Author: Agatha Christie
Published: 1932
Genres: Short story collection, Mystery, Crime, Thriller
Rating: 4 out of 5
Review
''The Thirteen Problems'' is a short story collection by Agatha Christie, featuring Miss Marple.
Several guests have gathered in Miss Marple's house: her nephew, Raymond West, Joyce Lempriere (an artist) , Sir Henry Clithering (ex-Commissioner of Scotland Yard), Dr Pender (a clergyman) and Mr Petherick (a solicitor). Each of them decide to tell stories of unsolved mysteries--- the solution of which are generally only known to themselves, and the other guests have to figure out the solution. In each case, nobody, except Miss Marple, can figure out the solution. The first six stories are told in this setting. The next six stories are set several months after the first six stories, when both Miss Marple, and some other people, are staying as guests in the house of Colonel Bantry. The last story is about the investigation of a suicide that is perhaps a murder. Sir Henry Clithering does the investigation, though Miss Marple already guesses the solution...
Sir Henry Clithering and Miss Marple are the two characters who appear in all the chapters. I'd first met Sir Henry in ''The Body in the Library''. In this book, this character gets more, much more depth. I liked this character. And Miss Marple is excellent as always. Her village parallels are really interesting!
I enjoyed this short story collection, a lot. The first few stories were actually quite predictable, but the last seven or eight stories are really unpredictable and absolutely puzzling! Though the first few stories are predictable, there is a kind of atmosphere in them, a kind of charm in them, that makes them really very delightful and really very enjoyable to read. All the stories in this collection are wonderful! My favorite stories in this collection are ''The Companion'', ''The Affair at the Bungalow'', and ''The Blue Geranium''. They were really delightful reads, these stories. There is atmosphere, there is suspense, there are so many puzzles.
4 out of 5
Author: Agatha Christie
Published: 1949
Genres: Novel, Crime, Mystery, Thriller
Rating: 4 out of 5
Review
Of all the Agatha Christie novels that I've read, ''Crooked House'' has one of the most unexpected, surprising endings. Not only this, ''Crooked House'' is a delightful read, from the beginning to the end. It is a suspenseful novel, with well developed characters and a wonderful narrator.
The narrator of this novel is Charles Hayward. He loves Sophia Leonides, granddaughter of a wealthy entrepreneur, Aristide Leonides, who is of Greek origin. Charles and Sophia meet after a long time. But Sophia tells Charles that they can't marry right now. Why? Because Sophia's grandfather, Aristide, has recently died, from poisoning. It is apparent that Aristide has been murdered.
Charles's father is an Assistant Commissioner of the Scotland Yard. Charles decides to figure out who actually did the crime. He visits Three Gables, residence of the Leonideses. A gigantic house with a lot of family members living peacefully.
Charles gets acquainted with the members of the family. Brenda, Aristide's second wife, who is more than fifty years younger than her late husband. Sophia's parents, Phillip (who keeps an impassive expression and keeps himself busy with his books), and Magda (an actress). Roger, Aristade's other living son, and his wife, Clemency. Edith de Havilland, an elderly spinster and the sister of Aristade's first wife. And Sophia's siblings: the moody, handsome, Eustace, and the intelligent little Josephine. There's also Laurence Brown, the children's tutor. And there is an elderly Nannie.
Every member of the family seems to suspect Brenda, Aristide's young wife. Brenda seems to be the one with the strongest motive and opportunity. But Charles finds Brenda to be a helpless, lonely woman who can never be capable of committing a murder.
Who has murdered Aristide Leonides?
This is a novel that has deep, well developed characters and a lot of suspense. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and the solution came so unexpected. It surprised me. Surely it has one of the most unpredictable endings, among the Agatha Christie novels. An excellent novel, highly recommended! It is probably, right now, one of my favorite Agatha Christie books.
4 out of 5
(On a separate note, I'll not be very active in blogging for the next few weeks, as my exams are approaching! I'll be active once again from early December, after my exams end).
