Book Review – Poirot Investigates by Agatha Christie

books, reviews

Rating: 4 out of 5.

I have to admit I’ve sort of abandoned my plan to reread every Agatha Christie book. I started it ages ago and knew that it would take me ages. Not because her books take that long to read but because I didn’t want to suffer from burnout. Still, I haven’t really been keeping up with it this year. I think the last Christie book I read was back in December. Although, it’s not as if I read a great deal in 2022. I only picked up 4 of her books. Absolutely abysmal when compared to the 16 I got through in 2021. So, I’m going to try and improve this year. I’ve still got over 30 to get through so I need to get cracking. To get me started, I finally listened to an audiobook I’ve had in my library for too long. I normally like Hugh Fraser’s narration but surely David Suchet would be even better, right? At least Poriot would sound familiar.

Book Review – Hercule Poirot’s Christmas by Agatha Christie

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Rating: 3 out of 5.

It’s been a while since I last read an Agatha Christie novel and I haven’t read anything festive this year. So, I decided to combine both in one go. I haven’t read Hercule Poirot’s Christmas for a while but I did watch the TV adaptation last year. It seemed like the best kind of book to pick up just before Christmas. At a time when there is so much going on and there’s always some distraction. I was planning to read each part on the designated day but that didn’t work out. In the end, I just smashed through it on Boxing Day. It was exactly what I needed.

Book Review – The Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie

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Rating: 3 out of 5.

Do you remember how I had vowed to slowly make my way through all of Agatha Christie’s books by reading at least one per month? Yeah, that went out the window in recent months. So, I decided to pick one up in June. How did I decide? I went on Spotify and found the first audiobook that was in English. I also don’t think I’ve ever read this one before. If I have, it didn’t leave enough of an impression on me. As long as I didn’t need to know anything about golf then I knew I was going to alright.

Film Review – Death on the Nile (2022)

films, reviews

Rating: 2 out of 5.

It was already going badly for Kenneth Branagh’s adaptation of Death on the Nile thanks to Covid. Then there were the seemingly endless controversies that plagued the cast. Clearly, somebody was trying to tell him not to bother. I mean somebody other than me. After the dull and forgettable Murder on the Orient Express, I wasn’t exactly counting down the days for this to be released. It doesn’t help that I think this Christie book is overrated. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great book and I do think the twist is cool. I just don’t think it’s one of her top 5. It might be popular but that doesn’t always mean something is good. So, the thought of Branagh attaching his fake moustache for this wasn’t exactly keeping me going through lockdown.

Book Review – Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie

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Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

It’s been a while since I got the chance to read an Agatha Christie novel, so I definitely wanted to fit one into January. Thankfully, things are still quiet at work which means I was able to listen to his as an audiobook. I’ve come to the realisation that, even though I love David Suchet as Poroit, I’m not a fan of him as a narrator. I much prefer Hugh Fraser. He just has a much more relaxed and comforting demeanour. He makes the hours just tick by.

Book Review – Mrs McGinty’s Dead by Agatha Christie

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Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

I’m getting back into the swing of things with Agatha Christie now. I’m back to reading at least one book a month, which is what I’d planned out for the year. Of course, restricting myself to what I can read has made it difficult to keep this up, so I’ve not read as much Christie this year as I’d have wanted. Still, I’ve managed to read quite a few in recent months, which has got me back on track. It’s always a pleasure to fit another Agatha story into my monthly reads, so hopefully, I’ll manage another before the end of November.

Book Review – Three Act Tragedy by Agatha Christie

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Rating: 3 out of 5.

I’ve been feeling dreadful all week, so I haven’t been reading much at night. In order to keep on top of my reading, I managed to sneak in an audiobook at work. As I’ve been feeling rotten, I decided it was only right that I treat myself to an Agatha Christie. I’ve not been reading her as regularly lately, so I’m diving back in with 2 Agatha books this month. Starting with this one. It’s one of the ones that I always tend to forget about but not because I dislike it. It’s just not one of those books that I automatically think of when I have an urge to read some Agatha.

Book Review – Five Little Pigs by Agatha Christie

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Rating: 4 out of 5.

I didn’t finish my previous read, Strange Weather In Tokyo, until Saturday and I was busy for most of Sunday. So, I knew that I needed to pick a quick read for today’s review. I always read less during the week because of work, so I decided to listen to an Agatha Christie audiobook instead. On days when I don’t have to do much writing, I find it easy enough to listen to books as I work. If I’m doing any kind of copywriting, it becomes trickier. Nobody wants me to start typing out Poriot’s speech about who the murderer is. Well, nobody who would be browsing our website anyway. This is a book that I’ve been meaning to include on my big Agatha reread because I love the concept. It’s classic Christie and classic Poirot. With work being so stressful at the moment, it’s been great to be able to shut everything else out and just listen instead.

Book Review – The ABC Murders by Agatha Christie

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Rating: 5 out of 5.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Agatha Christie is a sure-fire way to cure your bookish blues. After taking a long time to read Monsters, I knew that I had to do something drastic to get me back into reading. On Sunday I stuck on the audiobook version of this novel and didn’t turn it off until the end. I listened as I took my week’s Instagram photos and went about my general weekend business. It’s always glorious listening to a Christie audiobook. Not that it isn’t glorious reading it yourself but there’s something about an audiobook that just enhances the cosiness. Regardless of the reason, as soon as I was finished, I felt much better about life and reading. I’m renewed and ready to get a few more books off my TBR this month.

Book Review – The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie

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Rating: 4 out of 5.

How could I not read this during my Agatha Christie month? After all, it’s 100 years since it was first published. 100 years and Agatha Christie is still an important part of the literary canon. The fact that this year sees the release of another adaptation of Death on the Nile only proves that. As a writer, she is so often dismissed as being a writer of cosy crime but she has continually shown her longevity. It’s ridiculous to think that people still underestimate her but that’s always been the problem with the literary canon. And I understand that there are more than a few unsavoury moments that haven’t aged particularly well over the years but she’s not alone there.