Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Carnival

ACRC Carnival 2012 #1 - January 24, 2012

2012-01-24T10:25:00.000+10:30

Welcome to the first edition of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Blog Carnival for 2012.

Many thanks to the 8 contributors who have provided 10 blog posts and discoveries for you to visit.

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Today's 8 Contributors - please see the items in the main part of the newsletter for exact URLS of their posts.

Kerrie at MYSTERIES in PARADISE
ng kai-lee at Zhen's Summer Cafe
Cheryl Lyda at Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom
Rishi Arora at Classic Mystery Hunt
Sarah Ahmad at The Book Nook
Clarissa Draper at Clarissa's Agatha Christie Page
Margaret at BooksPlease
Marie at at I ♥ reading

General

Cheryl Lyda presents Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom: Past, Present, Future posted at Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom, saying, "As we make our New Year's resolutions, let's remember what Hercule Poirot had to say about putting things off until tomorrow:
“Tomorrow! Sometimes, M. Poirot, tomorrow is a long way off.”
“On the contrary,” said Poirot, “I always find that it succeeds today with monotonous regularity.”
This and over 300 other quotes from Christie's books may be found at Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom."

Clarissa Draper presents Why Didn't They Ask Evans? (Boomerang Clue) posted at Clarissa's Agatha Christie Page, saying, "what made me love this book was not the mystery as much as the chemistry between the two MCs"

Hercule Poirot

BooksPlease presents Death in the Clouds by Agatha Christie posted at BooksPlease, saying, "This is a kind of locked room mystery, only the ‘locked room’ is a plane on a flight from Paris to Croydon, in which Hercule Poirot is one of the passengers. A most enjoyable mystery."

ng kai-lee presents Poirot series, Part four posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-, saying, "A review of the movie adaptation of Five Little Pigs. Greatly recommended!"

Sarah Ahmad presents Cat Among the Pigeons posted at The Book Nook. "One of my favorite Agatha Christie novels, Cat Among the Pigeons has a lot of great characters. "

Marie presents The Murder of Roger Ackroyd: A Hercule Poirot Mystery posted at I ♥ reading. "I really enjoyed this novel but couldn't help shaking my head at a couple oddities. "

BooksPlease presents The Clocks by Agatha Christie: My Thoughts posted at BooksPlease, saying, "Hercule Poirot plays a minor role in this mystery. an intriguing puzzle."

Miss Marple

Rishi Arora presents The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie posted at Classic Mystery Hunt, saying, "The mystery when you read the book looks prosaic but trust me you are not smarter then Christie, she knows how we think and puts us in that direction and then comes up with a complete diametrically opposite solution. This book is a case study of how to write a perfect cozy murder mystery. In one year Miss Marple books have gone from my least favorite to my most awaited books that I want to read."

Superintendent Battle

KerrieS presents Review: TOWARDS ZERO, Agatha Christie posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "This is Battle's last appearance in a novel. Why did Agatha Christie discard him?"

Updates

KerrieS presents MYSTERIES in PARADISE: Agatha Christie Novels read posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "progressing well. Now at 34 novels and 13 short story collections."

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (February 24, 2012) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

How to Join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

2012-01-20T07:04:00.001+10:30

The Agatha Christie Reading Challenge is really a challenge in two parts.

Part One

My original idea with the challenge was that I would read the books of Agatha Christie in order of publication to see what I could learn about her development as a writer, her exploration of the genre, development of her main characters and so on.

I've continued to tackle that on two fronts: her novels and her short stories.
I invited other people to join me and some are attempting to read the novels in order as I am, while others are simply reading them as they come across them.
I invite you to join us on this reading journey, reading at your own pace, either in publication order, or not, as you please.

You can join by adding your name to the Mr Linky at the foot of this post.

I find that I am reading about a title a month, aiming for 12 a year.
As I read a new book, I write a review and post it on my blog.
I also write an update post, recording my progress so far.
If you click here, you will see examples of these posts.

Part Two

The second part of the challenge is to be a participant in the monthly Agatha Christie Challenge Blog Carnival which is published around the 24th of each month.
It is an opportunity to submit your Agatha Christie reviews and updates to each carnival.
So when you write a review or an update about your progress in the challenge, then the next step each time is to submit your post to the Carnival here.

The carnival has various categories:

General
Miss Marple
Tommy & Tuppence
Hercule Poirot
Superintendent Battle
Short Stories
Updates
Discoveries (here you can submit interesting Agatha Christie related websites that you've discovered)

You submit your posts here

ACRC Carnival 2011 #10 - December 20, 2011

2011-12-20T21:24:00.000+10:30

This is the 2011 Christmas edition of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Blog Carnival.
Many thanks to today's contributors and seasons greetings to all participants and readers.

Many thanks to the 10 contributors who have provided 23 blog posts and discoveries for you to visit.

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Today's 10 Contributors - please see the items in the main part of the newsletter for exact URLS of their posts.

Kerrie at MYSTERIES in PARADISE
Marie at I ♥ reading
ng kai-lee at Zhen's Summer Cafe
Cheryl Lyda at Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom
Becky Laney at Becky's Book Reviews,
Rishi Arora at Classic Mystery Hunt
Sarah Ahmad at The Book Nook
Ryan at Wordsmithonia
Yvette at in so many words....
Courtney at larking

General

Marie presents The Man in the Brown Suit posted at I ♥ reading. "I really enjoyed this Agatha Christie murder mystery; it isn't as formula driven as the other Christie books I've read to date. I'm actually starting to wonder if there's an Agatha Christie novel out there that I won't enjoy."

ng kai-lee presents A Little Romance from Christie posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-, saying, "A collection of the memorable couples in Christie's whodunits. Yes, we all know she likes to play matchmaker!"

Cheryl Lyda presents Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom posted at Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom, saying, "Here's what Christie (through Hercule Poirot) had to say about holiday stress:
“Families who have been separated throughout the year assemble once more together…. There will occur a great amount of strain. People who do not feel amiable are putting great pressure on themselves to appear amiable! There is at Christmas time a great deal of hypocrisy...Under these conditions...it is highly probably that dislikes that were before merely mild, and disagreements that were trivial, might suddenly assume a more serious character. The result of pretending to be a more amiable, a more forgiving, a more high-minded person than one really is, has sooner or later the effect of causing one to behave as a more disagreeable, a more ruthless and an altogether more unpleasant person than is actually the case! If you dam the stream of natural behaviour, mon ami, sooner or later the dam bursts and a cataclysm occurs!”
[Find the source for this and more quotes on this website.]"

Rishi Arora presents Endless Night by Agatha Christie posted at Classic Mystery Hunt, saying, "The Mystery does not start till the final part of the book which is last 70 odd pages. But I think the author was not trying to write a simple detective book. She wanted to do something different she wanted to create an atmosphere so strong that when you read the final pages of the book it hits you so hard that it gives you Goosebumps."

KerrieS presents Christie at Christmas posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "I focus on just four Christmas related Christie stories. Do you have a favourite?"

Sarah Ahmad presents Crooked House posted at The Book Nook. "In Crooked House, Agatha Christie confronts the issue of heredity and the resulting "kinks" in people. "

Hercule Poirot

Rishi Arora presents Hercule Poirot's Christmas by Agatha Christie posted at Classic Mystery Hunt, saying, "Although Christmas is a time for merriment and benevolence. but for mystery lovers the combination of Agatha Christie, Poirot, a bloody murder and a crackling mystery is truly Christmas."

KerrieS presents Poirot will be back on TV! posted at Agatha Christie site, saying, "5 new Poirot films to be created for ITV. This will complete 70 films for David Suchet over 22 years."

Marie presents The Mysterious Affair at Styles posted at I ♥ reading. "I enjoyed reading this novel, despite my lukewarm feeling towards the narrator, Mr.Hastings. "

KerrieS presents Review: THE UNDER DOG, Agatha Christie posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "I have a soft spot for Agatha Christie's short stories. These, in particular, flesh out the character of Hercule Poirot, highlighting characteristics that will be later focussed on in longer novels: his care of his appearance, his interest in the "psychological", his weakness for beautiful young women (although most of them don't respond in any emotional sense), his liking for the final denouement in which he assembles the characters and gives his verdict, Christie's little word pictures of a social structure that was really dealt a death blow by the the Great War, and much more,"

Marie presents The Murder on the Links posted at I ♥ reading. "Captain Hastings is the perfect side kick to Poirot's brilliant mind."

Sarah Ahmad presents The Clocks posted at The Book Nook. "The Clocks by Agatha Christie has a huge cast that is just 'mentioned'. What I mean is that a lot of known characters from various novels are mentioned in this novel. "

Becky Laney presents Hercule Poirot's Christmas posted at Becky's Book Reviews, saying, "My review of Hercule Poirot's Christmas."

Ryan Groff presents Three Act Tragedy by Agatha Christie posted at Wordsmithonia. "Agatha Christie ... can spin a story on the end of a needle, throwing red herrings and clues with equal aplomb. She is the perfect author and I adore her for it."

Miss Marple

KerrieS presents Miss Marple back on TV! posted at Agatha Christie site, saying, "3 new Miss Marple films to be shot in 2012."

Superintendent Battle

courtney presents too many books, too little time: shorties. posted at larking., saying, "A brief review of The Secret of Chimneys, one of the few Christie titles I can't seem to love."

Marie presents The Secret of Chimneys posted at I ♥ reading. "All of Agatha Christie's trademark plot twists and devices are present in this novel: the setting is a large country estate; there's a clever, witty and beautiful woman at the centre of the mystery; a protagonist with a mysterious past; and lastly, a large serving of political intrigue."

Tommy & Tuppence

Yvette presents Agatha Christie's Tommy and Tuppence: PARTNERS IN CRIME posted at in so many words..., saying, "Tommy and Tuppence Beresford star in the 1983 TV series featuring James Warwick as Tommy Beresford and the glorious Francesca Annis as his wife Tuppence".

Marie presents The Secret Adversary posted at I ♥ reading. "Young Adventurers Tommy and Tuppence are super cute and lots of fun. I really hope Dame Christie has a few more novels about this young couple."

Discoveries

Flash Quiz - Agatha Christie by the Numbers posted at Fun Trivia, saying, "A tricky quiz that stump even the best among us"

KerrieS presents AGATHA CHRISTIE'S SECRET NOTEBOOKS Edited by John Curran posted at George Kelley, saying, "Should you buy this book? George Kelley thinks so. See why."

Updates

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - final for 2011 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "My journey is going well. Just over half way now. I've changed the way my records work on my blog."

Sarah Ahmad presents Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Carnival posted at The Book Nook. "19 books read this year".

Discoveries

How well do you know Agatha Christie? posted at Books news, reviews and author interviews | guardian.co.uk, saying, "Another quiz to try."

Agatha Christie Quiz posted at All the Tests Quiz, saying, "even more quizzes!"

A tricky Agatha Christie numbers quiz http://www.funtrivia.com/flashquiz/index.cfm?qid=343684

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (January 24, 2012) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2011 #9 - November 24, 2011

2011-11-24T16:15:00.000+10:30

Welcome to the November 24, 2011 edition of Agatha Christie monthly BlogCarnival.
Many thanks to the 16 contributors who have provided 27 blog posts for you to visit.

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Today's 16 Contributors - please see the items in the main part of the newsletter for exact URLS of their posts.

Kerrie at MYSTERIES in PARADISE
Margaret at BooksPlease
Becky at Page Turners
Nan at Letters from a Hill Farm
Margot at Joyfully Retired
Rishi Arora at Classic Mystery Hunt
Yvette at in so many words....
Sarah Ahmad at The Book Nook
ng kai-lee at Zhen's Summer Cafe
Janet atMystery Fanfare
Cheryl Lyda at Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom
Margaret at The Bookhound
Patrick at At the Scene of the Crime
Courtney at larking
Bella at Cozy Mystery Book Reviews
Margot Kinberg at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist....

General

Yvette presents MORE Vintage Agatha Christie Covers posted at in so many words....

Margot at Joyfully Retired presents An Award Winning Nonfiction Book posted at Quirky Girls Read, saying, "I write about award winning books for Quirky Girls Read. I reviewed Agatha Christie's Secret Notebook which won the Macavity Award."

Janet Rudolph presents John Curran on Agatha Christie: Murder in the Making posted at Mystery Fanfare, saying, "An interview with John Curran, author of Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks, about his second book."

Cheryl Lyda presents Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom posted at Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom, saying, "This site contains over 300 quotes covering 100 subjects that Agatha Christie commented on in her books. Click on any one of the subjects in the List of Subjects (below left) to read what Christie wrote about that topic. Full bibliographic information is included: book title, chapter or story, publication date, and the source character (or Christie as the omniscient narrator)."

Margaret presents The Bookhound: Come, Tell Me How You Live posted at The Bookhound, saying, "Agatha Christie's autobiographical work "Come tell me how you live" about her time spent on archaeological digs in the Near East is a real joy to read. And for Christie fans gives added insight to works such as Murder in Mesopotamia and Death comes as the end."

Sarah Ahmad presents Agatha Christie's Sleuth Directory posted at The Book Nook, saying, "A list of Christie's most famous characters and detectives."

Rishi Arora presents And then there were none by Agatha Christie posted at Classic Mystery Hunt, saying, "and then there were none written by the Queen of Crime Agatha Christie is perhaps the most famous murder mystery of all time and has been adapted several times on the big screen, does Gumnam(1965) ring a bell? It’s sold over 100 million copies making it the world’s best selling mystery ever and one of the bestselling books of all time. The first of several Christie stories based on nursery rhymes, this deals out ten mysterious murders, and none was more satisfactory at the conclusion of this cryptic puzzle. This book stars no Hercule Poirot and no Jane Marple, it belongs to no series."

BooksPlease presents They Came to Baghdad by Agatha Christie: a Book Review posted at BooksPlease, saying, "Victoria Jones saves the day in this story of international espionage and conspiracy."

Patrick presents A Rant Against the Word "Cozy" posted at At the Scene of the Crime, saying, "A rant focusing on Agatha Christie but pointing out the limitations of the word "cozy" and the misconceptions it perpetuates about the mystery genre in general."

Hercule Poirot

ng kai-lee presents The Clocks posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-.

Nan presents Three-Act Tragedy by Agatha Christie posted at Letters from a Hill Farm.

Rishi Arora presents The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie posted at Classic Mystery Hunt, saying, "Poirot has retired for the 100th time and is settled down in an obscure little town where he dreams of growing marrows and smoking his peculiar small cigarettes, but crime follows the Belgian Detective even if he does not go looking for it."

courtney presents reminiscing on my first time. (aka Thirteen at Dinner by Agatha Christie) posted at larking., saying, "A review of Thirteen at Dinner/Lord Edgware Dies, plus a reflection back on my first encounter with Agatha Christie through this novel 17 years ago."

Bella presents Review: Death in the Clouds by Agatha Christie posted at Cozy Mystery Book Reviews.

Margot Kinberg presents In The Spotlight: Agatha Christie's Hallowe'en Party posted at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist....

Margot at Joyfully Retired presents Book Review: Dumb Witness posted at Joyfully Retired.

Rishi Arora presents Peril at end house by Agatha Christie posted at Classic Mystery Hunt, saying, "Poirot and Hastings are enjoying there vacation on the Cornish Rivera. Very soon they meet the beautiful and lively Nick. Nick is leading a charmed life she has had several very close encounters with death. A large painting fell over her bed while she was sleeping, a large boulder came tumbling down where she was bathing, the brakes of her car failed when she was going out and now Poirot discovers a hole in her hat and a bullet shell. The infallible Poirot and his faithful Watson Hastings offer to protect mademoiselle Nick."

Becky (Page Turners) presents Page Turners: Review: The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie (Christie's first novel) posted at Page Turners.

Miss Marple

Sarah Ahmad presents The Moving Finger posted at The Book Nook, saying, "The inhabitants of Lymstock, the setting for this novel, are gentle, simple people, and the humor with which Jerry and Joanna receive their comments made me laugh!"

Rishi Arora presents The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie posted at Classic Mystery Hunt, saying, "The Bantry's wake up to an unexpected visitor in their house. The servants have found the dead body of a platinum blonde in the Library, The Bantry's say they do not know who the girl is or how she got inside the house, but that denial by the Bantry's is no consolation to the wagging tongues of the villagers who accuse and start incriminating Colonel Bantry. Mrs Bantry realizes this fact and calls in the cavalry AKA the old St Mary Mead sleuth herself Miss Marple."

KerrieS presents Review: THE MOVING FINGER posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Miss Marple makes such a late appearance in this one, you almost wonder why she does. Except of course she comes up with the right answer whereas others don't."

Sarah Ahmad presents Some Miss Marple posted at The Book Nook, saying, "Two of Miss Marple's best mysteries."

Short Stories

Sarah Ahmad presents The Mysterious Mr. Quin posted at The Book Nook, saying, "The most eerie collection of short stories with the intriguing character, Mr. Quin."

Nan presents Short Stories on Wednesdays - The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding posted at Letters from a Hill Farm.

Discoveries

ITV to broadcast new episodes featuring Christie’s Poirot and Marple - National Mystery Series | Examiner.com posted at Examiner, saying, "8 new stories on television in the UK in 2012."

Updates

BooksPlease presents Agatha Christie Reading Challenge – Update posted at BooksPlease, saying, "Making slow but steady progress."

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 21 November 2011 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "My calculation is that I'm about half-way on my journey."

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (December 20, 2011 ) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2011 #8 - October 24, 2011

2011-10-24T17:46:00.002+10:30

Welcome to the October 24, 2011 edition of Agatha Christie monthly BlogCarnival.
Many thanks to the 16 contributors who have provided 31 blog posts for you to visit.

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Today's 16 Contributors - please see the items in the main part of the newsletter for exact URLS of their posts.

Kerrie at MYSTERIES in PARADISE
Che at From Kafka To Kindergarten
Margaret at BooksPlease
Becky at Becky's Book Reviews
Martin at Do You Write Under Your Own Name?
Norman at CRIME SCRAPS REVIEW
Joanne at Seagreen Reader
Nan at Letters from a Hill Farm
Margot at Joyfully Retired
Rishi Arora at Classic Mystery Hunt
Yvette at in so many words....
Michelle Miller at at The True Book Addict
Sarah at A library is a hospital for the mind...
Sarah Ahmad at The Book Nook
ng kai-lee at Zhen's Summer Cafe
Karen at Euro Crime
Camille LaGuire at The Daring Novelist

Late addition: Margot Kinberg's "In the Spotlight" Agatha Christie's HALLOWEEN PARTY

General

Our tributes on Agatha Christie's birthday - September 15. posted at Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Carnival
Last month we celebrated the 121st anniversary of Agatha Christie's birth. There were 12 tributes.

