After the brilliance that was The Mysterious Affair at Styles, I knew that I would need to dig deeper into Agatha Christies works, especially her Poirot books. Setting out to read them all, and there are a goodly number of them, I picked up the second Poirot book, The Murder on the Links.
Hercule Poirot, along with his associate Arthur Hastings, are seeking an interesting case to work on, when Poirot receives a summons from Monsieur Renauld, begging him to come. Yet when they arrive, Renauld is dead. Everyone comes under suspicion, from his son, to his wife, to the woman he sees far more than his wife is comfortable with, and each has viable motive. After a terrible mistake by Hastings, key evidence disappears, and it is up to the “little grey cells” of Poirot to bring the criminal to justice.
One of the things I truly love about Christie’s novels is her attention to all of the characters. They are all fleshed out quite in-depth, which allows both for them to undergo intense scrutiny as a potential culprit, as well as a very pitiable victim. She is hard to beat when it comes to characterization. The way she fully spreads out her mystery is brilliant as well. She gives you plenty of space to get into the story and really become engrossed.
I quite literally couldn’t put this book down, reading it in one sitting. Christie takes a small book, and fills it with huge amounts of content, not wasting a single word. A brilliant story.
10/10
Luke, you might like to submit this and any other Agatha Christie reviews to the Agatha Christie Blog Review Carnival (now or in the future), or indeed join us in the Agatha Christie Reading Challege. For details see here
ReplyDeleteSumbit the post here
Kerrie
I enjoyed your review so much that I decided to read the book. I'd never read a Christie mystery before and your review was both appealing and accurate! Thanks.
ReplyDeleteI'm thrilled that you took a look at the book, Anon. I worry that, in today's mystery genre of the flash-bang murder with over-the-top plot-twists and gruesome crimes (which can be fun in their own right), authors like Agatha Christie are falling between the cracks a bit. When it is my money on the line, and I'm looking for a mystery, her name is the first I would look for. I hope you get the chance to check out some more Christie novels!
ReplyDelete