Logic Archives - DaneCobain.com

R. L. Stine – Under the Magician’s Spell | Review

Title: Under the Magician’s Spell

Author: R. L. Stine

Type: Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 140

Rating: 3*/5

R. L. Stine – Under the Magician’s Spell

This book is yet another of the Choose Your Own Adventures from R. L. Stine’s Goosebumps series and so, as always, you know roughly what to expect as you’re getting into it. I do have to say though, that this one in particular suffered from a fatal flaw. The choices that you’re given are misleading, and there seems to be no logic behind whether the decisions you make bring about ‘The End’ or not.

Still, I’m sure it’s decent enough if you’re eight years old, and the fact that you can’t really ‘play‘ it and that it all feels kind of random is potentially a good thing. It means you’ll re-read it and see different endings.

R. L. Stine

Click here to buy Under the Magician’s Spell.

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R. L. Stine – Ten Spooky Stories | Review

R. L. Stine – The Blob That Ate Everyone | Review

R. L. Stine – Beware, the Snowman | Review

Agatha Christie – The A.B.C. Murders | Review

Title: The A.B.C. Murders

Author: Agatha Christie

Type: Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 252

Rating: 9/10

Agatha Christie – The A.B.C. Murders

This is Christie at her best, published first in her glory period in the 1930s when she also released Murder on the Orient Express, Three Act Tragedy, Death on the Nile and And Then There Were None. I promise, you’ll enjoy this one – it’s up there with my favourites.

Picture the scene – Alice Ascher is killed in Andover, Betty Barnard dies in Bexhill, and Sir Carmichael Clarke is found dead in Churston. Hercule Poirot receives a letter in advance of each murder, telling him where to expect the crime to take place. The great detective must unravel the clues and try to stop the killer before further lives are claimed.

The inspector unravels the clues in his usual inimitable style, and it’s great fun to watch and learn as Hercule Poirot’s faultless logic helps to track the perpetrator down. This is a great book to start with if you’re new to Poirot or Christie, and seasoned readers are likely to have read it already.

Good luck solving why the killer always leaves a copy of the ABC railway guide beside his victims – that’s been one of my favourite riddles in any of the Agatha Christie books that I’ve read. As always, her mastery of the mystery genre is supreme, and you’ll be kicking yourself at the end when all is revealed. The sign of any good mystery book, encapsulated by Christie.