Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie

Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I have found that I really like mysteries, and no one is more adept at the whodunit than Agatha Christie. To me these are the most timeless stories written. Yes, there are the older classics to consider, but none of them carry the pace and interest level for me that these do. In the case of most other classics, I read them because they are classics. I read Agatha Christie books because I want a good mystery.

To be specific about this book, I'll admit that occasionally throughout the book I suspected the correct murderer, although without all the details. Yet, each time my suspicions were discounted by some apparent fact and I looked elsewhere. To have it come back to that suspect in the end was both impossible and enjoyable. It's the twists and turns that keep me coming back. Surprise is everything.

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie

Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Agatha Christie is a household name, I believe, yet my experience with her works is fairly limited. After reading And Then There Were None last year, I put this Murder on the Orient Express, one of her most famous stories, on my to-read list. I was not disappointed.

While there were some weaknesses, such as the fact that Poirot happened to know so many details about the Armstrong case, it kept me guessing until the end. Or at least almost to the end. Then there is the style of the classic mystery, which somehow focuses on the mystery and discovery of the cast of characters, and at the same time leaves them underdeveloped. Part of that is due to the limitation of having only one point of view so the reader doesn't get too much information too soon, but it does make the book a little hollow.

I enjoy a good mystery so I'm giving this one a solid 4 stars and recommend it as a standard in classic mysteries.