Yvette presents Tuesday's Overlooked Films: Double Feature. THE SEVEN DIALS MYSTERY and WHY DIDN'T THEY ASK EVANS? posted at in so many words....

che presents The Scoop and Behind the Screen by Agatha Christie and other Distinguished Members of the London Detection Club. posted at From Kafka To Kindergarten, saying, "Two collaborative mysteries by masters of the art."

KerrieS presents Pera Palace Hotel, Instanbul posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Visit room 411 where Agatha Christie is thought to have written MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS."

Michelle Miller presents Novel Glimpses (6)--The Book Thief, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Ordeal By Innocence posted at The True Book Addict.

Rishi Arora presents The Crooked House by Agatha Christie posted at Classic Mystery Hunt, saying, "Agatha Christie calls The Crooked house as her one of her personal favorites and a book that she really enjoyed writing, first published in 1949 The Crooked House is part of the non series books by Agatha Christie which means there is no popular fictional detective like Miss Marple or Hercule Poirot in this one."

Norman Price presents ENDLESS NIGHT: AGATHA CHRISTIE posted at CRIME SCRAPS REVIEW, saying, "A dark psychological tale from 1967."

sarah presents They Came to Baghdad by Agatha Christie posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "I was definitely surprised with this novel. In my opinion it's a definite winner and a top favorite for me. I highly recommend it to those readers who are looking for a variant from the typical English countryside murder mystery or those who love a good spy tale."

Sarah Ahmad presents Ordeal By Innocence posted at The Book Nook.

Hercule Poirot

Rishi Arora presents One Two buckle my shoe by Agatha Christie posted at Classic Mystery Hunt, saying, "Reading about the infallible Poirot getting scared of the dentist's chair and then taking advise from a retired home officer should be worthy enough to warrant a read. Throw in there a triple murder and political intrigue and this one goes off the charts"

ng kai-lee presents Agatha Christie?s Poirot series posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-, saying, "Poirot's various movie adaptations!"

Joanne presents The Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie posted at Seagreen Reader.

Margot at Joyfully Retired presents Agatha Christie: Cards On the Table posted at Joyfully Retired.

ng kai-lee presents Agatha Christie's Poirot series, Part two posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-, saying, "Features the lesser-known titles in her short story collection"

ng kai-lee presents Poirot series, Part three posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-, saying, "Featuring Yellow Iris, which is subsequently developed into the full-length novel Sparkling Cyanide. Also included is The Cornish Mystery from Poirot's Early Cases."

Nan presents Dumb Witness by Agatha Christie posted at Letters from a Hill Farm.

Karen M presents Review: The Capture of Cerberus & The Incident of the Dog's Ball by Agatha Christie read by David Suchet posted at Euro Crime, saying, "Two rediscovered short stories."

Nan presents Murder In Mesopotamia posted at Letters from a Hill Farm.

Nan presents Dead Man's Folly by Agatha Christie posted at Letters from a Hill Farm.

Sarah Ahmad presents The Mystery of the Blue Train posted at The Book Nook.

Sarah Ahmad presents Cards on the Table posted at The Book Nook.

Sarah Ahmad presents Murder on the Orient Express posted at The Book Nook.

KerrieS presents Curtain and Take My Breath Away posted at 'Do You Write Under Your Own Name?', saying, "In a late contribution to the birthday celebrations, author Martin Edwards talks about Agatha Christie's last Hercule Poirot novel, CURTAIN and how it influenced his own writing."

BooksPlease presents Evil Under the Sun by Agatha Christie: a Book Review posted at BooksPlease, saying, "Poirot solves 'a very slick crime' that was perfectly planned and timed."

Nan presents Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie posted at Letters from a Hill Farm.

Becky Laney presents A Murder on the Links posted at Becky's Book Reviews, saying, "I just loved this Hercule Poirot mystery!"

BooksPlease presents BooksPlease » Blog Archive » Taken at the Flood by Agatha Christie: a Book Review posted at BooksPlease, saying, "In Taken at the Flood Poirot is initially baffled - the case is all wrong - none of it is the right shape!"

Tommy and Tuppence

Joanne presents The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie posted at Seagreen Reader.

KerrieS presents Review: N or M? Agatha Christie posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "World War II is the perfect opportunity for Christie to add to the Tommy & Tuppence series (and you may want to reflect whether they would have made another appearance without the war) but now Christie is a well established and successful novelist with 30 novels to her credit, so she doesn't wait for the war to end, but publishes N or M? while the issues it reflects are still topical.
Once you recognise that, you realise that Christie is reflecting a lot of contemporary thinking. It certainly must have made the average English reader look carefully at those around him. It is a very patriotic novel."

Short Stories

Camille LaGuire presents Short Fiction Recommendations: Agatha Christie posted at The Daring Novelist, saying, "Part of a larger series of recommendations of great short stories, for writers who have never read much short fiction."

Updates

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 21 October 2011 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "My calculation is that I am just on half way on my journey. I've read 44 out of an estimated 87 titles."

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (November 24, 2011 ) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

Celebrate Agatha's birthday with us - September 15

2011-09-15T06:00:00.001+09:30

This is the doodle that Google produced for Agatha Christie's birthday in 2010, celebrating 120 years.
Today we invite you to join us in celebrating her 121st birthday. It's easy.

write a post on your blog in celebrating Agatha Christie's 121st birthday in whatever way you wish.
Put in a link to this blog post and advertise the event.
Come back here and add your name and the URL of your blog post in the Mr Linky below.
Leave a comment here if you wish.
visit the other participating blogs

ACRC Carnival 2011 #7 - August 24, 2011

2011-08-24T08:03:00.000+09:30

Welcome to the August 24, 2011 edition of Agatha Christie monthly BlogCarnival.
Many thanks to the 13 contributors who have provided 20 blog posts for you to visit.

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Birthday Celebrations

Today's 13 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

Kerrie at MYSTERIES in PARADISE
Jose Ignacio at The Game's Afoot
Che at From Kafka To Kindergarten
Margaret at BooksPlease
Becky at Becky's Book Reviews
Elizabeth at Miss Lemon's Mysteries
Martin at Do You Write Under Your Own Name?
Norman at CRIME SCRAPS REVIEW
Joanne at Seagreen Reader
Nan at Letters from a Hill Farm
Margot at Joyfully Retired
Stacy at Stacy's Books
Rishi Arora at Classic Mystery Hunt

General

Agatha Christie's True Crime Inspirations posted at 'Do You Write Under Your Own Name?', "Martin Edwards talks about how much Agatha Christie relied on real life cases"

Agatha Christie Route - Puerto de la Cruz (Tenerife) posted at The Game's Afoot. This visits the places that Agatha Christie frequented during her visit in 1927.

che presents Agatha Christie Graphic Novels: Ordeal by Innocence (graphic-novelised by Chandre) posted at From Kafka To Kindergarten, saying, "Ordeal by Innocence as a graphic novel."

Agatha Christie Festival 11-18 September posted at CRIME SCRAPS REVIEW, "One of the English Riviera’s major events of the year, the Agatha Christie Festival is next month, and one event is already fully booked."

Hercule Poirot

Joanne presents The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie posted at Seagreen Reader. "It is a troubling case for Poirot and he seems puzzled by it. The timings don't make sense, and the strongest suspects have the tightest alibis"

Margot at Joyfully Retired presents Book Review: Murder In Mesopotamia posted at Joyfully Retired, saying, "I liked the connection between Agatha Christie's experience on an archeologica dig and the setting for the book."

Nan presents Death in the Clouds by Agatha Christie posted at Letters from a Hill Farm. Such a good little mystery.

Nan presents The ABC Murders by Agatha Christie posted at Letters from a Hill Farm.
This book has a very modern feel to it. There appears to be a serial killer on the loose who is killing random people in random places based solely on the alphabet, in alphabetical order. And the killer sends a letter to Hercule Poirot before each murder occurs.

BooksPlease presents Dumb Witness by Agatha Christie: a Book Review posted at BooksPlease, saying, "An old lady has died, apparently from natural causes. What part in her death did her beloved dog, Bob, play?"

Elizabeth presents Evil Under the Sun posted at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "A fetching stage actress; a husband with a wandering eye; a jealous wife; a self-made millionaire with a shady past; a remote island off Leathercombe bay -- all of these elements plus the arrival of M. Hercule Poirot make the perfect setting for Evil Under the Sun."

KerrieS presents Review: EVIL UNDER THE SUN, Agatha Christie posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Is EVIL UNDER THE SUN the perfect holiday read? Or will it make you look askance as your fellow holiday makers? Is there really evil wherever you go, even in idyllic settings like The Jolly Roger Hotel?"

KerrieS presents Crime Fiction on a EuroPass: Belgium: Hercule Poirot posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "A post I wrote for another meme, but very applicable here. Gives a bit of back history of Poirot and points to where you can find more."

Tommy and Tuppence

stacybuckeye presents The Secret Adversary, by Agatha Christie « Stacy's Books posted at Stacy's Books, saying, "My second Christie read and I loved it."

Miss Marple

Becky Laney presents They Do It With Mirrors posted at Becky's Book Reviews, saying, "I enjoy Miss Marple. I do. There is just something satisfying about reading Agatha Christie. While They Do It With Murders isn't my new favorite or anything, it is an enjoyable mystery. Not perfect. But definitely enjoyable enough to recommend."

Rishi Arora presents A pocket full of Rye by Agatha Christie posted at Classic Mystery Hunt, saying, "This is the third book that I have read in the Miss Marple series and my interest in the series has only increased."

Discoveries

Agatha Christie's surfing secret revealed posted at Books news, reviews and author interviews | guardian.co.uk, "Research by Pete Robinson, founder of the Devon-based Museum of British Surfing, suggests Christie and her first husband, Archie, may been among the first Britons to learn how to surf standing up."

Telegram sent by Noel Coward to Agatha Christie congratulating her on The Mousetrap found down the back of old bureau | Mail Online posted at News | Mail Online, "A telegram from playwright Noel Coward and a bill for 'ladies' delicates' sent to author Agatha Christie more than half a century ago have been discovered - in the back of an old bureau.

Agatha Christie's 'Crooked House' is headed for the Big Screen With Julie Andrews, Gemma Arterton & More posted at BroadwayWorld, saying, "Agatha Christie, the author whose novels and short stories have found their place on hit television shows and movies worldwide, penned Crooked House in 1949. To date, it remains one of Christie's works that has yet to appear on screen."

Iran Book News Agency (IBNA) - The queen of crime appears in Iran's bookshelves posted at IBNA - Last topics, saying, "During the past 6 months Iran has released 9 translations of Agatha Christie's works including "Five little pigs", "A Caribbean mystery", "The mystery of the blue train", "At Bertram's Hotel", "Taken at the flood", "‎Passenger to Frankfort", "‎They came to Baghdad", "Murder on the links" and "Sad cypress"."

Updates

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 20 August 2011 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "I've read now 30 books and 11 collections of short stories. Still seems a long way to go."

Birthday Celebrations

In 2010 we celebrated the 120th anniversary of Agatha Christie's birthday on September 15 with a month long blog tour.

This year's celebrations will be a bit lower key and will give participants the opportunity to put a celebratory post up on their own blog, and then link to it here through a special post on September 15.

It will use a Mr Linky. We have been collecting participants here so if you would like to indicate that you will participate just add the name of your blog and the URL, and then mark the date down in your diary.

On September 15 you will put up your special birthday post and then return to this blog to add it to the Mr Linky for that day.

Your assistance in advertising the event will be very much appreciated and we look forward to your celebratory post.

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (October 24, 2011 ) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

Plans to celebrate Agatha Christie's birthday

2011-07-27T12:54:00.008+09:30

In 2010 we celebrated the 120th anniversary of Agatha Christie's birthday on September 15 with a month long blog tour.

This year's celebrations will be a bit lower key and will give participants the opportunity to put a celebratory post up on their own blog, and then link to it here through a special post on September 15.

It will use a Mr Linky similar to the one below, so if you would like to indicate that you will participate just add the name of your blog and the URL, and then mark the date down in your diary.

On September 15 you will put up your special birthday post and then return to this blog to add it to the Mr Linky for that day.

Your assistance in advertising the event will be very much appreciated.

ACRC Carnival 2011 #6 - July 24, 2011

2011-07-25T11:00:00.001+09:30

Welcome to the July 24, 2011 edition of Agatha Christie monthly BlogCarnival.
Many thanks to the 10 contributors who have provided 16 blog posts for you to visit.

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Today's 10 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

General

Elizabeth presents Endless Night posted at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "One of darker novels, Endless Night features neither Poirot nor Miss Marple, but is a masterpiece all the same."

Roberta Rood presents Torquay, Greenway, and Agatha Christie posted at Books to the Ceiling, saying, "I thought this might be a nice travel article for the blog."

Hercule Poirot

Yvette presents Clothes Make the Man posted at in so many words.... Three representations of Hercule Poirot. Which do you like best?

Jo D'Arcy presents Five Little Pigs Agatha Christie posted at The Book Jotter, saying, "This in my opinion is on the best Agatha Christie novels for its plot and structure. Using the idea of a nursery rhyme Christie has Hercule Poirot embark on revealing the truth about a murder that was committed 16 years earlier."

Becky Laney presents Elephants Can Remember posted at Becky's Book Reviews. I enjoyed this one. I did. I don't know that it is my favorite Agatha Christie, but it is a good read.

BooksPlease presents Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie posted at BooksPlease, saying, "Poirot sits back and thinks out the truth - which of the passengers on the Orient Express killed Ratchett?"

KerrieS presents ONE, TWO, BUCKLE MY SHOE, Agatha Christie posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Hercule Poirot (and his good friend Inspector Japp) become involved in this investigation because Poirot has a 6-monthly checkup with the dentist Morley only hours before he dies. Morley's death appears to have the hallmarks of suicide but Poirot is puzzled how someone contemplating suicide could have appeared so "normal"."

Miss Marple

Shirley presents Book Review: The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie posted at My Bookshelf. "This was a re-read for me, perhaps the third or fourth time over, and still I found myself immersed in the plot, caught up in the nuances of the world Agatha Christie creates. That is an indication of an undying classic: a book that the reader cherishes and turns to time and again and still finds intrinsic value in the written word therein.

By the way, would you look at this cover? I absolutely love it."

Jo D'Arcy presents Miss Marple Short Stories posted at The Book Jotter, saying, "A list with some comments and thoughts on the odd one or two. A reference post as much as anything."

Becky Laney presents NEMESIS posted at Becky's Book Reviews, saying, "I enjoyed this one. I wouldn't say it is my favorite Miss Marple mystery. But I'm very glad my library got a copy of this one! (And very happy that HarperCollins has recently published such lovely editions of the Miss Marple mysteries.) If you don't mind a couple of small spoilers, I have something to discuss at the end of this post. "

Tommy and Tuppence

Shirley presents Book Review: Postern of Fate by Agatha Christie posted at My Bookshelf. How I enjoy Tommy and Tuppence as the retired sleuths/detectives in this, the last book ever written by Agatha Christie; though it should be noted it was not the last of Agatha Christie's to be published.

Short Stories

che presents Miss Marple’s Final Cases by Agatha Christie. posted at From Kafka To Kindergarten. "The name of this book is a bit misleading, firstly because these cases actually occur somewhere in the middle of Marple’s detective career and secondly because two of the short stories in the book do not feature Miss Marple at all."

Jose Ignacio presents Accident by Agatha Christie posted at The Game's Afoot. "This short story is an absolute gem of detective fiction, another proof of Agatha Christie’s genius. It will sure make the delights of everyone, whether or not true fans of the gender. "

Discoveries

KerrieS discovered New official website developed to promote the works of Agatha Christie posted at THE DRUM - Advertising, Design, Media, Marketing, Digital, PR - News, Information & Jobs, saying, "The "new" site allows fans to plot their own locations of where each of Christie’s plots took place all around the world, through ‘Christie Maps’, allowing users to pick a book and see significant locations mentioned within."

KerrieS presents MISS MARPLE MAY APPEAR 5 posted at CRIME SCRAPS REVIEW, saying, "This blogger is featuring some photos of English countryside and houses under the title of "Miss Marple May Appear""

Updates

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 20 July 2011 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "I am on track with a book a month, so I'm approaching half way in my journey."

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (August 24, 2011 ) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2011 #5 - June 24, 2011

2011-06-24T08:34:00.001+09:30

Welcome to the June 24, 2011 edition of Agatha Christie monthly BlogCarnival.
We had a break in May while I was travelling and so this truly is a bumper edition with a number of new contributors. Many thanks to the 16 contributors who have provided 22 blog posts for you to visit.

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Today's 16 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

Sarah at Cooking Through Christie
Yvette at in so many words....
Sarah at A library is a hospital for the mind...
Kerrie at MYSTERIES in PARADISE
Cheryl Lyda at Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom
Jason at Footnotes
Margot at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist.....
ng kai-lee at Zhen's Summer Cafe
Margot at Joyfully Retired
Nancy at crime segments
Jj at citivolus sus
Gautami at everything distils into reading
Shirley at My Bookshelf
Unfinished person at An unfinished person (in this unfinished universe)
Quirky Reader at quirkyreader
Margaret at BooksPlease

General

Sarah presents Toffee - The Clocks posted at Cooking Through Christie, saying, "We're cooking, drinking and blogging our way through all the Agatha Christie novels! This time I made toffee from the novel, The Clocks."

Yvette presents Agatha Christie Vintage Covers: You know you love them. posted at in so many words....

sarah presents Death Comes As the End by Agatha Christie posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "Because of its setting Death Comes As the End is a unique novel amongst Agatha Christie's canon. It is the only historical mystery novel that Agatha Christie ever wrote and it's creation only came about as a result of Dame Agatha's personal passion for archeology (her second husband, Max Mallowan was an archeologist) and thanks to a very persuasive friend who encouraged her to take up the challenge of writing a murder mystery set in 4,000 B.C. Egypt."

sarah presents Sparkling Cyanide by Agatha Christie posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "A classic Christie mystery that appeared first in the form of a Hercule Poirot short story, but was later re-written to remove Poirot and change up the end."

ng kai-lee presents And Then There Were None: From the novel to the films, to the game posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-, saying, "A comparison of the novel, the films, and the game for "And Then There Were None"."

