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Agatha Christie – A Caribbean Mystery | Review

Title: A Caribbean Mystery

Author: Agatha Christie

Type: Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 288

Rating: 4*/5

Agatha Christie – A Caribbean Mystery

This book was fun because we get to see Miss Marple out of her element, in the middle of the Caribbean instead of in her armchair in St Mary’s Mead. In fact, the setting was the best part of this for me because while the characters were pretty believable and the plot was full of twists and turns, they weren’t so good that they alone could make this book stand out amongst the rest of Christie’s ouevre.

I’m not saying this isn’t worth reading, though. Far from it – in fact, it’s probably in her top 30%. I did feel as though the whole idea of a crime being committed in the present to stop the truth about a historic crime from coming out to be a little bit over–used, but Christie was probably the originator of it in the first place.

That said, this is also one of her later books, and what’s kind of cool about that is that Miss Marple is a little older as a result of it. It’s strange to think of that, as I think it’s only natural to picture Miss Marple as a lovely old pussy (Christie’s words, not mine), and thinking of her as being “older” is almost difficult to do. But Christie nails it through her characterisation, as she always does, and it’s probably helped by the fact that she herself was getting on in years when she wrote it.

All in all, this was a cracking little murder mystery but not quite her best. Worth reading if like me you’re working your way through her back catalogue. Enjoy it.

Agatha Christie

Click here to buy A Caribbean Mystery.

John Green – Turtles All the Way Down | Review

Title: Turtles All the Way Down

Author: John Green

Type: Fiction

Page Count/Review Word Count: 288

Rating: 4*/5

John Green – Turtles All the Way Down

To a certain extent, I already knew what I was getting into here. John Green’s writing feels a little more mature to me now, and that’s a good thing, but if you’ve read one of his books before then you’ll instantly slide back into his writing style. The characters are much the same as his characters usually are, too.

But we do get the anxiety and OCD representation from Aza which I found relatable, for the most part, although a lot of the things that she did annoyed me. But then that happens with most of his characters. I’m a little too old to fit the target market, but I do still think he’s a pretty good writer. He did a great job here of showing what it’s like to have intrusive thoughts, but I would have liked to have seen a little more of the murder mystery. Just like pretty much everyone else I’ve talked to.

On the whole, the dialogue and the narrative itself are pretty well handled here, and there are some great one-liners and intriguing ideas about life, the universe and everything. On the other hand, at one point he wrote “she said, askingly” and it made me want to vomit. I’m not sold on that even being a word but if it is, it’s a bad one. He could have just said “she asked”.

All in all though, this was a pretty good read. Overhyped perhaps, but that was always going to be the case. It’s certainly not a bad book, and I was impressed. I enjoyed it.