Author: Robert Galbraith (J. K. Rowling)
Published: 2013
Genres: Novel, Mystery, Crime
Rating: 4 out of 5
Review
The Cuckoo's Calling is the first crime novel by J. K. Rowling, written under the pseudonym Robert Galbraith.
Earlier this year I had read J. K. Rowling's first adult book, ''The Casual Vacancy'', and I had really liked it. I found it emotional, with depth and good characterization. This novel, ''The Cuckoo's Calling''... it was just amazing. It was a really delightful and engrossing read, a cleverly written mystery. And the chemistry between the protagonist, the private detective Cormoran Strike, and his secretary, Robin, was really wonderful. I found it a very enjoyable read.
Well-known model Lula Landry dies after falling from the balcony of her penthouse apartment. It is guessed that she committed suicide, after some investigation.
Cormoran Strike is a private detective. He does not get many clients. One day, John Bristow, the brother of the late Lula Landry, comes to him and tells him that he suspects that Lula didn't commit suicide. She might have been murdered. Bristow asks Strike to investigate the case. Because it isn't really likely that Lula committed suicide. A neighbor of Lula, Tansy Bestigui, claims that she had heard shouts and quarrels from Lula's apartment just before Lula fell. Also, two mysterious figures were noticed around Lula's home in the CCTV footage. Strike accepts the case, and with the help of his temporary secretary, Robin, he starts investigating.
Cormoran Strike had once been in the army. He had lost a leg in Afghanistan. He is going through personal problems after having broken up with his long-term girlfriend, Charlotte. Homeless, he is forced to sleep in his office, and he wants to hide the fact from Robin. Robin is Strike's temporary secretary, but as she helps Strike with the case, she develops a deep friendship with Strike, and regrets the fact that she has to leave him within a few weeks. She helps him, a lot, in the investigation.
The investigation brings Strike across a lot of people. The security guard, Wilson. Lula's handsome driver and aspiring actor, Kieran Kolovas-Jones. Tansy Bestigui, the woman who claimed to have heard quarrels from Lula' s apartment but whose claims were not taken seriously because she was on drugs. And Lula's closest friends. Lula's boyfriend. Lula's unpleasant biological mother. And a lot of other people. The case is not simple, as it requires a lot of research and investigation.
I really found it an enjoyable mystery with a good premise, puzzling storyline, and depth and good characterization. The character of Cormoran Strike is deep and really well developed. We get to know a lot about Cormoran, his childhood, his relation with his family members, his sad and problematic relationship with Charlotte. These backgrounds give the character much depth. Much focus, a lot of focus, actually, is given on Cormoran's personal life and background. ''The Cuckoo's Calling'' was not just a mystery; it was about Cormoran Strike as well. Strike's secretary, Robin, gets much importance and depth as well. Most of the novel is told from Strike's point of view, but some parts are also told from Robin's point of view. I really liked how Strike and Robin form a close and deep friendship, and how she helped him with the case. She was such an intelligent, understanding character!
The cast of characters is quite large. We come to meet many people who Lula knew, her friends, family, acquaintances, even people whom she barely knew.
Strike's investigation of the case was really enjoyable and I couldn't really guess the solution! I couldn't even guess it!
Though the novel was a bit slow paced at the beginning, it was really engrossing. It was such a cleverly written, well developed mystery with excellent characterization!
4 out of 5
Author: Agatha Christie
Published: 1942
Genres: Novel, Mystery, Crime
Rating: 3 out of 5
Review
Mrs Bantry wakes up hearing the screams of the housemaid, who says that there is a body in the library. It is the body of a dead young woman. Nobody in the house has ever seen this young woman before. Mrs Bantry calls her friend, the wonderful Miss Jane Marple, to solve the mystery. It is then revealed that the dead woman is Ruby Keene. Circumstances and investigations lead to more discoveries, and the case seems puzzling and difficult. Then... the charred remains of a girl is found from a burnt car, and it is guessed that the murders of this girl and Ruby Keene are perhaps connected...