Yvette presents I'll Take Vintage: Great Agatha Covers posted at in so many words....

Cheryl Lyda presents Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom posted at Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom, saying, "New quotes have been added to "Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom." Over 300 quotes on 100 topics Christie commented on in her books. Search by subject. Full bibliographic information included with each quote."

Jason Lott presents Agatha Christie's secret notebooks posted at Footnotes, saying, "A brief review of John Curran's book."

Hercule Poirot

sarah presents The Hollow by Agatha Christie posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "The Hollow holds true to the traditional Christie "who-dunit" mystery with the murder set in the heart of the English countryside, a house party, and a shocking murder. The story plot itself is a twisting puzzle complete with a red herring or two and plenty of interesting characters..."

Margot Kinberg presents Poirot Loses a Client posted at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist..... Poirot Loses a Client is a solid mystery in the classic English village setting, with interesting characters and Christie’s trademark twists and “red herrings.” But what’s your view? Have you read Poirot Loses a Client? If you have, what elements do you see in it?

Jj presents The Big Four posted at citivolus sus, saying, "Still reading Ms. Christie in order. And the Big Four was, well, it reminded me of the Secret Adversary, which is not a bad thing."

Margot at Joyfully Retired presents Agatha Christie: The ABC Murders posted at Joyfully Retired.

ng kai-lee presents Celebrating my eight-year love for Poirot and Christie posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-, saying, "A review of three Poirot books that I read in this month"

KerrieS presents Review: SAD CYPRESS, Agatha Christie posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "This was an unusual case because on the face of it the charges of murder against Elinor Carlisle were supported by irrefutable evidence. Hercule Poirot is brought into the case by one of the witnesses for the prosecution."

Superintendent Battle

BooksPlease presents Murder is Easy by Agatha Christie: Book Review posted at BooksPlease, saying, "This has stood the test of time very well. It’s another one of Agatha Christie’s easily read crime mysteries, with plenty of plot twists and unexpected revelations."

Miss Marple

gautami tripathy presents The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie posted at everything distils into reading, saying, "...entertaining reading..."

Tommy and Tuppence

Shirley presents Book Review: Partners in Crime by Agatha Christie posted at My Bookshelf.

Updates

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 20 June 2011 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Still on track with my reading. Nearly 40% finished"

unfinishedperson presents Of Dame Agatha, Maximus Decimus Meridius, and oh, Father's Day (TSS) posted at An unfinished person (in this unfinished universe), saying, "After a long hiatus, I'm back to the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge. Why did I leave? Why am I back? See here."

BooksPlease presents Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Update posted at BooksPlease, saying, "I'm getting a bit behind with reading AC's books - the last one I read was in April, but I've recently bought some more books and plan to read them soon!"

Discoveries

quirkyreader presents quirkyreader - May 3rd, 2011 posted at quirkyreader, saying, "Two books from the files of Christie ephemera."

quirkyreader presents quirkyreader - May 5th, 2011 posted at quirkyreader, saying, "The Bayard book is full of spoilers."

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (July 24, 2011 ) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2011 #4 - April 24, 2011

2011-04-24T09:33:00.005+09:30

Welcome to the April 24, 2011 edition of Agatha Christie monthly BlogCarnival.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival this time.
We have 16 quality contributions from 11 contributors, giving us a real variety of titles..

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Today's 11 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

Please Note: As I will be travelling for most of May, there will be no May edition of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Carnival.
Get your contributions in for the 24 June 2011 edition.

General

Yvette recommends Agatha Christie Carnival: THE AGATHA CHRISTIE WHO'S WHO compiled by Randall Toye posted at in so many words.... "If you've ever had any questions about who-was-who in any Christie book- because, let's face it, it's not so easy to keep track of everyone with such a prolific author - this is the book to go to."

KerrieS reviews TEN LITTLE NIGGERS posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Christie's best-selling novel with 100 million sales to date, making it the world's best-selling mystery ever, and one of the best-selling books of all time. This title is one of Agatha Christie's most controversial."

ng kai-lee reviews DEATH COMES AS THE END posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-, saying, "Set in 2000 B.C. in Thebes, overlooking the Nile River, the plot has a romantic setting as well as an ingenious plot with multiple murders."

BooksPlease presents THE MAN IN THE BROWN SUIT posted at BooksPlease, saying, "The Man in the Brown Suit is an early AC book - a mix of murder mystery and international crime thriller, with a complicated plot - more on the lines of The Secret Adversary than her later books."

Hercule Poirot

Stacey at Stacey's Books has just begun her journey with THE MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR AT STYLES

Roberta Rood presents "I'm her daughter. I want the truth!" FIVE LITTLE PIGS by Agatha Christie posted at Books to the Ceiling.

BooksPlease presents Crime Fiction Alphabet – Letter M posted at BooksPlease, saying, "Agatha Christie's 6th book - a masterpiece!"

Nan presents LORD EDGWARE DIES posted at Letters from a Hill Farm. "This book was published in America under the title Thirteen At Dinner, which comes from the superstition that it is unlucky to have thirteen diners at a table. It is also said that in the case of thirteen, the one who gets up first will have bad luck."

Margot Kinberg presents The Alphabet in Crime Fiction: Agatha Christie's Mrs. McGinty's Dead posted at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist..... "I’ve a rather sentimental reason for having chosen this book; it was the first Agatha Christie novel I owned, and this was the novel that hooked me on Christie’s work. The edition you see is the copy I got for a birthday when I was a teenager."

Jj presents The Murder of Roger Ackroyd posted at citivolus sus, saying, "Very interesting murder in the small village of King's Abbot. There is gossip, engagements, secret marriages, and murder. Excellent story."

Jo D'Arcy presents Cat Among the Pigeons posted at The Book Jotter, saying, "Review of Cat Among the Pigeons. Followed by another post regarding the TV adaptation." She followed that up with TV Adaptation "Cat Among the Pigeons", saying, "Comments and observations on the TV adaptation of Cat Among the Pigeons."

Miss Marple

Lynossa presents Crime Fiction Alphabet: M is for Marple, Jane posted at The Deranged Book Lovers. ""The young people think the old people are fools -- but the old people know the young people are fools.""

Short Stories

Jo D'Arcy presents Parker Pyne Investigates posted at The Book Jotter, saying, "Discovering and Devouring Parker Pyne."

Tommy and Tuppence

KerrieS presents Crime Fiction Alphabet: N or M?, Agatha Christie posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "One of the things I find fascinating about Agatha Christie novels is the way they reflect popular fear about infiltration by outside powers."

Updates

KerrieS recorded her latest update in her Agatha Christie Challenge journey. She's read 27 books and 11 collections of short stories.

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (June 24, 2011 ) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2011 #3 - March 2011

2011-03-24T19:40:00.002+10:30

Welcome to the March 24, 2011 edition of Agatha Christie monthly BlogCarnival.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival this time.
We have 20 contributions from 10 contributors, giving us a real variety of titles..

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Today's 10 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

Yvette at in so many words....
Kerrie at MYSTERIES in PARADISE
ng kai-lee at Zhen's Summer Cafe
Nan at Letters from a Hill Farm
Jose Ignacio at The Game's Afoot
Roberta at Books to the Ceiling
Margot at Joyfully Retired
Nancy at crime segments
Sarah at A library is a hospital for the mind...
Man O'Clay at Reflection on things fantastic

General

Jose Ignacio presents Agatha Christie and Nursery Rhymes posted at The Game's Afoot. A general pointer to this recurrent theme in Agatha Christie titles.

Jose Ignacio presents Hickory, Dickory, Dock by Agatha Christie posted at The Game's Afoot. "certainly a worthwhile read".

Yvette presents My Favorite Reads: THE MAN IN THE BROWN SUIT by Agatha Christie posted at in so many words.... This is early Christie (1924) and one of my favorites. A book that, for whatever reason, I never tire of re-reading.

ng kai-lee presents So Many Steps to Death posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-. aka “Destination Unknown” is a fast-paced, espionage-themed story narrating the adventures of Hilary Craven, a heartbroken woman seeking “escape” from her old life by trying to commit suicide in her hotel room in Casablanca.

KerrieS presents Review: THE POCKET ESSENTIAL AGATHA CHRISTIE, Mark Campbell posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "This is almost like an Everyman's guide to Agatha Christie - all you need to know in a few pages, provides useful detail and lists without being overwhelming"

Hercule Poirot

ng kai-lee presents A Review for Appointment with Death posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-. Overall, a good read if you are looking for something less elaborate.

Nan presents Poirot Investigates by Agatha Christie posted at Letters from a Hill Farm. This book is a collection of eleven short stories, only one of which I had read before - The Case of the Missing Will.

Nan presents The Big Four by Agatha Christie posted at Letters from a Hill Farm. The Big Four is an unusual Hercule Poirot mystery. It has elements of international intrigue. The lives of Hastings and Poirot are in danger. There are four people who intend to take over the world.

Margot at Joyfully Retired presents Agatha Christie: Death In the Air posted at Joyfully Retired. Agatha Christie is well known for her “locked door” mysteries. Death In the Air is a version of the locked door.

Roberta Rood presents CARDS ON THE TABLE by Agatha Christie posted at Books to the Ceiling. "Every healthy Englishman who saw him longed earnestly and fervently to kick him!"

Margot at Joyfully Retired presents Book Review: Murder In Three Acts posted at Joyfully Retired. Murder In Three Acts (or Three Act Tragedy) is considered one of Hercule Poirot’s stories but I think it’s quite a different role for him. He’s always been the keenest observer of little details, but that’s to be his major function in this story. Well, that as well as solving the mystery.

Nancy Oakes presents The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, by Agatha Christie posted at crime segments. This has long been one of my favorite Christie novels, not so much for Poirot's detection skills, but for its classic ending.

Nan reviews Poirot's Early Cases posted at Letters from a Hill Farm. In place of the usual novel, given her advancing years [she was 83 that year], Christie's publishers brought out a collection of eighteen short stories written in the inter-war years and earlier serialized in newspapers or magazines.

Miss Marple

KerrieS presents Booktopia - Agatha Christie's Marple, Anne Hart posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "In this authorised biography of the world's most famous female sleuth, Anne Hart combs through the 12 novels and 20 short stories in which Miss Marple appeared, uncovering clue and amassing all the evidence to solve the most difficult case of them all -- the mystery of Miss Marple."

Superintendent Battle

Sarah M. presents Towards Zero by Agatha Christie posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "Towards Zero is a thrilling read that left me guessing up until the very end... To that zero hour."

KerrieS reviews MURDER IS EASY posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Recently retired, police detective Luke Fitzwilliam finds himself on a train, sitting next to Miss Pinkerton. She is on her way to Scotland Yard as she is convinced that her village has a serial murderer.
The conversation gets around to how easy it is to identify a murderer."

Tommy and Tuppence

Man O' Clay presents The Secret Adversary posted at Reflection on things fantastic, saying, "A general review, discussion of The Secret Adversary and Tommy and Tuppence."

Discoveries

Take the bait before Mousetrap snaps shut | The Australian posted at The Australian, "Since 1952, The Mousetrap - Agatha Christie's twisting whodunit and the world's longest running play - has entertained an estimated 10 million people. Now, 59 years after its London opening, it is finally getting an Australian premiere."

Precious Agatha Christie ivories to go on show in London posted at Cyanide Dna, "Precious ivory artefacts which crime author Agatha Christie cleaned using her face cream after her husband had excavated them have been bought by the British Museum."

Updates

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 20 March 2011 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "I've now chalked up 26 books and 11 collections of short stories. Quite a way to go yet though. This post lists all my reviews."

News & Headlines

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (April 23, 2011 ) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2011 #2 - February 2011

2011-02-24T19:46:00.000+10:30

Welcome to the February 23, 2011 edition of Agatha Christie monthly BlogCarnival.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival this time.
We have 19 contributions from 13 contributors.

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Today's 13 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

Yvette at in so many words....
Cheryl Lyda at Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom
Carolyn at Caviglia's Cabinet of Curiosities
Margaret at BooksPlease
Fleur Fisher in her world
Kerrie at MYSTERIES in PARADISE
ng kai-lee at Zhen's Summer Cafe
Nan at Letters from a Hill Farm
Jenn at for love of lovely words
Jo at The Book Jotter
Margot at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist.....
Shirley at My Bookshelf
Jin Yao, Kwan at guanyinmiao's musings
Jj at citivolus sus

General

Cheryl Lyda presents Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom posted at Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom, saying, "This tribute blog contains over 300 quotes on 100 topics that Agatha Christie commented on in her books. Full bibliographic information is included with each quote."

Yvette presents How's this for an idea? An Agatha Christie Theme Park!! posted at in so many words....

Carolyn Raship presents Boo: Mediums and Mysteries posted at Caviglia's Cabinet of Curiosities, saying, "Agatha Christie and Spirtualism"

Hercule Poirot

Nan presents Peril At End House by Agatha Christie posted at Letters from a Hill Farm.

Jenn presents for love of lovely words - Crime Fiction Alphabet 2011 - Letter E - Evil Under the Sun posted at for love of lovely words, saying, "My review of Evil Under the Sun. It rocks!"

Shirley presents Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie - Book Review posted at My Bookshelf.

Nan presents The Mystery of the Blue Train by Agatha Christie posted at Letters from a Hill Farm.

Fleur Fisher presents Crime Fiction Alphabet: F is for Five Little Pigs posted at Fleur Fisher in her world.

Margot Kinberg presents The Alphabet in Crime Fiction: Agatha Christie's Cat Among the Pigeons posted at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist.....

Jo D'Arcy presents Murder on the Orient Express ? Agatha Christie posted at The Book Jotter, saying, "My review of this book with some comments on the TV adaptation."

Jenn presents for love of lovely words - Crime Fiction Alphabet 2011 - Letter C - Cards On The Table posted at for love of lovely words, saying, "My review of "Cards On The Table" - shocker - I love it."

Jin Yao, Kwan presents Agatha Christie’s Death On The Nile (The Book Club - Ten Things) posted at guanyinmiao's musings, saying, "Death On The Nile"

KerrieS presents Review: APPOINTMENT WITH DEATH, Agatha Christie posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "HP is totally confident he can solve this murder in 24 hours. Does he just have too much ego?"

Jenn presents for love of lovely words - Crime Fiction Alphabet 2011 - D is for Dumb Witness posted at for love of lovely words, saying, "I have three words for you: Bob the Dog."

Superintendent Battle

Jj presents The Secret of Chimneys posted at citivolus sus, saying, "I'm reading Agatha Christie in order because she was my mother's favorite author and my mother passed away last year - this is in her honor. Chimneys was great - I didn't know Sup. Battle will appear in other books - so that's great news - I really liked him. Up next "The Murder of Roger Ackroyd.""

Tommy and Tuppence

BooksPlease presents The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie: Book Review posted at BooksPlease, saying, "The first of the Tommy and Tuppence books - a spy/detective story that is fast and furious with Tommy and Tuppence landing themselves in all sorts of dangerous situations."

ng kai-lee presents More from the Beresfords: N or M? posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-, saying, "Double agents, Fifth Columnists, Nazi sympathizers, secret codes and a little romance sum up the whole story nicely."

Short Stories

KerrieS presents Agatha Christie's The Golden Ball and Other Stories posted at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist...., saying, "This collection of short stories shows, as much as anything else, Christie’s versatility."

Updates

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 20 February 2011 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "I'm just over 40% through on my journey. This post tells you what I've read, and links to my reviews."

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (March 23, 2011 ) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2011 #1 - January 2011

2011-01-23T18:14:00.000+10:30

Welcome to the January 23, 2011 edition of Agatha Christie monthly Blog Carnival.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival this time.
We have 22 contributions from 12 contributors.

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Today's 12 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

Yvette at in so many words....
Margaret at BooksPlease
Kerrie at MYSTERIES in PARADISE
Bev at MY READER'S BLOCK
quirkyreader
ng kai-lee at Zhen's Summer Cafe
Nan at Letters from a Hill Farm
Lynossa at The Deranged Book Lovers
Jenn at for love of lovely words
Jose Ignacio at The Game's Afoot
Jo at The Book Jotter
Margot at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist.....

General

Yvette presents Football and A Cozy posted at in so many words.... Agatha Christie never lets me down.

BooksPlease presents Crime Fiction Alphabet – A is for … posted at BooksPlease, saying, "As well as being a record of her life as she remembered it and wanted to relate it, her Autobiography is also full of her thoughts on life and writing. I read it slowly over several months and it was like having a daily chat with Agatha Christie!"

Bev presents Alphabet in Crime Fiction: The Letter A posted at MY READER'S BLOCK. I'm hitting the the alphabet from both sides with And Then There Were None (aka Ten Little Indians)

Lynossa presents Crime Fiction Alphabet 2011 (1): And Then There Were None posted at The Deranged Book Lovers. To celebrate the letter A and also to show my love to the Queen of Mystery herself, I dedicate the letter A to Agatha Christie's masterpiece: And Then There Were None.

Jenn presents Crime Fiction Alphabet 2011 - A, posted at for love of lovely words, "A quick bit about my love of Agatha!"

quirkyreader presents THE FLOATING ADMIRAL written In Part by Agatha Christie posted at quirkyreader, saying, "This is one of the books written by The Detection Club that Agatha Christie participated in."

KerrieS presents Creating P.C. reading by whitewashing the classics posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Agatha Christie wasn't always "politically correct". Should modern publishers "correct ' her books?"

Nan presents Two by Agatha to almost finish the year's reading posted at Letters from a Hill Farm. THE SITTAFORD MYSTERY and A MURDER IS ANNOUNCED

ng kai-lee presents Christie's Best and Most Unforgettable Works posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-. A list of 10 titles you musn't miss.

quirkyreader presents quirkyreader - Agatha Christie's Autobiography posted at quirkyreader, saying, "The one and only Autobiography"

Hercule Poirot

Bev presents MURDER ON THE LINKS (Review) posted at MY READER'S BLOCK. It seems hard to believe that Murder on the Links is only the second Hercule Poirot novel--and the one where Hastings meets his soon-to-be wife and disappears to the Argentine for a vast number of books.

