule Poirot novel. It was the first "adult'' book I ever read. Took me all summer to read the 5 paperbacks I bought at a garage sale. The stories were so good....but the print was so small that I had to use a bookmark to keep my place. I remember sitting at my mother's breakfast bar with the paperback and the family dictionary (a HUGE very heavy leather bound tome that I wasn't allowed to take down from the shelf. My father had to put it on the table for me. It was very old....and probably outweighed me. lol. Pre-internet memories!) I had to look up some of the words I came across as I read because I was only 9 and probably should have been reading Nancy Drew or somesuch.....but I was determined to read about the lovely Belgian detective with the fancy moustache. :) Memories! Over the years I read many of her novels and wanted to read all of her writing, but our small town had no bookshop. The local library didn't have many of her books. I couldn't even find a complete list of her writing! But now....as an adult with access to book stores whenever I want, all the kids raised but one, the internet at the ready.....I can research and find all of Christie's works and read them just for the simple joy of it! Finally!! I decided to read in publication order and am having the best time! I read a book....a story or two....go down whatever rabbit holes of research I feel like following....  Pure bliss!! The project will take me awhile....2020 is nearly done and I'm just now into the 1930s in the timeline of Christie's mystery writing. But I feel like I've made good progress...before now, I had never read any of Christie's short stories. And I enjoyed a couple of her books that I had never read -- The Big Four and The Blue Train. 

I listened to an audio book version of this story read by Joan Hickson (she played Miss Marple on television from 1984-1992) while reading along in my hardback copy of Miss Marple: The Complete Short Stories. I like to read the words while listening to the story....then I get the dialogue in the correct accent, the proper pronunciation of any French/foreign words, names or places, and for me, it's just more fun that way. :) 

I'm going to ferret around on the internet and see if I can find any public domain copies of the magazines that first published Christie's early stories. I would love to see the cover art, advertisements, layout, her stories in their original format and other works from writers who were also included!! I know I would discover new-to-me mystery writers of the same era that showcased their characters in the same way! Always up for a golden age mystery story!

Moving on! The next novel is: The Mysterious Mr. Quin! The book is actually a collection of stories featuring Harley Quin, a detective with a bit of the supernatural about him. Can't wait! I have the audio book queued up on my phone already!