While I cannot say that I loved this one, ''The Body in the Library'' was definitely a very enjoyable read that made me puzzled and kept me guessing. There's not much suspense in this one, but the novel was definitely very interesting! While the main investigation is done by Superintendent Harper, Inspector Slack, Colonel Melchett, and Sir Henry Clithering, Miss Marple is the one who solves the whole case, who succeeds in making everything clear. The solution to the mystery was quite clever .
I really like Miss Marple. It is my third Miss Marple novel (I previously read ''A Murder is Announced'' and ''4.50 from Paddington'') and I am looking forward to read more Miss Marple novels! She is such an interesting character. Her ''village parallels'' were really very interesting.
''The Body in the Library'' was a puzzling and enjoyable read.
3 out of 5
Author: Agatha Christie
Published: 1939
Genres: Novel, Mystery, Horror, Crime, Suspense, Thriller
Rating: 5 out of 5
Review
And Then There Were None... ah, it was such an intense,
baffling, scary mystery!!! It was so impressive and overwhelming! It was so
very suspenseful and scary, and it is certainly the best among the Agatha Christie novels
that I've read till now. It was SO intense, so powerful and psychologically intense! I LOVED it.
And Then There Were None kept me tensed and guessing. It was so intense, suspenseful.
The plot is about an island, the Soldier Island. Eight people are invited to the Soldier Island. The eight guests are: Justice Wargrave, Vera Claythorne, Anthony Marston, General MacArthur, Phillip Lombard, Mr Blore, Dr. Armstrong, and Miss Brent. After
their arrival there, they find out that there are no other people in
the island, except themselves and two servants, Mr and Mrs Rogers. There are just these ten people in this island. Nobody else. The owner of the island is apparently a Mr. Owen, whom nobody (not even the servants) has ever seen.
Atmosphere in the house, and the island, is somewhat odd, strange. All the guests find a paper in their room, where the nursery rhyme ''Ten Little Soldiers'' is written. Everybody is startled by the atmosphere of the house, but this turns into dread and fear when the guests start dying, one by one... And within a short time, all the guests come to guess that none of them will leave the island alive... and a constant fear arises: who will be the next victim? Along with many other questions. Who is the murderer? Is he one of them?...
''And Then There Were None'' builds up an excellent atmosphere, an atmosphere that is filled with scares, intensity, suspense. The psychological impact on the characters because of the events, is portrayed very well. Some of the characters, and the situations, have so much depth. The novel kept me guessing. And the solution was so excellent.
I loved this one. ''And Then There Were None'' was extremely suspenseful, thrilling, and an absolute page turner.
5 out of 5
Author: Agatha Christie
Published: 1957
Genres: Novel, Mystery, Crime, Suspense
Rating: 3 out of 5
Review
The first Agatha Christie novel I read was ''A Murder is Announced''- a Miss Marple. Since then, I have read several Poirot novels, and ''4.50 from Paddington'' is my second Miss Marple.
I really enjoyed ''4.50 from Paddington''. Miss McGillicuddy is traveling to her friend, Miss Jane Marple, from Scotland. On her way, her train comes parallel to another train (the two trains are running on parallel tracks). Miss McGillicuddy witnesses something terrible. She witnesses a man strangling a woman, in the other train... She has a brief glimpse of the crime--- she couldn't see the man's face.
Miss McGillicuddy tells her friend, Miss Marple, about the crime that she had witnessed. Miss Marple is eager to find out what actually happened. But it is a really difficult task- how would she guess where the body of the murdered woman is? However, after doing some research, she guesses that the body is somewhere around a country house, Rutherford Hall.
Miss Marple decides to take the assistance of an acquaintance, Lucy Eyelesbarrow. Lucy, a highly educated young woman, works as a housekeeper. Miss Marple asks Lucy to temporarily take the job of a housekeeper at Rutherford Hall, and try to locate the body. Lucy agrees, and soon finds herself in Rutherford Hall, and works hard to find clues and locate the body.