Jenn presents for love of lovely words - Finished! The Mysterious Affair at Styles posted at for love of lovely words, saying, "I could have sworn I'd read before, but I must have been mistaken"

Jose Ignacio presents Murder on the Orient Express - the film posted at The Game's Afoot. Last night I had the opportunity to watch in TeleMadrid the film version directed by Sidney Lumet in 1974

KerrieS presents Review: DUMB WITNESS posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Everyone blames Emily's accident on a rubber ball left on the stairs by her frisky terrier. But the more she thinks about her fall, the more convinced she becomes that one of her relatives is trying to kill her."

Miss Marple

Jo D'Arcy presents The Blue Geranium ? Agatha Christie (Short Story) posted at The Book Jotter, saying, "A review in preparation of the TV adaptation. My first short story I have read of Agatha Christie."

Margot Kinberg presents In The Spotlight: Agatha Christie's 4:50 From Paddington posted at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist..... "Agatha Christie's Jane Marple might seem like an unlikely sleuth; ...." So what makes her so dangerous?

Short Stories

Jo D'Arcy presents The Blue Geranium ? Agatha Christie ? TV Adaptation posted at The Book Jotter, saying, "My follow up post to The Blue Geranium Short Story with the TV Adaptation."

Nan presents Today's Short Story by Agatha Christie posted at Letters from a Hill Farm, saying, "A wonderful Hercule Poirot short story."

Discoveries

Take a look at THE MOVING FINGER (1943) posted at The Agatha Christie Reader, "When Agatha Christie tackles poison pen letters, of course she wheels out a spinster to catch a spinster – but this is very much a novel in which Miss Marple cameos at best."

Cristina Odone from The Telegraph writes "In terms of literary racism, Agatha Christie is truly the Queen of Crime" posted at News"If I were to write a survival guide to the flu (or flights, or train journeys, or the Oxford Tube on a Saturday morning) top of the list would be Agatha Christie. Armed with the Queen of Crime in paperback or Kindle, I can while away hours, totally immersed in a country house where murder is in the air and another kind of England is resurrected."

Kate found Iconography: It’d Be a Crime Not To ... posted at Bitch Magazine"Crime fiction is still seen as very much a gentleman's genre, something at which fans of Agatha Christie and Patricia Highsmith, for a start, scoff vigorously (if scoffing can be performed vigorously).

Updates

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 20 January 2010 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Currently I am managing about a book a month, and now I'm back on schedule. This post contains a list of what I've read so and links to my reviews - 23 books and 11 collections of short stories."

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (February 23, 2011 ) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2010 #11- December 2010

2010-12-23T06:58:00.001+10:30

Welcome to the Christmas, December 23, 2010 edition of Agatha Christie monthly Blog Carnival.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival this time.
We have 18 contributions from 10 contributors.

my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Today's 10 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

Kathryn at Tea With Mary Kate - Inspiration for Tea and Living
Yvette at in so many words....
Margaret at BooksPlease
Kerrie at MYSTERIES in PARADISE
Roberta at Books to the Ceiling
quirkyreader
ng kai-lee at Zhen's Summer Cafe
Jennifer at Reading with Tequila
Nan at Letters from a Hill Farm
Bryan at An unfinished person (in this unfinished universe)

It's Christmas

KathrynC presents A Winter's Tale of Tea and Agatha Christie at Christmas posted at Tea With Mary Kate - Inspiration for Tea and Living, saying, "Winter is here! It is far too cold to be even contemplating venturing outside, but you’ll hear no cry of complaint from these quarters. What more could I wish for than a Hercule Poirot adventure on the Orient Express. But there is more to Tea with Mary Kate’s Winter’s Tale of Tea & Agatha Christie, so do join me on an adventure of Agatha Christie inspired ideas at Christmas."

KerrieS reviews HERCULE POIROT'S CHRISTMAS posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "An excellent read - a locked room mystery - for this time of the year, in which Christie explores the tensions that Christmas reunions often bring."

General

Yvette presents Vintage Agatha posted at in so many words.... LOVE these old book covers!

quirkyreader reviews PASSENGER TO FRANKFURT posted at quirkyreader. what a wild ride that was!

Roberta Rood reviews THE PALE HORSE posted at Books to the Ceiling, saying, "There is evil. And evil is powerful. Sometimes more powerful than good, A terrific read! Sleuth: Ariadne Oliver"

quirkyreader presents NEMESIS and ELEPHANTS CAN REMEMBER posted at quirkyreader, saying, "These two novels are perfect companion pieces"

ng kai-lee presents CROOKED HOUSE posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-, saying, "Highly recommended, one of Christie's personal favourites"

Hercule Poirot

Jennifer reviews DEAD MAN'S FOLLY posted at Reading with Tequila. saying "I enjoy the mysteries that showcase Ariadne Oliver. I love the character, who seems very much to be a caricature of Agatha Christie herself."

BooksPlease reviews CURTAIN: POIROT'S LAST CASE posted at BooksPlease, saying, "I almost couldn't bear to read this book - so sad! Poirot is even older than ever before and meets his greatest challenge."

Miss Marple

Nan reviews THE MOVING FINGER posted at Letters from a Hill Farm. "This is the third Miss Marple novel, though she doesn't make an appearance until nearly the end."

Updates

unfinishedperson presents A look back at the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge thus far (TSS) posted at An unfinished person (in this unfinished universe), saying, "I slowed down this year after getting off to a quick start last year, but hope to gear back up again for 2011. To date, I’ve read 29 of Dame Christie’s 80 novels."

quirkyreader presents quirkyreader - I Have Finished The "Christie Challenge" posted at quirkyreader, saying, "I have finished the novel/short story challenge. Check what my favourites are."

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 7 December 2010 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Currently I am managing about a book a month. I've read 22 books and 11 collections of short stories."

Short Stories

KerrieS presents MYSTERIES in PARADISE: ACRC: Short Stories, Update #10 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "I've read 11 collections of Agatha Christie Short Stories. My list now has 122 short stories on it. Some of them have appeared in more than one collection. I think I have 11 collections to go."

Discoveries

"DEATH IN THE CLOUDS" (1992) Review of the film posted at FELICE'S LOG, commenting, "There are two things one should know about Agatha Christie’s 1935 novel, ”Death in the Clouds”. One, it happened to be one of those ”murder in a locked room” type of mysteries that she rarely wrote about. And two, I have not read the novel since high school."

This blog post comes from Hercule Poirot Central, another lovely spot to visit. Harley Street: Physicians of Agatha Christie : "Many of Agatha Christie's physicians resided on Harley Street in her books, and of course others had their practice in the quiet English villages where they resided.
This article lists all of the medical personnel found in her mysteries."

ng kai-lee presents Peril at End House PC Game posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-, saying, "An adaptation of the novel where you hunt for clues and solve puzzles!"

quirkyreader presents quirkyreader - Agatha Christie's Rule of Three posted at quirkyreader, saying, "I was able to find and read the plays from "Rule of Three.""

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (January 23, 2011 ) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2010 #10- November 2010

2010-11-25T19:06:00.000+10:30

Welcome to the November 24, 2010 edition of Agatha Christie monthly Blog Carnival.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival this time.
We have 15 contributions from 9 contributors.

my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Today's 9 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

Yvette at in so many words....
Margaret at BooksPlease
Cheryl Lyda at Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom
Kerrie at MYSTERIES in PARADISE
Birdie at Birdie's Nest
quirkyreader
Nancy at crime segments
Sarah at A library is a hospital for the mind...
Margot at Joyfully Retired

General

Yvette presents Monday Review: DESTINATION UNKNOWN by Agatha Christie posted at in so many words.... "This book is probably not as well known as the titles in the Poirot and Marple canons, but I think it is, in many ways, one of Christie's best, even if the oh-so-improbable plot requires a larger than average suspension of disbelief. "

BooksPlease presents Agatha Christie on Individuality posted at BooksPlease, saying, "Things Agatha Christie liked and disliked taken from her Autobiography - I thought it was fascinating."

Cheryl Lyda presents Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom posted at Agatha Christie's Wit & Wisdom, saying, "This blog is an online version of a concordance of quotes that I wrote in 2008. The blog contains over 300 quotes on 100 topics that Christie remarked on in her books. Viewers may search by topic, and full bibliographic information is included for each quote."

KerrieS presents Agatha Christie Quotations posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "There are several sites where you can "get" Agatha Christie quotations.
I'm not quite sure where the originals come from, but here are some of them:"

Birdie presents Christie Catch Up posted at Birdie's Nest. Since I last updated, I've read Crooked House, After the Funeral, Why Didn't They Ask Evans?/The Boomerang Clue, and The Sittaford Mystery/Murder at Hazelmoor.

quirkyreader presents Reading The "Usual" Suspects posted at quirkyreader. Two books to check to complement your reading of Agatha Christie novels.

BooksPlease presents Agatha Christie on Poirot posted at BooksPlease, saying, "Agatha's thoughts on how she created Hercule Poirot and the mistake she made."

Nancy Oakes presents The Pale Horse, by Agatha Christie posted at crime segments, saying, "One of the later Christies, in which Ariadne Oliver makes a couple of pop-in visits."

Miss Marple

sarah presents The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "It is said that Agatha Christie considered The Moving Finger to be one of her best novels. I can't say that it's one of my top favorites, but it is an enjoyable read. And I know this much, it's good enough that one can read it, wait a few years, and then re-read it and still be caught up in the mystery...."

BooksPlease reviews A CARIBBEAN MYSTERY posted at BooksPlease, saying, "Even on holiday Miss Marple has a murder to solve."

Hercule Poirot

KerrieS reviews MURDER IN MESOPOTAMIA posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "I really read this too close to watching the latest TV production with David Suchet as Poirot. I also saw similarities between it and P.D. James' THE SKULL BENEATH THE SKIN."

Short Stories

Margot at Joyfully Retired presents Book Review: The Hound Of Death posted at Joyfully Retired, saying, "Except for the story Witness For the Prosecution, I really did not care for this collection of supernatural stories. Too weird for me."

Updates

quirkyreader presents My Current Christie Update and More Covers posted at quirkyreader.

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 6 November 2010 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "I've now read 20 books and 11 collections of short stories.
MURDER IN MESOPOTAMIA is my 11th title for 2010. My update supplies you with a list of all I've read so far."

Discoveries

Agatha Christie Inspires Travel to Egypt posted at A Travelers' Library"The writer's first taste of ancient Egypt, the ‘Land of the Pharaohs’, came on a ten-day, whistle-stop tour of the country as a callow 13-year old."

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (December 23) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2010 #9 - October 2010

2010-10-24T18:53:00.062+10:30

Welcome to the October 23, 2010 edition of Agatha Christie monthly Blog Carnival.

First of all many thanks to those who contributed to the blog tour in September to celebrate Agatha Christie's 120th birthday. It was a great event, and the posts were all wonderful.
There is a summary post here with links to all the days of the blog tour.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival this time. We really do have a bumper issue with 40 contributions from 22 contributors.

my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings

join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge

go to the Carnival collecting space

Today's 22 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

Featured Blog: A Library is the hospital of the mind

Sarah is an enthusiastic reader of Agatha Christie and a participant in the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge and our monthly carnival. She participated twice in the blog tour in September.

News & Headlines

General

Jose Ignacio reviews And Then There Were None (1939) by Agatha Christie posted at The Game's Afoot. saying "It has a clever ending that will test the sharpness of the reader."

swapnil warang presents Book Reviews: Must Read Books ........... Part 10 posted at Book Reviews. The list includes an Agatha Christie. Can you guess which one?

Roberta Rood presents The Art of the Mystery, Part Three: the Golden Age of British crime fiction. posted at Books to the Ceiling, saying, "The Golden Age of crime writing in Great Britain was epitomized by the work of five gifted women, sometimes referred to as "les Grandes Dames""

Yvette presents The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie posted at in so many words..., saying, "My rainy night review of THE SECRET OF CHIMNEYS."

Carolyn Rector presents Library Land: reading posted at Library Land, saying, "I have an old book on my shelf that I am ashamed to say probably read four or five times, and still it draws me in and I like to visit the setting, the time, the winter snowy night, the blizzard feeling of closed roads and winds swirling at the windows and whistling through the grooves of the bricks or stone walls of the house."

Carolyn Rector reviews MRS McGINTY'S DEAD posted at Library Land saying "I can always get into an Agatha Christie novel easily. I wonder what makes her style so easily read."

ng kai-lee presents The Unexpected Guest posted at -Zhen's Summer Cafe-.I must confess that having read “The Unexpected Guest”, I keep comparing it to the “usual” Christies that I’ve seen so far.

quirkyreader presents quirkyreader - Christie Plays posted at quirkyreader. "I've been trying to read all of Agatha Christie's plays."

Jo D'Arcy presents Queen of Crime posted at The Book Jotter. There is something devilish about her books, and having read only a few I can see their mass appeal but I can also see why they have lasted so long.

Donna presents And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie posted at A Novel Review, saying, "This was an excellent choice for my first Agatha Christie read. The mounting suspense engages the reader almost from the start."

Danielle C. reviews Iraq: They Came To Baghdad posted at The Romantic Armchair Traveller, saying, "During a stay in Iraq Christie wrote one of her entertaining departures from domestic whodunnits, a Cold War thriller that brims with local colour and sly humour."

Janet Rudolph presents Agatha Christie and Nursery Rhymes posted at Mystery Fanfare, saying, "Agatha Christie drew her inspiration from so many places and nursery rhymes were a rich source for titles as well as themes. Although nursery rhymes may seem jolly with their happy rhymes, the mayhem they describe is fodder for a crime writer. Nursery rhymes, unlike fairytales, are all about ordinary people conducting disorderly behavior."

Vanda Symon presents The Poisonous Pen of Agatha Christie posted at Overkill. This is a fun little book I stumbled across when doing some research on Ngaio Marsh and her use of poison as a murder weapon. No doubt about it, Agatha Christie was the Queen of Skulduggery and murder by poison. To quote from the book, 'in over half of her sixty-six novels, at least one or more of the corpses are the victims of overdoses of poisons, drugs and other chemicals.'

BooksPlease presents Agatha Christie on … posted at BooksPlease, saying, "I'm reading Agatha Christie's Autobiography and have decided to do a few posts on her observations on life rather than write about the details of her life. This is my first of these posts."

Hercule Poirot

Jennifer presents Evil Under the Sun by Agatha Christie posted at Reading with Tequila. "This book is a wonderful mystery from beginning to end."

Joy Hall presents Reading Report: Cards on the Table posted at Joy's Blog. This was a great read – but then, I always say that about all Agatha Christie mysteries. And one of the best things about the book is that it represents the first major appearance of Poirot’s friend and sometime-assistant, Mrs. Ariadne Oliver (she’d been introduced, briefly, in one of Christie’s early short stories)

sarah presents Five Little Pigs by Agatha Christie posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "Five Little Pigs was a captivating and quick read. As I read several clues seemed to jump off the page.Maybe this is due to the fact I just finished reading Agatha's autobiography last month, or maybe I've just read enough of her books to pay attention to the details that matter. Either way it was a fun read..."

Margot Kinberg presents In the Spotlight: Agatha Christie's The ABC Murders posted at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist..... One of the reasons that Agatha Christie’s work is so well-regarded is that she was a genius at plot twists and surprises. All of the clues to her mysteries are there for the alert reader, but Christie was a master of leading the reader down the proverbial “garden path.” There’s a real example of her skill at deception in The ABC Murders, so let’s take a closer look at that novel.

Yvette reviews Cat Among the Pigeons posted at in so many words..., saying, "A review of one of my favorite Agatha Christie books, CAT AMONG THE PIGEONS. A book in which Christie's talent for characterization shines brightly."

BooksPlease reviews The ABC Murders posted at BooksPlease, saying, "What is the motive behind the ABC murders? And why advertise them in advance to Poirot? An ingenious murder mystery."

KerrieS presents THE LABOURS OF HERCULES posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "This collection of 12 short stories was published in 1947. It features Belgian detective Hercule Poirot, and gives an account of twelve cases with which he intends to close his career as a private detective."

Jose Ignacio presents The Murder of Roger Ackroyd posted at The Game's Afoot. I consider this a ‘must read’ for anyone who is reading Agatha Christie novels for the first time. A wonderful and very ingenious book that no crime fiction aficionado should miss.

Norman Price presents THIS LITTLE PIGGY..... posted at CRIME SCRAPS On the evidence of Five Little Pigs, written in 1942, Agatha Christie is an underestimated writer, because not only is this novel entertaining with its clues and puzzle to solve, but contains character studies and a lot of social commentary.

Miss Marple

Donna presents Book Review: Nemesis by Agatha Christie posted at A Novel Review, saying, "This was my second Agatha Christie novel. Since I acquire titles rather haphazardly (translated at thrift shops, library sales, and the like) I'm pleased to find a series that doesn't require that the installments be read in succession. But with so many other challenges to fulfill, I'm pulling back the reins a bit and starting out with a commitment to read one a month."

Birdy presents Sleeping Murder: Agatha Christie posted at Life Wordsmith - Book Reviews & Poems, saying, "Miss Marple's last case is a very engaging read"

Nan presents Letters from a Hill Farm: The Murder at the Vicarage by Agatha Christie posted at Letters from a Hill Farm, saying, "To celebrate Agatha's birthday month I read the first Miss Marple book. It was also the first book I read on my new Kindle."

BooksPlease presents 4.50 from Paddington by Agatha Christie: Book Review posted at BooksPlease, saying, "Miss Marple enlists the help of Lucy Eyelesbarrow to solve this murder mystery."

Nan presents The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie posted at Letters from a Hill Farm, saying, "Continuing my own little birthday celebration for Agatha, I read the second Miss Marple book."

Roberta Rood presents From Christie to Shakespeare, in one easy leap. posted at Books to the Ceiling, saying, "There is seemingly no end to Shakespeare’s power to astonish (or in Agatha Christie’s power to entertain and oftentimes, to provoke)."

KerrieS presents MISS MARPLE: complete short stories posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "A complete set of Agatha Christie short stories - only 20 of them ever published."

Short Stories

KerrieS presents WHILE THE LIGHT LASTS, Agatha Christie - audio posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "A short story collection by Agatha Christie first published in the UK on August 4 1997 by HarperCollins. It contains nine short stories, all published much earlier.
The narration is dramatic and makes it very easy listening. The stories were mainly written early in Christie's career, and include a couple of Poirot stories.
They all contain "eternal" themes of romance betrayed, buried treasure, and deception, which Christie was to explore further in later stories and novels."

Elizabeth presents Three Blind Mice posted at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "Miss Lemon doesn't feel that she is going too far by saying this short story by Agatha Christie is perhaps one of her all-time best."

