Thursday, March 04, 2010

Murder of Roger Ackroyd

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd: A Hercule Poirot Mystery Agatha Christie

When the richest man in town is murdered, the suspect list is long and varied. Everyone had a motive, but very few (if any) people had a way. There are marriages of convenience, heirs who have been written out of wills, affairs, black mail, and random drug-addicted relatives from America. The town doctor is our narrator and he's happy to tag along and watch his new next-door neighbor, Hercule Poirot solve the case.

I never would have guessed whodunnit except that the back says "Setting up the traditional rules of mystery only to shatter them, Christie delivers her most controversial detective novel ever, and it still startles." Which made me think in directions my mind never would have gone. My inner dialogue was a lot of "She couldn't! She wouldn't! Would she? OMG she totally did." (To not confuse you, the "she" is Christie, not a character.) I also loved the doctor's spinster sister, who is the queen of mad theories and village gossip. I think every English village has one, and her character is so perfect for the book and Poirot and Christie both use her for excellent purposes.

That said, I still loved it. I don't read a lot of mysteries, especially for adults, but I do like all the Christie I have read and I'm really glad I joined the Marple/Poirot/Holmes challenge so I have an excuse to read at least 3 more Christie books this year!

Book Provided by... my local library

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1 comment:

Caroline Starr Rose said...

One of my favorite Agatha Christie books. I made the mistake of giving away the plot once to someone currently reading.