Most of the investigation, in this novel, is done by Detective Inspector Craddock and Lucy Eyelesbarrow, while Miss Marple solves the mystery.
As the story progresses, it becomes complex and interesting. I really enjoyed it, and I really enjoyed the characters. Miss Marple's warmth is very remarkable, and Lucy Eyelesbarrow- she was just amazing! I loved how she takes both her tasks so seriously: while she works hard to find clues to solve the mystery, she also works hard to take care of Rutherford Hall, and people living there. She was really a wonderful character.
It's always delightful to read Agatha Christie's novels. Her books are so pleasant. The characters, the situations, with dry humor now and then- all these are so charming. ''4.50 from Paddington'' was no exception. The novel kept me guessing, and the solution was really wonderful. The book was delightful and interesting, often suspenseful, with well developed characters, and humor.
3 out of 5
Author: Agatha Christie
Published: 1927
Genres: Novel, Adventure, Thriller, Suspense, Crime, Mystery
Rating: 4 out of 5
Review
The Big Four takes place over a rather vast time- more than six months, I think- and deals with a rather complicated plot. While I've come across several negative reviews about this book, I must say that I really admired this one. I liked the structure and style of The Big Four. I liked the overall story.
Captain Hastings travels from Argentine to England to meet his dear old friend Hercule Poirot. Poirot, however, is himself planning to go to South America in order to deal with a case that offers him a generous sum. While Poirot and Hastings are talking, a mysterious person appears at Poirot's residence, who is very sick and weak, and tells Poirot about The Big Four, which is, apparently, a vast criminal organization. The man tells Poirot about the four people who run in this organization. Very soon, while Poirot and Hastings are absent, the intruder dies, apparently murdered.
The Big Four, as Poirot tells, is a vast and powerful organization that plans to take over the world, that is planning to control the world and change the world in an adverse way. The four people who control the organization are: Number One, Li Cheng Yen, a Chinese man who is the head. Number 2, an American man. Number 3, a Frenchwoman. And there is the curious Number 4. It is Number 4 who repeatedly keeps meeting Poirot and Hastings, but every time with a different, genius disguise- disguises that are so genius that even Poirot has difficulty guessing who the person actually is.
Poirot decides that he will unravel the identity of the Big Four. He cancels his trip to South America. He takes a dangerous decision...
In this novel, Poirot takes the responsibility to solve several cases- and each case is, in some way or other, related to the Big Four. Poirot works to unravel the identities of Number 2, 3, and 4. Will Poirot be able to solve this huge problem? Will Poirot be able to save the world from such an incidence?
The novel is filled with wonderful adventures! Hastings narrates the adventures in a superb way. And the presence of Poirot is wonderful as well. The disguises of Number Four were also quite interesting. The novel has some interesting twists.
The novel is more a suspenseful adventure than a mystery. We see our two dear old characters, Poirot and Hastings, involved in dangerous adventures in order to unravel the Big Four. It also has some scares and a lot of suspense and thrills.
The organization, the Big Four, was itself very scary! As Hastings notes, the Big Four seems to have some ''superhuman'' qualities, as it comes to know about every actions and decisions of Poirot.
Overall, I really liked this adventure-filled novel.
4 out of 5
Author: Agatha Christie
Published: 1936
Genres: Crime, Suspense, Mystery
Rating: 4 out of 5
Review
I was pleasantly surprised by Agatha Christie's Murder in Mesopotamia. In fact, I really loved it! Murder in Mesopotamia is an amazing mystery novel (you cannot even guess the solution!), filled with wonderful clues and suspense and mystery and occasional scares, some great characters, and a wonderful solution!
The novel is set in Iraq. An excavation work is going on in the search of the remains of the ancient Mesopotamian civilization. Dr Leidner is a world-famous archealogist working on this dig. Dr Leidner's wife, Mrs Leidner, has recently been having a bad time... she's being too nervous and scared sometimes, and claims to have seen faces on her window.