Updates

KerrieS presents ACRC: Short Stories, Update #9 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "A summary of where I am with Agatha Christie short stories. I've read 102 stories in 9 collections"

quirkyreader presents quirkyreader - I've Been Busy Reading Christies posted at quirkyreader.

quirkyreader presents quirkyreader - More Covers and My Christie Progress posted at quirkyreader.

Discoveries

DeliciousDeath : Agatha Christie's Works List posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "16,421 cover art images have been added to this wonderful resource that lists all Agatha Christie's works divided up according to protagonist, has a Chronological table, a list of film & tv dramas, and a list of the short stories."

Tea Vacation with Agatha Christie posted at Tea Blog, saying, ".. imagine sitting at Greenway, enjoying Devonshire Tea served at Devonshire tea in Devonshire, and discussing novels with the spirit of Agatha Christie."

Agatha Christie posted at Book Spy, saying, "Nice summary/biographical note, together with a display of some of the covers of the Agatha Christie Signature series."

St. Mary Mead railway station posted at The Dolls House Emporium Blog- "As lovers of anything Agatha Christie ourselves, St. Mary Mead railway station by Jackie Osborn from Kent, really stood out – we could just imagine Miss Marple or Poirot heading out from this station on their next sleuthing adventure! Here, Jackie explains how she created her 1950’s station."

The story behind the Mousetrap posted at South Wales Argus | News- "Newport man tells his tragic story behind Agatha Christie classic."

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (November 23) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival will resume on October 23

2010-10-10T19:08:00.000+10:30

Spread the word about the existence of this blog and the monthly opportunity it offers to showcase reviews about Agatha Christie books.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just go down to the bottom of this page and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post. The October edition of the Carnival will be posted on October 23, so get your submissions in by October 22.

Agatha Christie Blog Tour 2010 - final days

2010-09-26T13:43:00.003+09:30

On 15 September 2010 Agatha Christie would have been 120 years old.

Here at the ACRC Blog Carnival we have been taking part in world wide celebrations with a blog carnival tour from 1-30 September 2010.
Participants each volunteered to host the blog tour for a day in September.
Their posts all related to an Agatha Christie topic.
The final days are coming up.

Blog Tour stops - the numbers are the dates

In October we will resume the Blog Carnival, with the next edition due to be published around October 23.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just click on the link and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post.

Agatha Christie Quizzes 2010

2010-09-15T10:00:00.028+09:30

Today on the blog tour we have some quizzes - try your hand at some or all of them.

Some new (to me anyway) Quizzes

Below I've repeated some from last year - but I wonder if you'll remember the answers?

Welcome to Kerrie's Agatha Christie Quiz.

I invite you to complete the Quiz and then leave a comment about it (or your score)
If you are using IE6 there may be a problem with the embedded Quiz below just displaying the choices but not the questions. You may be able to do it online here. (although IE6 users may have the same problem)

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This Quiz was created on MyStudiyo and then embedded in my blog.

Here are the questions in case you need them

Was the AFFAIR AT STYLES
In which year was Agatha Christie's first book published?
The police superintendent in THE SECRET OF CHIMNEYS was
Hercule Poirot and Arthur Hastings are often joined by
How many Dials were there?
The alternative title for LORD EDGWARE DIES was
How many Agatha Christie novels featured Miss Marple?
Who was the detective in DEATH ON THE NILE?
Which was the first Miss Marple novel?
Agatha Christie wrote her novels over a period of

How well do you know Agatha Christie? - the Guardian Quiz
Quizzes on FunTrivia

Launch of the Agatha Christie Blog Tour

2010-09-01T14:00:00.026+09:30

On 15 September 2010 Agatha Christie would have been 120 years old.

Here at the ACRC Blog Carnival we are taking part in world wide celebrations with a blog carnival tour from 1-30 September 2010.
Participants have each volunteered to host the blog tour for a day in September.
Their posts of course will be related to an Agatha Christie topic.

Blog Tour stops - the numbers are the dates

ACRC Carnival 2010 #8

2010-08-23T20:10:00.000+09:30

Welcome to the August 23, 2010 edition of Agatha Christie monthly Blog Carnival.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival this time.
We have 24 contributions from 12 contributors.

Do visit the participating blogs and leave comments if you have read the books.

Spread the word too about the existence of this blog and the monthly opportunity it offers to showcase reviews about Agatha Christie books.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just click on the link and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post.

Blog Tour in September:
On 15 September 2010 Agatha Christie would have been 120 years old.
Here at the Blog Carnival we will be taking part in world wide celebrations with a blog carnival tour from 1-30 September.
Participants will volunteer for a day in September to host the carnival. Your post of course must be related to an Agatha Christie topic.
Check the current listing of blog tour stops
Indicate your interest in being a stop on the blog tour by leaving a comment on that post or emailing Kerrie.

Today's 12 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

Featured Blog

One of the first to join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge was Margot at Joyfully Retired.

When I visited Margot's blog last week I discovered she now has a tab that says Agatha Christie Reading List.

Like me Margot is trying to read the Agatha Christie titles in order, and we are more or less at the same point in our journey (we seem to have a slight disagreement on our lists) but we are both around 1935. We are both claiming 18 books.

General

Bernadette reviews Death Comes As The End posted at Reactions to Reading, saying, "A review of one of Christie's writing experiments set in ancient Egypt: good historical detail but the book lacks a narrative focus".

Patti presents Agatha Christie posted at pattinase, saying, "In a not very flattering article about Agatha Christie in THE NEW YORKER last week, as part of a review on a new book by John Curran entitled Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks, Joan Acocella claims that Ms. Christie made sure no one could solve her puzzles because she provided little if any psychological depth to her characters."

Theresa Dhondup presents quirkyreader - Agatha Christie, First Lady of Crime posted at quirkyreader.a review of "The First Lady of Crime" by H.R.F. Keating.

Theresa Dhondup presents quirkyreader - Austen fragments and more covers (including 3 Agatha Christie ones) posted at quirkyreader.

Hercule Poirot

Jennifer reviews Hercule Poirot's Christmas posted at Reading with Tequila. Here is another Agatha Christie novel that leaves you wanting more - more Christmas, more Poirot, more useful clues and a more realistic ending.

Sarah M. reviews Evil Under the Sun posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "What better setting for a thrilling "who-dun-it" crime novel than a sea-side vacation spot where the beautiful and popular, yet most hated person present is murdered?
The post also lists the 24 novels read so far for the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge."

KerrieS reviews THE ABC MURDERS posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "In this story Poirot recognises this case is different to the intime sort of crime he is usually called on to investigate - crimes committed by one member of a family against another. This killer appears to be psychotic and he is playing with Poirot's mind."

Vanda Symon discusses Black Coffee posted at Overkill, saying, "BLACK COFFEE was not a novel, but a play, centred around Hercule Poirot. This novel is an adaptation of the original play, written by Charles Osborne."

Carolynn looks at Elephants Can Remember. posted at Carolynn's Bookshelf. This is a different type of mystery. You already know who the victims are…you’re just trying to learn who was killed first. Who was the actual person to murder and then commit suicide?

Sarah M. reviews One, Two Buckle My Shoe posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "One, Two Buckle My Shoe is a much darker novel than most Poirot stories and also more politically "involved" than other Christie reads from late 1930s and early 1940s..."

Miss Marple

Chris Well presents Retirement is Murder: 10 Senior Sleuths posted at The Thrill of it All, saying, "A list of detectives solving mysteries in their golden years."

Margot Kinberg presents In The Spotlight: Agatha Christie's The Mirror Crack'd posted at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist...., saying, "The Mirror Crack’d is drawn together by the themes of social change and actions and consequences, among other themes. Its interest is, as much as anything else, in the characters we meet, Miss Marple’s insight into human nature and of course, the twists, turns and “red herrings” that made Christie a crime fiction genius. There’s also a subtle but real touch of humor."

Chris Well presents Opening Theme: MISS MARPLE posted at Crime TV, saying, "A roundup of Miss Marple portrayals on British TV, with opening themes and trailers from series starring Joan Hickson, Geraldine McEwan and Julia McKenzie."

Short Stories

Margot at Joyfully Retired reviews The Mysterious Mr. Quin posted at Joyfully Retired. Over the past few weeks I’ve been forcing myself to read the stories one at a time and waiting at least a day or two before reading the next one. That way the anticipation could build the way it did waiting for the magazine to publish the next story. I recommend doing the same.

Updates

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 14 August 2010 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "I think I've achieved 31% of my journey!"

Discoveries

New Agatha Christie Covers posted at Lucy Davey, saying, "Two recently completed covers for the Penguin Readers editions of A Murder is Announced and The Mirror Crack'd by Agatha Christie."

Agatha Christie: The curious case of the cosy queen - Features, Books - The Independent posted at The Independent - Features RSS Feed, saying, "Discoveries: how has a shy, upper-middle class lady, born in Torquay in 1890, become (almost certainly) the most widely read novelist in the world today?"

Duchess of Death: The Unauthorised Biography of Agatha Christie by Richard Hack | Book review | Books | The Observer posted at Guardian, saying, "the reviewer definitely didn't like this book: a tremendously bad book. It manages to be both dull and unpleasant; to describe in exhaustive detail almost everything Agatha Christie ever did without coming close to revealing her as a person or a writer."

Agatha Christie’s Marple: Series 5 posted at Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Carnival, saying, "If watching the Marple movies is something you do, then you might like this site. There are good reviews of some of the episodes in the series in the comments."

KerrieS found this cover for Murder in Mesopotamia by Agatha Christie posted at Pulp of the Day"A most un-Agatha-Christie like cover I thought - what do you think?"

RTÉ.ie Radio 1: Documentary on One - Agatha Christie's Final Mystery posted at Radio One Ireland, saying, "A radio documentary about John Curran's fascination with Agatha Christie and his discovery of a new Hercule Poirot more than 70 years old."

Agatha Christie: 4.50 From Paddington game posted at Agatha Christie site, "If you've been wondering about what playing a game would be like, here's a chance to take a free trial. They call this a Hide & Seek game."

The enduring appeal of Agatha Christie posted at CountryLife Homepage, says, "Without her sister Madge's taunting, Agatha might never have turned her hand to detective fiction and thus never have entered the record books as the best-selling writer of all time. Today in Britain, more than 30 years after their author's death, her novels continue to sell in the region of 600,000 copies a year."

Agatha Christie Files posted at Free Full Downloads with Hotfile and MegaUpload Links - WorldsDown, saying, "This site seems to offer a mixture of games and audio files either at low cost or free. Certainly worth investigating. It contains a list of available titles."

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (October 23) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

Participate in the ACRC's Agatha Christie Blog Tour September 1-30

2010-08-17T15:38:00.000+09:30

On 15 September 2010 Agatha Christie would have been 120 years old.

Here at the ACRC Blog Carnival we will be taking part in world wide celebrations with a blog carnival tour from 1-30 September 2010.
Participants will volunteer for a day in September to host the carnival.
Your post of course must be related to an Agatha Christie topic. Indicate your interest in being a stop on the blog tour by leaving a comment, together with a suggested date. Please include the title/location of your blog.
Alternatively email me.

The stops on the blog tour will be shown below as I update this page.
Please note the blog tour will replace the edition of blog carnival that would have been scheduled for September 23. We will resume our blog carnivals on October 23.

Blog Tour stops

Blog tour launch: MYSTERIES in PARADISE - Kerrie
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A Library is a hospital for the mind - Sarah
Caviglia's Cabinet of Curiosities - Carolyn
Confessions of a Mystery Novelist - Margot
Unfinished Person - Bryan
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Miss Lemon's Mysteries - Elizabeth
Mystery Fanfare - Janet
Birthday celebration (special quiz) on Agatha Christie Carnival
Crime Scraps - Norman
Poe's Deadly Daughters - Sandy
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The Game's Afoot - Jose Ignacio
Overkill - Vanda
Reactions to Reading - Bernadette
Books Please - Margaret
2010: The Year in Books - Nancy
Endless Books - Beth
Criminal Crafts - Shawn
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The Thrill of it All - Chris
Joyfully Retired - Margot
A Library is a hospital for the mind - Sarah
Self-deprecating - Saro

ACRC Carnival 2010 #7

2010-07-24T10:49:00.000+09:30

Welcome to the July 23, 2010 edition of Agatha Christie monthly Blog Carnival.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival this time.
We have 25 contributions from 12 contributors.

Do visit the participating blogs and leave comments if you have read the books.

Spread the word too about the existence of this blog and the monthly opportunity it offers to showcase reviews about Agatha Christie books.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just click on the link and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post.

Blog Tour in September:
On 15 September 2010 Agatha Christie would have been 120 years old.
Here at the Blog Carnival we will be taking part in world wide celebrations with a blog carnival tour from 1-30 September.
Participants will volunteer for a day in September to host the carnival. Your post of course must be related to an Agatha Christie topic.
Check the current listing of blog tour stops
Indicate your interest in being a stop on the blog tour by leaving a comment on that post or emailing Kerrie.

Today's 14 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

Featured Blog

This month's featured blog is Christie Reader. This blog has been going for just over a year and in that time the creators have reviewed nearly 50 titles.

Here is their "mission statement".
It's an unofficial project to read, review and comment on all of Agatha Christie's books. At about one a week. The way it works is that there are two of us. Kate's read them all. She'll suggest a book to James and he'll then read it, and write about it, and Kate will point out where he went wrong. And then suggest another book. Not necessarily in chronological order, but hopping around by theme.

They have implemented a very useful list of labels to help you locate titles related to particular topics like travel, rhymes, and poison, as well as the usual Miss Marple, Hercule Poirot etc. You can also look at titles written in 1920s, 1930s etc.
The latest post is a review of A CARIBBEAN MYSTERY.

General

unfinishedperson presents And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie posted at An unfinished person (in this unfinished universe), saying, "The way this one is crafted makes it a classic for me, even if it does stretch credibility, as one of my friends argues, perhaps even to a ridiculous extent. How Christie organizes it, though, puts it "over the top" for me."

KerrieS presents The Murder at the Vicarage - wonderful cover posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "The Agatha Christie covers painted by Tom Adams constitute probably the most famous examples of paperback art ever produced."

From KathrynC: Agatha’s Christie’s Unexpected Guest arrives at Gawsworth Hall – Just The Perfect Time for An Afternoon Picnic Tea. posted at Tea With Mary Kate - Inspiration for Tea and Living"On a foggy night, Michael Starkwedder enters the home of the Warwicks through a window in the study. There lies the dead body of Richard Warwick, and Warwick’s wife, Laura, holding a gun that supposedly killed him…"

quirkyreader presents quirkyreader - I finished more Christie's posted at quirkyreader, saying, "I have included some vintage covers in this post".

Caviglia presents Dame Agatha, My Cup Runneth Over! posted at Caviglia's Cabinet of Curiosities. "I love Agatha Christie. I might love Agatha Christie more than any other author. I've read every novel, every short story and her autobiography (which is excellent). I re-read her books more frequently than I care to admit - I read them whenever I am sick or sad or distracted or have insomnia. I would happily defend her oeuvre with my dying breath. Look, are her books great literature? Of course not."

KerrieS presents Agatha Christie's Appointment With Death posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "How to find Agatha Christie films on Youtube."

Hercule Poirot

BooksPlease presents Death on the Nile by Agatha Christie: Book Review at BooksPlease, saying, "The crime that wasn't safe - that hung on a razor's edge, needing swift execution and audacity."

Elizabeth presents Dead Man's Folly posted at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "You'll forgive her for mentioning it, but even Miss Lemon can boast of a walk-on rôle in this real-life game of Cluedo."

Janet Rudolph presents Murder on the Orient Express: Twitter Discussion posted at Mystery Fanfare, saying, "Twitter discussion of new PBS Masterpiece Mystery! Murder on the Orient Express with David Suchet. Discussion at: #mystery_pbs. 7/11 and for a few weeks afterwards."

Nancy Oakes presents Third Girl, by Agatha Christie posted at crime segments, saying, "Review of Third Girl, Poirot's 35th case"

Sarah M. presents Sad Cypress by Agatha Christie posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "A well-written mystery with plenty of red herrings and clues cleverly woven throughout... The setting is quiet country village with a beautiful, but haunting estate. The characters are different, but not unusual. The murder weapon is poison, Agatha Christie's personal "favorite" if you could call it that. Must read for Agatha Christie fans or avid mystery readers."

Ryan Groff reviews Peril At End House by Agatha Christie posted at Wordsmithonia. "This is probably one of the more interesting endings to a mystery book that I've read in a while,"

Miss Marple

George Kelley presents “THE BLUE GERANIUM” By Agatha Christie posted at George Kelley. "PBS must be running out of Miss Marple novels to film so they’ve turned to Miss Marple short stories."

Nancy Oakes reviews A Caribbean Mystery at 2010: The Year in Books.
She writes "Miss Marple is the perfect detective. When people look at her they see "all knitting wool and tittle-tattle," and she becomes more or less invisible that way, easily dismissed by most of the players. But one man sees right through her."

Short Stories

KerrieS presents Review: THE EDGE, Agatha Christie, short story at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "The title of this short story has a double meaning, which increases its cleverness."

Discoveries

Words in Pictures: Agatha Christie posted at The New Statesman, saying, "In this animated audio clip, recorded whilst the author was writing her autobiography in the mid 1960's, Christie discusses both Poirot and her long-serialised female protagonist, Miss Marple, first introduced in The Tuesday Night Club (1927). Christie explains why Poirot and Marple could never have appeared in the same story"

YouTube - Agatha Christie Discusses Miss Marple & Hercule Poirot Literary discussion animation posted at YouTube, saying, "Heres a virtual movie of crime writer Agatha Christie (1890 - 1976) discussing her two best loved detective characters Miss Maple & Hercule Poirot. The sound recording comes from recently discovered audio tapes she dictated whilst writing her biography in the mid 1960's. Make sure you read the text that accompanies the YouTube video. The video itself is quite peculiar to watch."

How Agatha's husband drove her to murder: DUCHESS OF DEATH by Richard Hack | Mail Online posted at Books | Mail Online, saying, "A Review of DUCHESS OF DEATH by Richard Hack. When you read the content of the review, you can't help wondereing what there is left to tell. The review ends outrageously "I am left wondering: was Agatha Christie a lesbian? Was a fatal lack of sexual chemistry what made Archie so frustrated and why he had to bolt? It would explain her fondness for sporting hairnets.""

