The Queen of Mystery

It's funny how so much can happen in such a short amount of time. And then when you turn around, you find out that it has actually been a much longer time than you thought. I think of things all the time to post on this blog. But those ideas tend to stay unwritten, because I never seem to make it to the keyboard.

The shower is a great idea place. It's a quiet time, no real distractions, just you, hot water, and your thoughts. I often write really brilliant posts while I'm washing my hair. Unfortunately, as soon as I've got the towel in my hair, reality seems to hit the 'play' button again, and that post just gets washed down the drain.

It seems to be too much work to back track much of my recent reading. So, instead, here is what I've got my bookmark in lately, and an invitation to read along and come back and Book Club with me later.

A few months back, my husband brought up from the basement a selection of novels to choose from. In them was Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie. The timing was really great. I had just finished reading a murder mystery that was just terrible. The plot was so-so, the characters were thin, and the dialog was painful at best. But here was a novel that claimed to be written by the 'Queen of Mystery.' It looked to be just the cure for the damage such a terrible piece of writing did to me. I enjoyed Murder on the Orient Express so thoroughly that I wanted to start reading it again from the beginning and loan it to my mom to read at the same time. (How? I'm not sure. But it is such a great read!)

I told my husband that I had a new favorite author and that I wanted to own ALL that Agatha Christie has written. He then informed me that doing so would not be financially sound because of the large volume of novels she has written. But, for our recent anniversary, he bought me two more: Crooked House, which I am currently reading, and And Then There Were None, which I intend to pick up next.

On the back of each of these books is a list of Christie's ten favorites (these 3 are on it). So, since her complete collection is too large to own without nearly taking out another wing in the house (which we certainly cannot do), I think that I will strive to collect at least these ten. If they are her favorites, then they must be worth reading.

SO, if you have read Murder on the Orient Express, and care to comment, please do so. I'd love to hear what you have to say. Who did you think did it? What did you think of the ending? Did you see it when Poirot did, or were you completely shocked when all was revealed? (I was surprised!!)

And, if you care to Book Club with me, I will post on Crooked House first, and then on And Then There Were None in the weeks following that. I'd love you to join me and discuss!