To keep Mrs Leidner company and to try to keep her free from stress, a nurse, Amy Leatheran (the narrator of this novel) is appointed. However, the nurse hears rumors that the people working on the excavation (the people live in the same building) are no longer jolly and friendly; rather, something very strange is going on among them, they have lost their past laughs and jokes... rather, the situation among the excavation staff seems overly formal.
Nurse Leatheran, upon arriving there, comes to realize that something is wrong. However, Mrs Leidner takes an instant liking on her. Eventually, Mrs Leidner confides to her about her fears: that she believes that her first husband, whom she believed was dead, wants to kills her because she married another man.
The nurse doesn't think of it too seriously, but the next day, Mrs Leidner is mysteriously found dead.
No stranger could have entered the house because no one noticed any stranger. The murderer seems to have been SOMEONE living in the house...
This one was simply amazing! It was deep and excellently written. I liked how the mystery became deeper and more puzzling. I liked how the suspense was built up strongly. I liked the characters.
Of course, Hercule Poirot was present in this novel! I have read a couple of other Poirot novels, but this one was the most amazing Poirot novel that I've read, as of now.
I liked Nurse Leatheran, a lot. I liked the co-operation between Poirot and the nurse. As the nurse describes, their co-operation became something like that when a doctor and a nurse go over a medical case.
All the characters were quite unique. There were loads of clues, but I really could not even predict how it all happened! The ending simply surprised me! I loved this one. This was a deep and amazing novel.
4 out of 5
Author: Agatha Christie
Published: 1963
Genres: Mystery, Crime, Suspense, Thriller
Rating: 3 out of 5
Review
I enjoyed reading Agatha Christie's ''The Clocks''. Yet, I wouldn't say I was fully satisfied because of the lack of clues.
The mystery is built up well yet a very, very few of my guesses matched; I really liked the solution to the problem and couldn't even imagine the story would come to such a point. The book had a very creepy scene (which I'm not describing!!) and some excellently developed characters.
But more of that later. At the beginning of the novel, Miss Martindale, owner of the Cavendish Secretarial Bureau, receives a phone call from a blind woman, Millicent Pebmarsh, to send a typist to her home, asking particularly for the young Sheila Webb. Sheila goes to Miss Pebmaresh's house. The blind woman is not home. Instead, Sheila finds something else: the body of a dead man at the sitting room! And then, Miss Pebmarsh enters the house, and is about to tread on the body...
Terrified after seeing the dead man, Sheila runs screaming out of the house. A passer-by, Colin Lamb, learns about the incident from her, and after seeing the dead man, he phones his friend, Detective Inspector Hardcastle.
Investigation starts. The blind woman, Miss Pebmarsh, denies having made any calls to the Cavendish Secretarial Bureau. On the other hand, no one seems to identify the dead man. The neighbors deny having seen anything weird on the day of the murder. And another surprising thing is that, there were several clocks in Miss Pebmarsh's house on the day of the murder; and, only two of them shows the correct time, 3 o'clock, and the other four of them shows fifteen minutes past four. And Miss Pebmarsh says, none of these four clocks belong to her. What is the mystery behind these clocks?
In the midst of the confusions about the clocks, identification of the dead man, and neighbors' statements, Colin decides to take help of his friend, the great detective Hercule Poirot, who certainly will help him.
The novel also gives some importance to the works of Colin Lamb. Colin, who is actually a Special Branch agent, is investigating about a spy case. This case is given some significance.
The novel is told in two forms: first person narration by Colin Lamb, and also sometimes third person narration.
I liked this novel. I liked the mystery, the suspense. And then, of course, we have two wonderful characters, Colin Lamb and Hercule Poirot, who just make this story amazing. Colin is a wonderful character. It is he, who gives us most of the clues, though there are a very few of them. Actually, this novel has very few clues, and it is only after Poirot explains everything that the matter becomes clear to us! It was indeed a very puzzling story, and the solution was amazing.