David Suchet as Himself posted at Saturdays Child, saying, "A really nice blog post about David Suchet, with links to somereally good videos. Inspired by his new appearanace in the TV version of MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS. Includes his appearance on "Who Do you think you are?""

Two adaptations of Agatha Christie's Death on the Nile posted at Pop Classics, saying, "The author of this blog says "Ancient Egypt, essentially, is little more than a backdrop - but it's a very impressive backdrop indeed.""

Agatha Christie: Why they wanted to take 20 years off Poirot (and give him a girlfriend) | Mail Online posted at Daily Mail Online, saying, "Lessons in writing from beyond the grave, with an introduction from her grandson."

Agatha Christie: The curious case of the cosy queen posted at The Independent. How has a shy, upper-middle class lady, born in Torquay in 1890, become (almost certainly) the most widely read novelist in the world today?

Updates

Margot at Joyfully Retired presents Joyfully Retired » My Progress In Reading Agatha Christie posted at Joyfully Retired, saying, "I also reviewed Partners In Crime (Tommy and Tuppence)."

BooksPlease presents Agatha Christie Reading Challenge: My Progress posted at BooksPlease, saying, "My progress is slow but enjoyable. I've included my latest find in this post."

KerrieS presents Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Update - 22 July 2010 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE.

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (August 23) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2010 #6

2010-06-23T23:41:00.000+09:30

Welcome to the June 23, 2010 edition of Agatha Christie monthly Blog Carnival.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival this time.
We have 19 contributions from 11 contributors this time.

Do visit the participating blogs and leave comments if you have read the books.

Spread the word too about the existence of this blog and the monthly opportunity it offers to showcase reviews about Agatha Christie books.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just click on the link and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post.

Advance Notice: On 15 September 2010 Agatha Christie would have been 120 years old.
Here at the Blog Carnival we will be taking part in world wide celebrations with a blog carnival tour from 1-30 September.
Participants will volunteer for a day in September to host the carnival. Your post of course must be related to an Agatha Christie topic. Indicate your interest in being a stop on the blog tour by leaving a comment or emailing Kerrie. More details in the July Carnival.

Today's 11 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

Featured Blog

This month's featured blog is Miss Lemon's Mysteries.
Imagine if the impeccably organized and eminently sensible Miss Felicity Lemon (private secretary to Mr. Parker Pyne and M. Hercule Poirot) were to assemble her own collection of crime fiction.... Here she recommends and discusses the choicest whodunits ever written.
Miss Lemon is currently reading DEAD MAN'S FOLLY and has just reviewed DEAD MAN'S MIRROR " a collection of chilling tales".

General

Norman Price links to the programme for AGATHA CHRISTIE FESTIVAL 12-19th SEPTEMBER 2010 posted at CRIME SCRAPS.

KathrynC presents Mary Kate imagines Tea at Greenway with Agatha Christie ? The loveliest place in the world posted at Tea With Mary Kate - Inspiration for Tea and Living, saying, "Ever since the National Trust announced that it was opening Greenway, I have been plotting a visit. Who could resist a glimpse of the home that inspired Agatha Christie, the Queen of Crime ?"

KerrieS says THE MURDER AT THE VICARAGE comes out on top posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Which Agatha Christie title is at the top of your list? Two thirds of poll participants choose THE MURDER AT THE VICARAGE."

Margaret reviews AGATHA CHRISTIE and THE ELEVEN MISSING DAYS by Jared Cade posted at BooksPlease, saying, "A biography centred around Agatha's mysterious disappearance in 1926."

Jo reviews AND THEN THERE WERE NONE posted at Fluidity of Time, saying, "I had re-read this book and enjoyed it --- and posted my thoughts!"

Ryan Groff reviews THE SITTAFORD MYSTERY posted at Wordsmithonia. "M-U-R-D-E-R. It began as an innocent parlor game intended to while away the hours on a bitter winter night."

Sarah M. reviews AND THEN THERE WERE NONE posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "And Then There Were None is the deadliest, darkest, most intense read of Agatha Christie's mysteries. It is a thriller. It is a puzzling mystery. It is a very intruiging study of human psyche and the depraved and decieved mind (and heart). And it is also a commentary of sorts society's views on crime and punishment. And Then There Were None is excellently well written, the characters are colorful and the plot is well crafted."

Margot at Joyfully Retired reviews WHY DIDN'T THEY ASK EVANS? posted at Joyfully Retired, saying, "This book and I just didn't connect. I was bored and disappointed."

Superintendent Battle

Sarah M. reviews MURDER IS EASY posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "Luke Fitzwilliam solves this crime. Battle only appears in time to make the arrest. Definite page turner and an exciting read that keeps you guessing to the end."

unfinishedperson reviews EASY TO KILL posted at An unfinished person (in this unfinished universe), saying, "All in all, another good romp from Christie."

Hercule Poirot

Margaret reviews THE MYSTERY OF THE BLUE TRAIN posted at BooksPlease, saying, "Agatha Christie hated this book, but I think it's pretty good!"

Nancy Oakes reviews TAKEN AT THE FLOOD. posted at 2010: The Year in Books "Poirot's 27th adventure - and he's still going strong, although the earlier Poirot novels of the 20s & 30s were more to my liking. Recommended for fans of Poirot and for Agatha Christie readers in general - these books may be old, but they're still worth reading."

KerrieS reviews DEATH IN THE CLOUDS posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "This is a fascinating novel from a number of points of view: the setting is a locked room mystery taking place on one of the first passenger flights from Paris to London."

Vanda Symon reviews MURDER IN MESOPOTAMIA posted at Overkill. "I did enjoy this story. Christie captures well the tensions of the archaeological dig, complete with interfering, jealous wives, absent minded scientists, colourful locals and mysterious priests. Not to mention the beautiful victim with the fascinating and secret history."

Short Stories

Ryan Groff reviews THE MYSTERIOUS MR. QUIN posted at Wordsmithonia. He says "I highly recommend this book to everyone who wants to read really well crafted mystery writing with a tinge of the supernatural."

Discoveries

KerrieS found a review of SLEEPING MURDER posted at Buy Children's Books Online, saying, "This blogger says "Of all the Agatha Christie books I have read, the characters and plot of Sleeping Murder are by far the most interesting of them all.""

This looks great: Agatha Christie Vintage Bus Tour
"If you visit Torquay 26 May 2010 - 31 Oct 2010 you can take a vintage bus tour for a nostalgic trip from Torquay, to Agatha Christie's beautiful Greenway House and Garden on the banks of the River Dart."

KerrieS found Agatha Christie 4:50 from Paddington Available for Download posted at DreamStation.cc, saying, "the fourth in the wildly popular Agatha Christie game series that has generated more than 30 million downloads since it first launched in 2007."

Updates

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 12 June 2010 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "I'm 30% through - 26 out of an estimated 87 titles. This post links to all my reviews so far, as well as gives links to lists of titles."

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (July 23) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

Monty Python - Agatha Christie Sketch

2010-06-16T22:44:00.000+09:30

ACRC Carnival 2010 #5

2010-05-23T10:30:00.000+09:30

Welcome to the May 23, 2010 edition of Agatha Christie monthly Blog Carnival.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival this time.
We have 30 contributions from 11 contributors this time in a bumper edition.

There are some new features this time

Featured blog.
If we featured every post this blogger writes about Agatha Christie, we'd have a full carnival without any other submissions. Make sure you visit this remarkable blog regularly.
Discoveries:
This will be a category you can submit entries for from now on. These are Agatha Christie related news items and web pages that you've come across that this community would be interested in. Whenever you come across an interesting item, remember to share it with us.

Do visit the participating blogs and leave comments if you have read the books.

Spread the word too about the existence of this blog and the monthly opportunity it offers to showcase reviews about Agatha Christie books.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just click on the link and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post.

Advance Notice: On 15 September 2010 Agatha Christie would have been 120 years old.
Here at the Blog Carnival we will be taking part in world wide celebrations with a blog carnival tour from 1-30 September.
Participants will volunteer for a day in September to host the carnival. Your post of course must be related to an Agatha Christie topic. Indicate your interest in being a stop on the blog tour by leaving a comment or emailing Kerrie.

Today's 11 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

Featured Blog

Margot Kinberg asks Was Shakespeare right? at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist....,
Kerrie says " Every post on Confessions of a Mystery Novelist is an illustration of an incredible knowledge of Agatha Christie's books (as well as others). Margot Kinberg is a mystery novelist and professor, who loves to read and talk about mystery and crime fiction."

General

Melinda reviews DESTINATION UNKNOWN at BlackSheepBooks.saying, "Although the style of this book is unmistakeably Christie, it’s not one of her typical books."

Margaret reviews PASSENGER TO FRANKFURT at BooksPlease, saying, "Published in 1970 this is an unusual novel for Agatha Christie - a strange and puzzling spy story."

KerrieS asks Which is YOUR best Agatha Christie? at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "What are your top 10 Agatha Christie reads? An interesting exercise to pick them out." It is not too late to contribute your top 10 so far. Kerrie has still to put a post together aggregating the contributions.

Miss Marple

Simon Savidge reviews Why Didn't They Ask Evans? at Savidge Reads. "Some people have said this was a ‘light hearted romp’ in Christie’s career and there is a feeling of an adult ‘Famous Five adventure’ about it, well more a slightly hapless duo in this case. Don’t let that stop you reading it though because the characters are superb."

Tommy and Tuppence

Redux #29 - "The Secret Adversary" by Agatha Christie at My Life As Seen Through Books, says, "There was something decidedly unrealistic and theatrical about this book. The coincidences are extreme, the characters find information at exactly the right moment, somehow survive situations where they would end up dead in the real world, and enjoy an unbelievable amount of good luck. However, none of this lack of realism really hurt the novel.""

Hercule Poirot

unfinishedperson presents Appointment with Death posted at An unfinished person (in this unfinished universe), saying, "The journey toward discovering the killer is worth the ride. The end of the journey, though, was less than satisfying..."

Melinda presents Elephants Can Remember by Agatha Christie posted at BlackSheepBooks. This is one of my most favouritest Agatha Christie novels. I adore Poirot (although not more than Miss Marple) and I’m quite fond of Ariadne Oliver with all her foibles, so this makes for a comfy, cosy mystery with characters I love.

Margot at Joyfully Retired presents Book and Movie: Murder On the Orient Express at Joyfully Retired, saying, "I strongly recommend both the book and the movie. The dvd for the movie had special features that were excellent and included an interview with Agatha Christie's grandson."

KerrieS reviews THE THIRD GIRL, Agatha Christie - audio at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "THE THIRD GIRL is one of the most satisfying Agatha Christie's I've "read" recently. In fact I think I'll have to put it in my top 10. There was plenty to enjoy about it from the characters of Ariadne Oliver and HP's secretary Miss Lemon, to depiction of the "new" British society of the late 1950's, with girls going out to work, and young people experimenting with drugs."

Bernadette reviews THE MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR AT STYLES posted at Reactions to Reading, saying, "It really is impressive how well this book stacks up given its age and its place in Ms Christie’s canon. I doubt there are many authors who have produced such a solidly accomplished first novel that is also perfectly readable and enjoyable ninety years after its release."

Julie reviews HICKORY DICKORY DOCK posted at Fervent Reader. "For the very first time in a full-length novel, Hercule Poirot’s ultra-efficient secretary Miss Lemon makes an appearance. She is under a lot of stress lately, as evidenced by a few mistakes she makes in typing letters for Poirot. Ordinarily, Miss Lemon does not make mistakes."

KerrieS asks Just how old was Hercule Poirot? at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Hercule Poirot has a client, a young woman, who comes to see him saying she thinks she has murdered someone. She won't sit down and shuffles on her feet, refusing to meet his eyes. And then she blurts out that he is too old and flees. So just how old is he?"

KerrieS discovered this review of THE ABC MURDERS (1936) posted at The Agatha Christie Reader. The reviewer says "The ABC Murders follows on nicely from "Why Didn't They Ask Evans". While the latter book is a solid-enough romp (oh, that sounds like faint praise, but you know what I mean - it's robust run-around fun), The ABC Murders does some very remarkable things with a similar set up."

ng kai-lee presents Just another Christie: TAKEN AT THE FLOOD at Zhen's Summer Cafe-.In the autumn of 1944, Hercule Poirot was sitting at a club during an Air Raid where an old Major blabbered on a boring story nobody wanted to hear about. Two years later, the same story came to haunt Poirot as he got himself involved in the affairs of the Cloade family.

Short Stories

KerrieS presents Forgotten Story Collections: Agatha Christie posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Many people who read Agatha Christie novels ignore the fact that she wrote some terrific short stories.
In my quest to read the works of Agatha Christie (novels and short stories) in the order in which they were written, I have identified 21 short story collections. So far I've read 82 short stories in this particular reading challenge."

KerrieS reviews THE LISTERDALE MYSTERY, Agatha Christie posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "This is a funny little collection of stories, some quite entertaining and others a bit pedestrian.
If there is a theme that Christie is exploring then it is probably the nature of love. In The Listerdale Mystery, Philomel Cottage, and Accident, which I thought were best in the collection, she plays with the twist in the tale, the unexpected ending."

Elizabeth presents Dead Man's Mirror at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "HP is in top form as he tackles three nagging murders -- two are locked-room murders and one a cold-blooded poisoning...."

Updates

Margaret presents an Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Update at BooksPlease, saying, "I've still got a long way to go, although I've read five more books since my last update."

KerrieS presents ACRC: Short Stories, Update #8 at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Update: I've read 8 short story collections and 94 short stories. I think Agatha Christie must have been working continuously on them. Perhaps they were good money earners."

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 17 May 2010 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Update: I've been on a bit of an Agatha Christie kick this month."

Discoveries

While reading and thinking about Agatha Christie... posted at The Great Dark Wonder, "This blogger raises some interesting questions about how well Agatha Christie depicted the "lower" classes."

And Then There Were None: A Film Discussion Guide posted at Doug Geivett's Blog"A set of 15 questions related to "And Then There Were None" (USA, 1945), directed by René Clair, is the original film adaptation of the famed Agatha Christie novel."

Woman: Agatha Christie posted at Le Sphinx, "A mixture of covers and pictures of Agatha Christie."

This Week in the Circuit posted at The Classics Circuit "This blog post marks the beginning of the Golden Age of Detective Fiction tour. Many Agatha Christie posts are included."

It's possible Agatha Christie had Alzheimer's: posted at The Great Dark Wonder "This blogger says "I read Postern Of Fate, the final book she wrote, a few years ago and then told every mystery fan I knew to avoid it.""

A review of The Complete Christie: An Agatha Christie Encyclopedia posted at dekdum.com blog, saying, "An interesting reference book to check."

Agatha Christie: Mystery Figure game "Join the murder mystery hunt just begun on the Agatha Christie site."

Pera Palace Hotel - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia "An article in Wikipedia on the Pera Palace Hotel in Istanbul where Agatha Christie wrote MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS".

Caricature/Cartoon - Hercule Poirot the Belgian Detective of Agatha Christie's Novels Sells Apartments in Rodentia. posted at Shafali's Caricatures. "This wonderful caricature is accompanied by some background about Hercule Poirot and a list of the novels he featured in."

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (June 23) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2010 #4

2010-04-24T13:47:00.000+09:30

Welcome to the April 23, 2010 edition of Agatha Christie monthly Blog Carnival.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival this time.
We have 14 contributions from 11 contributors.
Do visit the participating blogs and leave comments if you have read the books.

Spread the word too about the existence of this blog and the monthly opportunity it offers to showcase reviews about Agatha Christie books.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just click on the link and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post.

11 Contributors - please see the items below for exact URLS of their posts.

General

BooksPlease presents Agatha Christie – On Writing posted at BooksPlease, saying, "I was fascinated to find Agatha Christie's views on writing."

KerrieS found an article by Christine Kenneally posted at Slate Magazine titled Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks. - Why Agatha Christie's method was utterly deranged.

KerrieS presents THAT Railway Station posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Recently in my travels I came across the Orient Express Railway Station in Istanbul".

Melinda found this article: BBC News - Agatha Christie mystery gets 21st century debut saying, "An Agatha Christie play that hasn't been staged for more than three decades is being resurrected this week."

KerrieS presents 13 - Unlucky for Some? posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Agatha Christie published 3 books with 13 in the title."

Steve Holland presents Christie Cover Cavalcade: part 6 posted at Bear Alley, saying, "This episode celebrates the Christie cover art of Tom Adams".

Hercule Poirot

Margot at Joyfully Retired presents Agatha Christie: 13 At Dinner posted at Joyfully Retired. "We have suspects and motives but dead-ends everywhere we turn. Thank goodness we have Hercule Poirot’s clever little gray cells."

Sarah M. presents Hercule Poirot's Christmas by Agatha Christie: posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..."Of course you may wonder why I chose to read this book in March instead of waiting until next Christmas..."

Elizabeth presents One, Two, Buckle My Shoe posted at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "Miss Lemon is especially partial to Mother Goose rhymes that take a murderous turn -- which is exactly what happens in Agatha Christie's One, Two, Buckle My Shoe (1940)."

Luke Forney presents The OLD Luke Reviews: The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie posted at The OLD Luke Reviews, saying, "Kerrie suggested I might shoot over some of my Poirot reviews, so here is my first (I'm reading through all the Poirot books in order). To follow I will send my reviews of the second and third books. Thanks for the interest in Luke Reviews, and for keeping Agatha Christie reading alive and well! "

Bernadette presents Review: Sad Cypress by Agatha Christie posted at Reactions to Reading, saying, "Another fiendish plot from Ms Christie revealed by a superb narration from David Suchet."

Sarah M. presents Appointment with Death by Agatha Christie posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "Appointment With Death was a fast read, which I finished in less than 24 hours. On it's face I liked it, but I can't say it was anywhere near Christie's best."

The Book Mole presents Sad Cypress posted at The Book Mole, saying, "A classic Agatha Christie whodunit featuring Hercule Poirot. Very enjoyable read indeed."

Updates

Theresa Dhondup presents Halfway Through and Agatha Christie's Secret Notebooks posted at Reading Rules In The 21st Century, saying, "Last night I officially hit the halfway point of the reading list".

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (May 23) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2010 #3

2010-03-23T19:58:00.000+10:30

Welcome to the March 23, 2010 edition of agatha christie monthly carnival.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival this time. 15 contributions from 11 contributors. Do visit the participating blogs and leave comments if you have read the books.

Spread the word too about the existence of this blog and the monthly opportunity it offers to showcase reviews about Agatha Christie books.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just click on the link and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post.

