REVIEW: They Came to Baghdad

They Came to Baghdad
Author: Agatha Christie

I'm going to start this short review with a very honest statement. 

I do not enjoy Agatha Christie's spy adventure stories. 

For me, these spy/war intrigue stories didn't stand up to time like her detective novels. Christie is my favorite author. And she wrote a lot of books. So, I'm not going to feel too badly about not enjoying a couple of them. 

When she wrote these spy/murder/war intrigue stories, WWII was recent history. So, I totally understand why she wrote this book and other stories about the war. But, I'm finding that I just prefer her regular detective novels.....and not her spy/war plots.  

I tried to read this book. But, I found I was just hating the experience.

I gave myself permission to DNF this and move on. Life is too short to read books you don't like....no matter who wrote them. There's only one other book by Christie that I have DNF'd on this journey through her mysteries -- Death Comes as the End. I couldn't make it all the way through that one either. It was set in ancient Egypt, and just wasn't for me. 2 out of many isn't that bad a track record in my opinion. :) 

I will do a condensed review.

This book was first published in the US and UK in 1951. 

The basics: A summit meeting of world leaders is scheduled in Baghdad. The meeting was supposed to be secret, but information leaked out. A Communist group is plotting to cause trouble. A young girl comes across a dying British agent who struggles to say just a few words before he dies. The girl jumps into investigating the death. 

Adaptations:

Television: Westinghouse Studio One broadcast an adaptation of this story on American TV in 1952. I did not find this episode online.  

Well.....I tried. 

I did not like this story and found it unreadable. Then I tried an audio book (HarperCollins, 2012, 7 hrs 45 minutes, narrated by Emilia Fox). Nope....didn't help.  Emilia Fox's narration was great. I just wasn't enjoying the story. 

So.......old paperback sent to the recycle bin.....and I'm moving on to the next book!