As for the characters, they were well developed. I like Hardcastle, Colin, Poirot, Sheila, Miss Pebmarsh, and of course, Geraldine, the intelligent 10-year-old girl with whom Colin converses and who gives quite a few hints about the incident. A great deal of humor is also present.
However, I didn't love this one, because the clues didn't seem to lead somewhere, which is partly interesting, while on the other hand, partly unsatisfactory. There should have been enough clues for the reader to guess something, guess some tidbits, at least. But the clues are not even strong. The solution was simply a bolt from the blue...
Though I wasn't fully satisfied, I won't say that it was unsatisfactory because it wasn't bad. It is well-written, but the lacking of clues lets the reader suspect nothing, which is, certainly, a drawback. Overall, the novel was decent and likeable.
3 out of 5
Author: Agatha Christie
Published: 1920
Genres: Crime, Mystery, Suspense, Thriller
Rating: 3 out of 5
Review
The Mysterious Affair at Styles is the first novel by the great Agatha Christie- and the novel where she introduced one of her most famous characters, Hercule Poirot. This novel was an enjoyable and appreciable read, but I must say that I didn't think it was an excellent read. I liked it, BUT didn't love it.
The novel is set during the First World War. Captain Hastings arrives at the Styles Court, a manor, upon the invitation of his old friend John Cavendish. The household consists of John and Lawrence Cavendish's stepmother, Emily Inglethorp, an amiable and generous socialite; John's beautiful wife, Mary; Cynthia, the orphaned daughter of Mrs Inglethorp's friend; Evelyn Howard, Mrs Inglethorp's constant companion; and Alfred Inglethorp, Emily's new husband, a sinister-looking man who is decades younger than her. Everybody of the house is displeased at Mrs Inglethorp for marrying the man. Particularly, Miss Howard thinks that Alfred Inglethorp is a dangerous man, and is after Emily's money, and may even cause harm to dear old Emily. She gets into a quarrel with Mrs Inglethorp about this topic- and then angrily leaves the house. Hastings (who is the narrator) comments that with Miss Howard's departure, a secure feeling has also left the house.
Then early one morning, everybody of the house are shocked to learn that Mrs Inglethorp is very sick. They run into her room, and minutes later, she dies. This shocking tragedy leaves everybody puzzled. How, why, did it happen? The doctors conclude that it was because of poisoning. Hastings asks his detective friend, Hercule Poirot, to investigate the case. Poirot happily agrees. Suspicions go to Mr Inglethorp... But Poirot seems to believe that Alfred Inglethorp is innocent. Questions arise: How was the poison taken to Mrs Inglethorp? On a coffee cup or on cocoa? And the most important question of all: who did it?
This was a book filled with suspense and mystery. The mystery is quite puzzling. But however, I have to admit that I couldn't just suspect somebody (except maybe Mr Inglethorp, whom the characters also had suspected) because it was presented in such a way that it was difficult to suspect anyone. And the story took such sudden turns which make both Hastings and the reader confused (which can make everybody confused, except Poirot, who, until the ending, kept silently and cleverly working on the mystery). The clues didn't solve much. It was only the ending which made me really understand what really had happened. But I also have to say that I thought that the solution was not that satisfying. The overall novel was pleasant, enjoyable, yet not as suspenseful as to make this novel excellent. The overall novel wasn't confusing, rather the story was simple and really unpredictable.
Overall, it is a good mystery novel, the mystery is quite puzzling, and I'd recommend it.
3 out of 5
Author: Mario Puzo
Published: 1969
Genres: Novel, Crime, Mystery
Rating: 5 out of 5
Review
Mario Puzo's ''The Godfather'' gives a vivid portrait of a Sicilian Mafia family, the family structure, and the relations of the families with each other, the unrest and enmity that rises among the families. ''The Godfather'' is an engrossing and powerful novel about this subject matter. It is a book to be read with concentration. It took me days to finish reading this book because I took time to understand all the matters discussed in the novel. It was a novel that was engrossing and slightly difficult to read at the same time; difficult, because the subject matter is to be understood, the background of the characters needs to be understood to form a complete portrait of them (i.e., the characters).