11 Contributors - please see the posts below for exact URLS

General

KerrieS presents THE-AGATHA-CHRISTIE-READING-GROUP-GUIDE posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Some questions about MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS and some general discussion questions that I came across."

BooksPlease presents Crime Fiction Alphabet W is for Why Didn?t They Ask Evans? posted at BooksPlease, saying, "'Why didn't they ask Evans?' is a dying man's cryptic question. Bobby and Frankie set out to discover who the man is and just what does Evans know - indeed who is Evans?."

Chris Well presents Agatha Christie meets Doctor Who posted at The Thrill of it All, saying, "In the 2008 episode "The Unicorn and the Wasp," the Doctor and friend Donna Noble travel back in time to meet Agatha Christie on the eve of her real-life unexplained disappearance in 1926. The episode is a clever mash-up of sci-fi and whodunit, loaded with references and allusions to Christie's works -- and is also very, very funny. (As the video clips demonstrate.)"

Belle Wong presents Agatha Christie’s Secret Notebooks posted at Ms. Bookish, saying, "I’ve read the first few chapters and it’s such a delight to see how she worked out her story ideas in her notebooks."

Hercule Poirot

gautami tripathy presents Recommend me: The Murder of Roger Ackryod by Agatha Christie (Graphic Novel) posted at everything distils into reading, saying, "It is Graphic Novel!"

Jeannie presents Thirteen At Dinner by Agatha Christie posted at PINE COTTAGE BOOKS, saying, "I never get tired of reading the works of Agatha Christie!"

Jennifer presents The A.B.C. Murders by Agatha Christie posted at Reading with Tequila. "It is one of Poirot’s most challenging cases yet".

Margot at Joyfully Retired presents Agatha Christie: Peril At End House posted at Joyfully Retired, saying, "This is book 13 in my challenge to read all of Christie’s books in order of their publication date. I also watched the movie version of this on dvd. It starred the wonderful David Suchet as Poirot, Hugh Fraser as Hastings, Phillip Jackson as Inspector Japp, and Polly Walker as Nick Buckley. I’m also counting this as one of my Read the Book, See the Movie Challenge events."

Vanda Symon presents The Murder of Roger Ackroyd posted at Overkill, saying, "captivating and very clever story with plenty of twists and turns and red-herrings".

Miss Marple

Melinda presents A Caribbean Mystery by Agatha Christie posted at BlackSheepBooks, saying, "a good, comfortable English murder, for all its being set in another country altogether"

Short Stories

KerrieS presents PARKER PYNE INVESTIGATES posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "This collection contains 12 of the 14 short stories that Agatha Christie wrote that featured Mr Parker Pyne. It introduced Miss Lemon and Ariadne Oliver who later featured in Hercule Poirot stories."

Elizabeth presents The Mysterious Mr. Quin posted at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "Always appearing unpredictably and in a dazzling spectrum of light, Mr. Harley Quin's essence is best summed up thus: he comes; he goes."

Tommy and Tuppence

Chris Well presents Agatha Christie: Partners in Crime posted at The Thrill of it All, saying, "In her 1929 book Partners in Crime, Christie takes the opportunity to poke fun at her fellow mystery writers, all of whom were well-known to the reading public of the 1920s. Here's a list of authors and detectives parodied ..."

Updates

KerrieS presents ACRC: Short Stories, Update #7 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "A record of my short story progress. How is yours going?"

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 13 March 2010 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Every month I take stock of how far along my journey I am. Statistically speaking I'm 26% of the way! Years of reading to go. How is your journey going? Why not write a post for next month's carnival?"

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (April 23) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival 2010 - #2

2010-02-23T06:54:00.000+10:30

A bumper edition of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Blog Carnival with 25 submissions by 20 bloggers.Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival.

Do visit the participating blogs and leave comments if you have read the books.

Spread the word too about the existence of this blog and the monthly opportunity it offers to showcase reviews about Agatha Christie books.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just click on the link and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post.

20 Contributors - please see the posts below for exact URLS

General

Elizabeth presents AND THEN THERE WERE NONE posted at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "Just when you think, dear readers, that you know who's behind this inexorable string of murders, you'll be asked to think again."

Margot reviewed THE SITTAFORD MYSTERY posted at Joyfully Retired. saying, "Agatha Christie had the ability to make each character seem like various people I’ve met."

Sam presents 10 Little Plot Holes ? And Then There Were None Film Review posted at SAS - Review Combat, saying, "My review of the film from the 1940s - a fun adaptation that is available for free to stream."

BooksPlease reviews THE PALE HORSE posted at BooksPlease, saying, "Murder and magic make a lethal mix."

Hercule Poirot

Bernadette presents EVIL UNDER THE SUN posted at Reactions to Reading, saying, "Another audio book superbly narrated by David Suchet although this story is not quite as dramatic as some of my favourite Christie tales."

Bella presents THE MYSTERY OF THE BLUE TRAIN posted at A Bibliophile's Bookshelf. saying, "I’m so very besotted with the Queen of Crime. Her mystery novels are first class."

BooksPlease presents THE HOLLOW posted at BooksPlease, saying, "A country house mystery with promising clues that just peter out. One of my favourite AC books."

Jennifer presents HALLOWE'EN posted at Reading with Tequila saying, "Hercule Poirot aids mystery writer Ariadne Oliver in an investigation into the murder of a young girl-who may have witnessed a murder herself. But unmasking the killer proves more daunting than bobbing for apples."

HelenB presents "I have no patience with the modern neurotic girl..." posted at 52 Books A Year, saying, "One of the best of the Poirot mysteries: Christie has yet to become tired of her own creation, and Hastings is a terribly inconsistent yet charming narrator."

Kristy presents THE MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR AT STYLES (1916) posted at spacebeer, saying, "Agatha Christie's first novel, and our introduction to Poirot, doesn't disappoint."

Vanda reviewed THE MURDER OF ROGER ACKROYD at Overkill saying "a captivating and very clever story with plenty of twists and turns and red-herrings."

Sarah M. presents DEATH ON THE NILE posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "If you could only read one Agatha Christie novel this year I might be torn as to which one to recommend and yet in the end I think I'd suggest Death On the Nile. It's a worthwhile read so go find it in your library!"

Kathrin presents DEATH ON THE NILE (graphic novel) posted at Secret Dreamworld of a Bookaholic, saying, "a great adaptation, and I can't wait to get my hands on the other graphic novels in that series."

Nan presents THE MURDER ON THE LINKS posted at Letters from a Hill Farm saying, I so enjoyed being within the pages of this excellent mystery.

Miss Marple

Margot at Joyfully Retired presents MURDER AT THE VICARAGE posted at Joyfully Retired, saying, "Finally I meet Miss Jane Marple."

KerrieS found THE THIRTEEN PROBLEMS (1932) posted at The Agatha Christie Reader, saying, "This blog is dedicated to reading and reviewing every Agatha Christie novel. It is a work in progress well worth visiting."

Jeannie presents SLEEPING MURDER posted at PINE COTTAGE BOOKS, saying, "I was excited to read this book as part of a Marple/Poirot/Holmes Challenge, more-so because I'm such a huge Agatha Christie fan."

Chris Well presents N is for NEMESIS posted at The Thrill of it All. saying, For Miss Jane Marple, it's the most baffling case of her career ..."

Mog presents THE MOVING FINGER posted at MOG'S BLOG, saying, "Good read."

Superintendent Battle

Bella presents THE SEVEN DIALS MYSTERY posted at A Bibliophile's Bookshelf saying, I really liked THE SECRET OF CHIMNEYS and this one is kind of a sequel.

Tommy and Tuppence

Ryan Groff presents PARTNERS IN CRIME posted at Wordsmithonia. saying :With this collection of stories, Agatha Christie has once again proved to me why she is the biggest selling mystery author of all time."

Short Stories

Les Blatt presents Christie in Small Doses posted at Classic Mysteries, saying, "Brief comments about the best short stories featuring Miss Marple, Hercule Poirot and Mr. Harley Quin."

KerrieS presents THE HOUND OF DEATH posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "In this set of 12 short stories Agatha Christie explored the unexplainable."

Updates

KerrieS presents ACRC: Short Stories, Update #6 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "An update: How are your short stories coming along? I've read 70 out of an estimated 163 so far. Here is a list of the collections and stories to look for."

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 12 February 2010 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "My count so far: 16 novels and 6 short story collections."

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (March 23) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

From YouTube

2010-01-26T08:35:00.000+10:30

ACRC Carnival 2010 - #1

2010-01-23T18:37:00.000+10:30

The Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Blog Carnival enters its second year with wonderful carnival with 14 submissions by 10 bloggers.

Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival.

Do visit the participating blogs and leave comments if you have read the books.

Spread the word too about the existence of this blog and the monthly opportunity it offers to showcase reviews about Agatha Christie books.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just click on the link and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post.

10 Contributors - please see the posts below for exact URLS

General

Jennifer presents DEATH COMES AS THE END posted at Reading with Tequila. "This is not your average Agatha Christie novel. It isn't really a detective or investigative novel and there isn't more than the slightest bit of sleuthing."

Margot Kinberg presents THE MURDER OF ROGER ACKROYD posted at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist..... She says "The novel contains some of the hallmarks for which Christie later became famous. "

Mog presents THE SITTAFORD MYSTERY posted at MOG'S BLOG, saying, "A great 'Agatha' book, it kept me guessing right to the end. Highly recommended."

Hercule Poirot

Martin Edwards presents Agatha Christie's Poirot - Three Act Tragedy: review of the television production with David Suchet as Poirot. posted at 'Do You Write Under Your Own Name?'"This proved to be the best Agatha Christie adaptation I’ve seen in quite a while."

Martin Edwards presents Agatha Christie's Poirot - Appointment with Death: review posted at 'Do You Write Under Your Own Name?', saying, "A review of a television adaptation. The original book is very far from being a classic. Appointment with Death was fun to watch. "

Nan presents The Case of the Missing Will posted at Letters from a Hill Farm, saying, "This is the short story which was offered free on audio during the week of Agatha Christie's birthday."

KerrieS presents THREE ACT TRAGEDY posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "The only novel in which Hercule Poirot works with Mr Satterthwaite. A case of poisoning that very nearly succeeds."

Mog presents HERCULE POIROT'S CHRISTMAS posted at MOG'S BLOG, saying, "A quick read for Christmas week. This was a good mystery kept me guessing right to the end. Highly recommended.

Chris Well presents Agatha Christie's HERCULE POIROT posted at The Thrill of it All, saying, "As part of our detectives series, the complete list of mysteries starring Hercule Poirot."

Sarah M. presents DUMB WITNESS. posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..."Christie's 21st detective novel and the 14th with Hercule Poirot as lead detective."

Miss Marple

Bernadette presents THE MIRROR CRACK'D FROM SIDE TO SIDE posted at Reactions to Reading, saying, "One of Christie's later novels does a nice job on social commentary but is a bit lacking in sensible plot development".

Chris Well presents Crime Fiction Alphabet: N is for Nemesis posted at The Thrill of it All.Chris says "For Miss Jane Marple, it's the most baffling case of her career ..."

Running Updates

BooksPlease presents Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Update posted at BooksPlease, saying, "My progress is slow, not helped by moving house and still having my Agatha Christie books packed away."

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 13 January 2009 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "I'm nearly completed a quarter of my journey!"

That concludes this edition.

Submit your blog article to the next edition (February 23) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.
Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival #12

2009-12-23T20:13:00.001+10:30

Well, here we are at the last edition of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Monthly Blog Carnival for 2009 - December 23.

In the News & Headlines

General

KerrieS found a review of DAME AGATHA'S SHORTS posted at Elena St Angelo
"This book deals exclusively with Agatha Christie's short stories. Read an excerpt online."

Danielle Rush presents Top Ten Favorite AGATHA CHRISTIE Movies posted at The Rush Blog, saying, "This is a list of my top ten (10) favorite novels written by Agatha Christie."

KerrieS discovered Aging-related Changes in Agatha Christie's Vocabulary posted at Neatorama, saying, "In a recently-presented scientific paper, Ian Lancashire and Graeme Hirst from the University of Toronto’s Department of English and Department of Computer Science demonstrate changes in the vocabulary used in Agatha Christie’s later novels."

Rebecca Glenn presents AND THEN THERE WERE NONE posted at The Book Frog, saying, "My first Christie!"

Margot presents THE SEVEN DIALS MYSTERY posted at Joyfully Retired saying, "This novel was different from the previous nine. It was lighter in tone and, at times, cheerful. It was still a mystery but it had some romance and some playfulness on the part of the young people trying to solve the case."

Hercule Poirot

Nan reviewed HERCULE POIROT'S CHRISTMAS, on Letters from a Hill Farm saying "each time I begin an Agatha Christie I am surprised at the depth of human emotions she portrays, and how she doesn't shy away from complex individuals and situations."

BooksPlease also reviewed HERCULE POIROT'S CHRISTMAS on BooksPlease, saying, "Families don't always get on at Christmas, but this is an extreme case - not a Happy Christmas."

Margot Kinberg reviews HICKORY, DICKORY, DEATH posted at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist....The novel begins with an almost unimaginable event: Miss Lemon, Poirot’s frighteningly efficient secretary, has made three typing mistakes in a letter she’s written.

KerrieS discovered a review of THE MURDER ON THE LINKS on Book Reader Forums, saying, "Nellie says "My Agatha Christie challenge continues and we are back on familiar territory here, with Poirot and Hastings teaming up once again to solve a murder.""

Dorte H also reviews HERCULE POIROT'S CHRISTMAS on DJs krimiblog: Old Simeon Lee, the millionaire, invites all his children, even the prodigal son and the unknown granddaughter, to spend Christmas with him. Is he turning into a kind and soft grandfather, or does the old man have other motives for gathering his family around him?

Sarah M. reviews CARDS ON THE TABLE posted on A library is a hospital for the mind...: An enjoyable evening of bridge turns into a murder investigation when the flamboyant host Mr. Shaitana is found dead. Can the four invited investigators -- Hercule Poirot, Superintendent Battle, Colonel Race and Ariadne Oliver -- discover which of the other four guests is the killer?

unfinishedperson reviewed Poirot Loses A Client on Just A (Reading) Fool, saying, "Even though Poirot could have just let this one go, because the client was already dead and it was not clear if a murder had been committed at first, Poirot, being Poirot, cannot let it go."

Rebecca Glenn reviewed MURDER IN MESOPOTAMIA at The Book Frog, saying, "Poirot in the Orient."

Miss Marple

Elizabeth reviewed A MURDER IS ANNOUNCED at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "A murder is announced and will take place on Friday, October 29th, at Little Paddocks, at 6:30 p.m. Friends, please accept this, the only intimation...."

Tommy and Tuppence

KerrieS reviewed PARTNERS IN CRIME at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "The fifteen stories contain parodies of fictional detectives who were well-known to readers of the 1920s. In each story Tommy and Tuppence assume the mannerisms and methods of a different detective or detective team, including Sherlock Holmes."

Running Updates

From unfinishedperson comes What I've Read So Far For The Agatha Christie Reading Challenge at Just A (Reading) Fool, saying, "A look back at my year in reading Agatha Christie."

On MYSTERIES in PARADISE KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 22 December 2009 , saying, "Kerrie's current update - 15 novels and 5 short story collections. Still a long way to go!" and ACRC: Short Stories, Update #5 saying "My latest short story count is 58!"

Would you like to display a counter similar to the one below on your ACRC Update page? Go to the NaNoWriMo Word Meter book page, enter the number of books you've read in Current Word Count, 87 in the Word Goal, choose the colour you'd like your bar to be, and then Calculate. Copy the code provided into your blog (html page) but change "words" in the last line of the code to "books".

20 / 87 books. 23% done!

Participants in the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge are encouraged to submit their update posts for future Blog carnivals.

That concludes this edition.
Submit your blog article to the next edition (January 23) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.
Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival #11

2009-11-22T17:49:00.000+10:30

Welcome to the November 23, 2009 edition of Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Monthly Blog Carnival.

In the News & Headlines

England's Devon and Cornwall: storied places, killer views posted at post-gazette.com - Travel. "These places and six others are stops on the Agatha Christie Mile, a trail that wends around the harbor, and for wannabe Hercule Poirots and Miss Marples, are the scenes of some of her cases (it was on the terrace of the Imperial Hotel, for example, that Miss Marple, on her final case, revealed the culprit in "Sleeping Murder")."

Agatha Christie's picnic basket – junk or artefact? You decide | Books | guardian.co.uk posted at Guardian. "The British Museum holds Agatha Christie's picnic basket - or is it?"

A murder mystery even Miss Marple couldn't exorcise: MARGARET RUTHERFORD BY ANDY MERRIMAN | Mail Online posted at Books | Mail Online, saying, "Glamout girl she was not. Great actress she certainly was. So begins this intriguing account of one of Britain's best-loved character actresses."

BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Star cast revealed for new Poirot
"Award-winning actress Dame Eileen Atkins and Barbara Hershey will star in a new TV adaption of Agatha Christie's Murder On The Orient Express. David Suchet, who has played Hercule Poirot for 21 years, will return as the moustachioed Belgian detective."

Lost Agatha Christie story to be published in US
The Strand Magazine said it will publish the 5,000-word story called the Incident of the Dog's Ball, which was found in the attic of the author's daughter in 2004.
The story was published in the Britain in September.

General

Louise reviews DEATH COMES AS AN END at Lou's_Pages, saying, "love and murder in a dysfunctional family around the year 2000 BCE."

Ryan Groff presents THE SECRET OF CHIMNEYS at Wordsmithonia, saying, "take everything you want in a mystery story and throw it all together into one beautiful mix. Royals in disguise, murder, memoirs, jewel thief's, secret identities, humongous mansions with secret rooms, codes ... this book has it all."

Ryan Groff presents AND THEN THERE WERE NONE at Wordsmithonia saying, "This has always been my favorite Agatha Christie mystery for as long as I can remember."

Samantha reviews AGATHA CHRISTIE: AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY at Bookworms and tea lovers, saying, "This book is a work of art. "

Elaine reviews AGATHA CHRISTIE'S SECRET NOTEBOOKS by John Curran at Random Jottings of a Book and Opera Lover, saying, "This book is manna for all Christie afficionados, of which I count myself as one."

Hercule Poirot

Nan reviews THE MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR AT STYLES at Letters from a Hill Farm, saying, "Christie's first Poirot book, and first published novel."

