More Christie

Writing about all of my favourite Christies has inspired me to re-read my omnibus collection of Christies. (Although it appears there are a bunch that I need to get out of the library to re-read too!) (And then purchase in a nice edition to add to my collection.) I most recently read The Perfect Murders omnibus and followed that up with this week's selection: Four Classic Cases.

These are four of Poirot's cases that probably don't fit under any other category, thus warranting an omnibus edition of their own. The four cases are: Three Act Tragedy, Sad Cypress, Evil Under the Sun, and The Hollow. The latter three were published during World War Two, but the books do not discuss the war in any detail, nor does Poirot appear to be involved in the war effort at all.

Three Act Tragedy involves Poirot in a lesser capacity. The main role is filled by Mr. Satterthwaite, who may be familiar to some Christie readers. The plot and characters are typical Christie and the mystery is interesting. I do wish for more Poirot; however Christie herself was probably getting tired of her little Belgian detective by this time. The character of the girl Egg Lytton-Gore is similar to many young Christie heroines, but she is still a pleasant and likeable character who helps propel the story along. An enjoyable Christie, if not one of her best.

Sad Cypress I discussed in great detail in my previous post, so I won't go into it much here. It remains, however, one of my favourites. I love the characters of Elinor, Peter, and Mary Gerrard and it is one Christie that has me wishing that the murder had never happened because the outcome is so sad. The book has both a dreamy quality with Elinor's recollection of the past and her thoughts and trial, and a propulsive forward motion when the trial really gets going and evidence is introduced. In most of her mysteries, Christie avoids or bypasses the end result of the justice system - either stopping her story after the murderer is caught but before the trial, or by having the murderer take his or her own life or otherwise not be brought to justice. So it is nice to see the Christie mystery unfold during the course of a trial and have her incorporate the justice system into her story.

Evil Under the Sun is another classic Christie; murder of a notorious woman on a lonely beach with only a limited number of people as suspects. A map is included for the reader as time is important in this novel; both for alibis and the final construction of the crime. It is a good puzzle and features Poirot all the way through, as well as some other good characters like Rosamund Darnley - although with a slight anti-feminist twist at the end where Rosamund promises to give up her flourishing dressmaking business to marry the man she loves. That aside, this is a good book for readers who enjoy a complicated puzzle where time is important.

The Hollow is an interesting and rather dreamy Christie effort. This book involves a murder among the Angkatell clan. Dr. John Christow and his wife Gerda are friends with the stalwart Sir Henry and whimsical Lady Lucy and have come to the Angkatell's country house, The Hollow, for a weekend. Sadly, Dr. John is murdered. Who was the murderer? Was it Gerda, his down-trodden and slightly stupid wife? Or was it one of the other Angkatell cousins who are also visiting: Edward (owner of Ainswick, Lucy's childhood home [entailed away from her to Edward)], David (the heir), Midge Hardcastle (an Angkatell cousin - in love with Edward), or Henrietta Savernake (another Angkatell cousin - and John's mistress). Poirot must fight his way through the Angkatell cobwebs to determine who was the murderer.

In this dreamy novel, the murder is almost an afterthought. The point of the novel really seems to be a story about the Angkatells, the relationships between them, and all of the Angkatell's love for their ancestral home, Ainswick - which is discussed throughout the book but never actually makes an appearance. Centring the novel is the unique character of Lady Lucy. She comes across as flaky and scatterbrained, but is actually very shrewd. The crime seems to be secondary to Lady Lucy - no one need be arrested for it as long as Ainswick is provided for. This is one of Christie's more interesting mysteries - although I prefer mysteries with more of a puzzle, which is why it didn't make it on my top 10.

I think for my next Christie pick I'm going to take a break from the established Poirot and Marple and read another of my favourite stories which - Sparkling Cyanide (one of my few favourites that doesn't feature Marple or Poirot). That's in my giant Seven Deadly Sins omnibus edition, and is actually the only novel in that collection that I read regularly. The others I either have already in a smaller form, or I don't like the mystery. I will discuss the edition further when I've finished Sparkling Cyanide.