Don Vito Corleone is the head of the powerful Corleone family. His influence, his power, has earned him respect from all around. At the same time, despite of the things he does, he is a ''reasonable'', a calm man. The book starts with descriptions of several people who have been wronged or who are in trouble, and for justice and solution for their problems, they think that they should see Don Corleone. At the wedding party of the Don's daughter Connie, these men come to the Don with requests and Don promises to give them justice. His godson, famous singer/actor Johnny Fontane, desperately wants a role in a film, and the producer violently is refusing to give the role to him. However, the Don makes the producer agree in such a way that we come to realize how violent the Don is.
The Don has three sons: hot-tempered Santino (Sonny), timid and irresponsible Frederico (Fredo), and the charming Michael (Mike), who doesn't want to get himself involved with the family business. The peaceful environment is destroyed, and things start to change when the Don refuses to get involved in a drug business, and an attempt is then made to murder him, and unrest and turmoil rises among the families, leading to deaths of family members, mistrusts, and betrayals, and discoveries.
The book had a power in it. Along with the vivid descriptions of the background of Mafia, Mafia terms, family structure, it had backgrounds of even some of the minor characters, which enables the reader to form a vivid and clear portrait about the characters. Mario Puzo developed the characters excellently. Many of the characters got unexpected significance. My favorite characters from the book are quite a few: Michael, Kay, Hagen, Johnny, Lucy. Especially, I really like the character Kay; both in this novel and the famous movie based on the novel, Kay, Michael's American girlfriend and later wife, is given a very strong characterization, making her one of the most memorable characters in the novel. Michael is notable as well, from his role as the timid and intelligent son, to his becoming skilled in the family business. Johnny Fontane's character was given an unexpected significance, and I liked it, very much. The characters' background were interesting, all of the characters were interesting. This characterization is one of the things making this book so excellent.
I have seen all three films of the Godfather Trilogy, and loved them (all three films are reviewed in my movie review blog). The entire novel is the basis of the first film of the trilogy. Some parts of the film had been confusing; the book helped me to understand all those confusing parts of the film.
Overall, The Godfather was a powerful and vivid read, a memorable, excellent reading experience. Excellently-written novel that I may reread someday.
5 out of 5!
Author: Sidney Sheldon
Published: 2004
Number of pages: 337
Genres: Novel , Thriller, Suspense, Romance, Mystery, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Crime
Rating: 3 out of 5
Review
I really enjoyed reading Sidney Sheldon's last novel, ''Are You Afraid of the Dark?'' Not just that, I liked it so much that I would have loved to give it a 4 out of 5, but I cannot possibly ignore it's faults and flaws. Really. But however, despite it's flaws, it seemed a wonderful novel to me- both an emotional and suspenseful novel. Amazing book!
The story has a blend of suspense thriller, adventure, drama, sci-fi and romance. Really. Four scientists, working for the KIG (Kingsley International Group), have recently been murdered in different places of the world; their death seems like an accident... Diane (widow of Richard Steven) and Kelly (widow of Mark Harris) are summoned to New York by Tanner Kingsley, the owner of the company, who asks them if their husbands shared anything with them about their professional matter. Both of them don't have any idea about their husbands' recent projects.
Then we understand that the lives of Diane and Kelly are in danger; someone is trying to kill them, thinking that they might know something about their husbands' last projects. Diane and Kelly team up, running away from the attackers, using their mind, wit, and intelligence, but how long will they run? And who is after them? And why are they being chased like this?
I liked the way Sheldon developed the characters. By means of repeated flashbacks, we are told of the past lives of these two people, their upbringing, career, their wonderful moments with their husbands, adding elements of drama and romance to the plot. I really liked the characterization. I also liked the deep friendship that Kelly and Diane develop. Although at first they are somewhat hostile to each other, gradually they develop and warm friendship which made me very emotional. Their friendship somewhat reminded me of Theo and Nell of the 1963 film ''The Haunting''.