Margot at Joyfully Retired reviews THE MYSTERY OF THE BLUE TRAIN at Joyfully Retired saying, "Even though Agatha Christie hated the book, I rather liked it." Margot notes "This is the ninth novel published by Agatha Christie. I’m reading these books in order for the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge."

Sarah M. reviews MURDER IN MESOPOTAMIA at A library is a hospital for the mind... saying, "this is is the 12th Hercule Poirot novel by Agatha Christie."

Gautami Tripathy reviews ELEPHANTS CAN REMEMBER at everything distils into reading, saying, "The case is about what was seemingly the double suicide of a loving husband and wife and the impact of that upon their children."

Margot Kinberg presents FUNERALS ARE FATAL at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist.... saying, "I recommend this title for its moody atmosphere, its surprising twists and compelling characters."

Bernadette presents DEAD MAN'S FOLLY at Reactions to Reading, saying, "My mini ACRC is to listen to all the audio books that David Suchet has narrated. They're a treat for the ears."

Margot Kinberg reviews EVIL UNDER THE SUN at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist...., saying, "I recommend Evil Under the Sun, especially for those who are already Poirot fans. It’s got brilliant characterization, interesting plot twists and Poirot’s famous “little grey cells.”"

Bella reviews THE CLOCKS at A Bibliophile's Bookshelf, saying, "in The Clocks Poirot is seemingly almost retired and plays a minimal role in solving this mystery, as he tries to do it from his armchair. Poirot has assistance by the way of Colin Lamb, or as he calls him his “dog”…"

Miss Marple

Karen M reviews New Margaret Rutherford biography: MARGARET RUTHERFORD, DREADNOUGHT WITH GOOD MANNERS. at Euro Crime.

Tommy and Tuppence

Karen M reviews Le Crime Est Notre Affaire at Euro Crime, "a 2008 French film (Crime is Our Business) in which Agatha Christie's married sleuths, the Beresfords, return".

That concludes this edition.
Submit your blog article to the next edition (December 23) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.
Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival #10

2009-10-23T22:21:00.000+10:30

Welcome to the October 23, 2009 edition of Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Monthly Blog Carnival.
Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival.

Do visit the participating blogs and leave comments if you have read the books.

Spread the word too about the existence of this blog and the monthly opportunity it offers to showcase reviews about Agatha Christie books.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just click on the link and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post.

Contributors

General

Surbhi Bhatia points to Witness for Prosecution- A Review posted at The Viewspaper. ‘Witness for Prosecution’ is a 1957 courtroom drama film by Billy Wilder, adapted from Agatha Christie’s short story by the same name. It features Charles Laughton, Tyrone Power and Marlene Dietrich.

BooksPlease presents Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Update posted at BooksPlease, saying, "I'm loving this challenge!"

Martin Edwards presents Christie, Christie, everywhere posted at 'Do You Write Under Your Own Name?', saying, "reading Christie remains one of my favourite forms of escapism."

Margot Kinberg reviews AND THEN THERE WERE NONE posted at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist....: "It’s one of Christie’s few mystery novels in which there isn’t really one sleuth as such, even an amateur one."

KerrieS presents Review: WHY DIDN'T THEY ASK EVANS? posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "While playing a round of golf, Bobby Jones slices his ball over the edge of a cliff. His ball is lost, but on the rocks below he finds the crumpled body of a dying man. With his final breath the man opens his eyes and says, ‘Why didn’t they ask Evans?’
This novel is an interesting exploration of the impact of class differences in English society, at the same time as being an absorbing murder mystery."

KerrieS presents Kerrie's ACRC Update - 17 October 2009 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Progress report: I've read 15 books and 4 collections of short stories in 13 months. This post lists my reviews, and path ahead."

Submitted by KerrieS And now for something completely different... posted at Type M for Murder, saying, "Rick Bletcha who blogs at TypeM for Murder comments on Agatha Christie’s Poirot, The Movie Collection, Set 4. The ‘feel’ of the stories is perfect and the attention to detail is really quite astounding."

Hercule Poirot

Nan presents In which we meet Hercule Poirot posted at Letters from a Hill Farm, saying, "Hercule Poirot's first appearance."

Margot at Joyfully Retired reviews Book Review: The Big Four posted at Joyfully Retired saying, "This eighth published novel by Christie reads a little different from the others."

Elizabeth presents Third Girl posted at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "Critics tend to pooh-pooh the later works of Agatha Christie as not up to her golden mean. But Third Girl, published in 1966, is evidence to the contrary...."

Miss Marple

Roberta Rood presents From Christie to Shakespeare, in one easy leap posted at Books to the Ceiling.

HelenB presents Book 26 - A pocket full of rye, or: "I simply can't swallow this nursery rhyme business." posted at 52 Books A Year.

That concludes this edition.
Submit your blog article to the next edition (November 23) of the agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.
Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival #9

2009-09-22T21:18:00.000+09:30

Welcome to the September 23, 2009 edition of Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Monthly Blog Carnival.
Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival.

Do visit the participating blogs and leave comments if you have read the books.

Spread the word too about the existence of this blog and the monthly opportunity it offers to showcase reviews about Agatha Christie books.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just click on the link and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post.

General

For the last 10 days we Celebrated the life and work of Agatha Christie with a blog tour where bloggers undertook to put up a special post on their own site.

Overkill

Reactions to Reading

Elizabeth at Miss Lemon Mysteries

Just A (Reading) Fool

Margot at Joyfully Retired

Crime Scraps

A library is a hospital for the mind...

Random Jottings of a Book and Opera Lover

Confessions of a Mystery Novelist

BooksPlease

Agatha Christie Quiz

Now for the contributions people have made to this Carnival:

Contributors:

KerrieS discovered a number of articles:

Win an Agatha Christie deckchair and novels: for UK entrants Books | guardian.co.uk posted at Guardian, saying, "All you have to do is answer an easy question for a chance to win 13 Agatha Christie "travel" novels, and a chair to sit in to read them."
The top 10 Agatha Christie mysteries from Books on the guardian.co.uk posted at Guardian, saying, "Christie expert John Curran sifts through the evidence to detect the 10 best mysteries by the world's most popular thriller writer."
Agatha Christie's neat plots emerged from chaos – just like mine posted at Guardian, saying, "Val McDermid finds that turns out that she has more in common with Miss Marple's creator than she thought."
Touring the fictional worlds of Agatha Christie in 'the English Riviera' posted at National Post, saying, "As the 119th anniversary of her birth approaches, the Queen of Crime still rules the English Riviera, a scenic stretch of the Devon coast embracing Tor Bay."
AudioFile Editors' Picks celebrates Agatha Christie Week posted at Audio File Magazine, saying, "AudioFile has created a page about Agatha Christie books available in audio. Included on the page interviews (audio) with Hugh Fraser and Rosalind Ayres, who have both done a lot of Christie audio narration. You can also download the August/September edition of Audiofile magazine in pdf.
Agatha Christie's private life would have stumped even Poirot posted at Books: Fiction and nonfiction reviews the latest news features and interviews.

Nan presents Letters from a Hill Farm: Book Report/They Came to Baghdad posted at Letters from a Hill Farm, saying, "A review from last year of a book I really loved."

G.M. Malliet presents On the Agatha Christie Trail posted at InkSpot saying, "I've just returned from two weeks in England. Not entirely by design, the trip turned, in part, into a pilgrimage to sites associated with Agatha Christie's life and works."

Elizabeth presents The Secret Notebooks of Agatha Christie posted at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "Miss Lemon fears that Mrs. Christie would be dismayed at this news that so excites her readers."

unfinishedperson presents THE BOOMERANG CLUE posted at Just A (Reading) Fool, saying, "This is a good book for those who enjoy a light, extremely light, read and liked the Tommy and Tuppence novels."

Hercule Poirot

Mog reviews BLACK COFFEE. posted at MOG'S BLOG, saying, "Originally a screenplay, it is adapted as a novel by Charles Osborne."

Sarah M. presents THE A.B.C. MURDERS posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "One of my all-time favorite Christie Who Dunits!"

KerrieS presents MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS (audio book) posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "What has delighted me so much in this audio book has been Suchet's superb characterisation of each person."

Joseph reviews THE MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR AT STYLES posted at Peace of Brain. saying "This famous mystery classic saw the debut of the great detective Hercule Poirot."

Sarah M. reviews DEATH IN THE CLOUDS posted at A library is a hospital for the mind.... saying "this is a fun read. It is also a little unusual, for unlike most of Christie's novels this crime has a closed crime setting. "

unfinishedperson presents MURDER IN THREE ACTS posted at Just A (Reading) Fool, saying, "So who did it? Well, I’m not going to tell you. You’ll have to read it for yourself. However, I can tell you that even if like me, you had an inkling of who the murderer was, you won’t be disappointed in the ride on which Dame Christie takes you to expose him (or her)."

unfinishedperson presents DEATH IN THE AIR posted at Just A (Reading) Fool, saying "when it got to the end and the perpetrator of the crime, I didn't quite believe it. It seemed a little too much of a leap that really wasn't seen in earlier parts of the book."

unfinishedperson presents The A.B.C. Murders posted at Just A (Reading) Fool, saying "John Curran, who edited the official Agatha Christie newsletter for years, named this book one of the top 10 Agatha Christie mysteries, and, in my humble opinion, I believe he is correct in his assessment.

Miss Marple

Martin Edwards presents A Pocket Full of Rye posted at 'Do You Write Under Your Own Name?', saying, "Some thoughts on Julia McKenzie's TV debut as Jane Marple."

Dorte H reviews SLEEPING MURDER(1976) posted at DJs krimiblog saying "This may be Miss Marple´s last case, but the appealing old woman is in great shape. "

ng kai-lee presents Marple Revisited; When the Mirror Crack'd posted at zhen's tofu shop, saying, "Original title The Mirror Crack'd from Side to Side. Do you know the origins of this title?"

That concludes this edition.
Submit your blog article to the next edition of agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form.
Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival #8

2009-08-23T09:02:00.000+09:30

Welcome to the August 23, 2009 edition of Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Monthly Blog Carnival.
Many thanks to those who contributed links to the Carnival.
Do visit the participating blogs and leave comments if you have read the books. Welcome this month to new participants Nan and Ryan.

In particular please check Suggestions Wanted: How to Celebrate Agatha Christie Week? posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Join our blog tour scheduled for Christie week. Make some suggestions on how we could celebrate. Enter the date in your calendar."

Spread the word too about the existence of this blog and the monthly opportunity it offers to showcase reviews about Agatha Christie books.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just click on the link and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post.

In 15 contributions, there are 10 Titles reviewed in this carnival.
In addition we have some blog posts of general interest to Agatha Christie readers.

Contributors

General

Nan reviews TEN LITTLE INDIANS posted at Letters from a Hill Farm, saying, "Not a cheery or cozy mystery but an excellent thriller." [This was also published as AND THEN THERE WERE NONE and TEN LITTLE NIGGERS.]

KerrieS

points to the "official" Christie site: Agatha Christie: Christie Week 13-20 September 2009 posted at Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Carnival, saying, "Highlights include new radio productions; unpublished short stories; plays and debates. And of course we'll be reading and discussing Murder on the Orient Express in the book club."
found an article about Forgotten Agatha Christie novel discovered 30 years after her death... in the attic of her holiday home posted at News | Mail Online"An unpublished Hercule Poirot novel! THE CAPTURE OF CERBERUS. To be published in a newspaper it seems."
presents Agatha Christie Quizzes posted at Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Carnival, saying, "Try yourself out on some online Agatha Christie quizzes. How well do you know titles, books, characters, plots, and plays? The quizzes range from easy to average to tough.

Hercule Poirot

unfinishedperson reviews

PERIL AT END HOUSE posted at Just A (Reading) Fool, saying, "Hercule Poirot is back and it couldn’t be a moment sooner..."
THIRTEEN AT DINNER aka LORD EDGWARE DIES, posted at Just A (Reading) Fool, saying, "...this one starts promisingly with Poirot being drawn into a case that he can't refuse."
MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS posted at Just A (Reading) Fool, saying, "If ever there were a classic Christie novel, this is it."

Margot reviews POIROT INVESTIGATES, a collection of 14 short stories, posted at Joyfully Retired. saying "this is a nice little book to tuck into a tote bag or the door of your vehicle for those times when you need a quick short story."

RyanG reviews THE MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR AT STYLES posted at Wordsmithonia, saying, "This was the review for the first book of my first challenge. I loved the book and recommend if to anyone who has never read a Agatha Christie book. This is a good taste of what she has to offer as a story teller."

Sarah M. reviews THREE ACT TRAGEDY posted at A library is a hospital for the mind..., saying, "Unique story as it's divided into three acts, like a play, with an actor taking a lead role in helping investigate a murder."

KerrieS also reviews LORD EDGWARE DIES posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Why does Hercule Poirot not wish to be known as the man who discovered who murdered Lord Edgware? In this novel we find out that Hercule Poirot can too be fallible."

Short Stories

Belle Wong reviews THE MYSTERIOUS MR QUIN posted at Ms. Bookish. saying, "A conjurer of skill with an instinct for detection, Mr. Harley Quin has an almost magical flair for appearing at the scene of the most remarkable crimes."

BooksPlease reviews THE HOUND OF DEATH posted at BooksPlease, saying, "12 short stories of premonitions, intuition or a sixth sense, stories of seances, haunted houses, nightmares, and amnesia - mainly supernatural and unexplained phenomena. A very enjoyable and satisfying collection."

Tommy and Tuppence

RyanG presents THE SECRET ADVERSARY posted at Wordsmithonia, saying, "This is my second review for my Agatha Christie self challenge. This book really showed how well Agatha Christie could write quick, believable dialogue. "

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.

ACRC Carnival #7

2009-07-23T18:24:00.000+09:30

Welcome to the July 23, 2009 edition of Agatha Christie Monthly Carnival.
Many thanks to those who contributed links in this Agatha Christie Reading Challenge Carnival. Do visit the participating blogs and leave comments if you have read the books. Welcome this month to some new participants.

Spread the word too about the existence of this blog and the monthly opportunity it offers to showcase reviews about Agatha Christie books.

If you'd like to be part of the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge, it is never too late to start. Check out the other postings on this blog and my main Agatha Christie Reading Challenge postings which will lead you to the lists of titles etc. You can now join the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge too, so just click on the link and sign up.

Read at your own pace, write a review on your blog, go to the Carnival collecting space and put in the URL, your details, and a comment about the post.

In 18 contributions, there are 9 Titles reviewed in this carnival. In addition we have some blog posts of general interest to Agatha Christie readers. A couple of participants in the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge have supplied their "update" posts. Miss Lemon's Mysteries presents Miss Lemon's point of view. And who has best depicted Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot? Do they match your mental pictures?

Contributors

General

Elizabeth presents THE SITTAFORD MYSTERY posted at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "Atmosphere isn't the only thing that stands out in this unusual mystery -- from the world's most familiar chronicler of crime."

KerrieS presents ACRC Update - 21 July 2009 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "My most recent update showing where I am on the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge journey."

Kate presents The 10 best beach reads posted at What Kate's Reading, saying, "An overview of my 10 best beach reads as per the NPR nominations, including MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS."

unfinishedperson presents Just A (Reading) Fool challenges page posted at Just A (Reading) Fool, saying, "How I have my challenges page set up. Requested to be submitted by Kerrie."

Maggie discusses THE SEVEN DIALS MYSTERY posted at My Utopia, saying "I was completely astonished when I read the killer's name."

Elizabeth presents TAKEN AT THE FLOOD posted at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "Imagine if the impeccably organized and eminently sensible Miss Felicity Lemon (private secretary to Mr. Parker Pyne and M. Hercule Poirot) were to assemble her own collection of crime fiction.... Here she recommends and discusses the choicest whodunits ever written."

Elizabeth Kerri Mahon reviews The Mysterious Disappearance of Agatha Christie. posted at Scandalous Women"On December 3, 1926 Agatha Christie disappeared from her home in Sunningdale, in Berkshire. Her car was found at eight o’clock on Saturday morning, abandoned several miles away, with some of her clothes and identification scattered around inside."

Hercule Poirot

KerrieS asked Who Best Depicts Hercule Poirot? posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "David Suchet? The definitive Poirot? My readers agree." In this post I've included some links to other sites of interest."

KerrieS reviews PERIL AT END HOUSE posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "HP's 6th novel, and his greatest test yet. Even the great HP is fallible."

Margot at Joyfully Retired reviews THE MURDER OF ROGER ACKROYD posted at Joyfully Retired. "Wherever you find Mr. Poirot, there is sure to be a murder. It’s definitely enough to pull Hercule’s little gray cells away from his vegetables."

KerrieS points to 50bookchallenge: [Book 8] DEATH ON THE NILE saying, "I have submitted this blog post for its excellent review. Unfortunately the blogger had turned anonymous comments off so I was unable to invite him/her to do it for herself."

Miss Marple

Elizabeth reviews A POCKET FULL OF RYE at Miss Lemon's Mysteries, saying, "A delightfully chilling take on the old Mother Goose rhyme, the murders in this whodunit follow right in step with the rhyme (if not reason) of 'Sing a Song of Sixpence.'"

BooksPlease reviews THE THIRTEEN PROBLEMS by Agatha Christie posted at BooksPlease, saying, "This collection of short stories includes The Tuesday Night Club introducing Miss Marple. A quick and easy read that raises questions about who has the best mind to solve mysteries."

KerrieS asks How could they do it? at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "Did you realise that some of the Marple TV series did NOT have Miss Marple in them originally? This post explores that fact."

KerrieS also reviews THE THIRTEEN PROBLEMS at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "The set of short stories where Miss Marple was created."

KerrieS asks Who is the best Miss Marple? posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "The poll referred to in this post is over, but do leave a comment about who you think is the best Miss M. Do you think Julia McKenzie will regret becoming the latest in the role?"

unfinishedperson reviews THE MURDER AT THE VICARAGE at Just A (Reading) Fool, saying, "The first Miss Marple. Unfortunately, have to wait a while for the next one."

KerrieS asks Did Agatha Christie change her mind about Miss Marple? posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "How did Miss Marple change after Agatha Christie first created her?"

Short Stories

KerrieS presents ACRC: Short Stories, Update #4 posted at MYSTERIES in PARADISE, saying, "My summary of the short stories I've read so far."

That concludes this edition. Submit your blog article to the next edition of agatha christie monthly carnival using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: agatha christie monthly carnival, blog carnival.