When I was younger, I read one Agatha Christie novel after another. These days, I usually watch a Miss Marple or Hercule Poirot mystery once a week, even though I’ve already seen most of them. There’s something about Christie’s style that comforts me. I’m still hooked on Agatha.
My friend bought me the book AGATHA CHRISTIE, AN ELUSIVE WOMAN by Lucy Worsley for my birthday, and I’ve been waiting for things to settle down so that I can enjoy it properly. I’m starting it tonight. While HH’s brother stayed with us, we watched David Suchet’s special on Agatha Christie’s life. Suchet played Poirot for 25 years and was looking for answers as to why her work’s been so popular and enduring. He explored her childhood, marriage and divorce, her second marriage and the “missing” time period when she disappeared for 11 days.
I loved the TV movie about those missing days–Agatha and The Truth of Murder, an alternate history where she disappears to solve a case. At the time, it was a national event, trying to find her. Search parties combed the area where her abandoned car was found. It made the newspapers every day. My friend told me the book she bought me might tell what really happened before she was found. Agatha never talked about it.
Christie herself was an interesting person, adventurous but private. David Suchet could only make guesses about what made her work so loved. Some people suggest readers loved the clever puzzles she created, the unexpected twist at the end of each book. Others argue that her exotic settings thrilled readers at the time. She took them to Egypt, on cruises, and on the Orient Express. She was fond of poisoning, so that a person might sip a cocktail in an elegant restaurant and die on the spot.
I love all of the elements in her novels, but for me, I mostly remember the characters she created with a few deft brush strokes. And I enjoy the interplay between those characters. So much can be hidden behind a smile. Her characters are complicated, and that makes them interesting. I’ve read a lot of mysteries by a lot of talented writers, but Agatha is still one of my favorites.
Are you a fan? What do you think made her one of the best-selling authors in the world?
Judi Lynn 
my sister got me into reading her books when we were young and I’ve always loved her books!
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Her missing days have interested me since I learned that happened. I hope you enjoy the book.
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Thank you!
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I’ve only ever read And Then There Were None, but I’ve seen several film adaptions of her books. I do love the exotic locales and the clever twists she used in her stories. I think she’ll always be a legend!
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So do I.
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I read a lot of her work back in the day and always enjoyed it.
My son recently got into her because she was featured in an episode of Doctor Who, and he’s really into Doctor Who, and my son was already into Sherlock Holmes,, so it wasn’t that hard for him to get interested in other mystery authors. The episode was also set in her “missing” period.
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This is so interesting! My grandsons were into Doctor Who when they lived with us. I watched more of those episodes than I ever intended to. Didn’t know Dr. Who did Agatha. Fun!
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I am an Agatha fan and have been since I read my first Hercule Poirot mystery when I was a teenager. It used to be titled “A Holiday for Murder” but now it’s Hercule Poirot’s Christmas.
I think “Murder on The Orient Express” is my favorite. I loved the 1974 film adaptation. The one made a few years ago was terrible. It deviated too much from the original story.
I hope you enjoy the book. Let us know what you think. (And her eleven-day disappearance is perplexing.)
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The first Orient Express movie was wonderful with awesome actors. I liked Death on the Nile a lot, too. My husband is a big Joan Hickson fan for the Miss Marple TV shows. It’s hard to go wrong with Christie.
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