Every time Kelly and Diane ran away from the attackers, I smiled and laughed! I became so delighted! I cheered for them, ''Run! Run!'' Really, it was a wonderful reading experience. The adventures, suspense, thrills, curiosity, and the ''what will happen next'' were really wonderful. The emotional intensity- beyond remarks!
It is also filled with humor. For example, have a look at this:
Diane was thoughtful for a moment. 'I know a place where they can't touch us.'
'Let me guess. The space ship that brought you here.'
But ''Are You Afraid of the Dark'' is flawed as well. For example, why did so many of the characters have to turn into a villain? I know, this was for the development of the story. But at one point the villains were really predictable.
And it has some errors as well. At one point Diane tells Kelly that the battery of her phone has finished. But how did she pick up her phone just some time after this?
But I must mention again, it was a very wonderful read filled with suspense, adventure, thrills, humor, and emotional intensity. I liked it very much. I wish I could ignore it's faults.
3 out of 5
Author: Agatha Christie
Published: 1950
Genres: Novel, Mystery, Crime, Suspense
Rating: 4 out of 5
Review
Believe it or not, this is the first Agatha Christie that I have read- and I loved it so much, SO MUCH, that I will be reading more Agatha Christie in future and I guess she will become one of my favorite authors. ''A Murder Is Announced'' is a wonderful detective novel, a great mystery filled with lots of suspense, and yes, lots of humor.
In the peaceful village Chipping Cleghorn, villagers are startled to see in the newspaper a notice: A murder is announced and will take place on Friday, October 29th, at
Little Paddocks, at 6:30 p.m. Friends accept this, the only intimation.
Villagers assume this strange notice to be the invitation for a murder game. Little Paddocks is the residence of elderly Letitia Blacklock, her friend Dora Bunner, her distant cousins Patrick and Julia, a tenant Philippa Haymes, and a foreign refugee, Mitzi, serving as a maidservant. Miss Deadlock nor any of the other residents of the house has no idea about who put the notice. They think that someone did this as a joke. But they know a lot of people will be coming to their house at the evening, so they prepare food and slightly decorate the house.
Guests arrive in due time, and in 6:30, suddenly the light automatically turns out, and someone enters with a flashlight and a revolver. He shoots at Miss Blacklock twice, and with another shot, he kills himself.
Everybody turns on the light. Miss Blacklock is slightly injured in her neck, and the assaulter is... dead. It is suspected that the assaulter either committed suicide or shot himself accidentally. The assaulter is identified as Rudi Scherz, a worker of a hotel, and with criminal records.
Everything becomes so confusing. Who might have attempted to murder the charming and warm Miss Blacklock? Why? Did somebody tell Scherz to go and murder Miss Scherz? Why did all these happen? And if the person behind all these couldn't murder Miss Blacklock at the first attempt, certainly her life is still at risk.
The elderly Miss Marple has her entrance, making the work much easier for the police, by her experiences and clever mind.
I really loved ''A Murder is Announced''. I liked Agatha Christie's way of telling the story. And what I loved the most about it is, as it as suspense, it is also filled with lots of humor and warmth. Slowly, it takes a darker turn, but some of the humor always remains. I liked most of the characters. But somehow, I found the odd maidservant Mitzi to be the most amusing character. Her sudden shrieks and style of talking made me burst into laughter. (And also, I shouldn't forget to mention that Patrick referring Mitzi's cakes as ''Delicious Death'' and Mitzi's protests to it were also hilarious).
Suspense is aplenty. Every character, when trying to figure out the mystery, gives useful hints that makes one sit straight and wonder, ''What is going to happen next?" The solution to all these mysteries is VERY unpredictable and interesting and well-written and well-thought. Agatha Christie was certainly a genius.
If you like light, dark, suspenseful, humorous, mystery novels, then I'd strongly recommend this one!
4 out of 5
