Agatha Christie

my favourite reads of March 2025

The Body in the Library by Agatha Christie (1942)

Audiobook narrated by Stephanie Cole.

When the body of an unknown woman is found in her library, Dolly Bantry calls in her old friend Miss Marple for assistance. A classic.

Five Little Pigs by Agatha Christie (1942)

Audiobook narrated by Hugh Fraser.

Poirot solves a 16-year-old murder case, exonerating the woman who died in prison after being found guilty of the crime. I thought the ‘five little pigs’ conceit was a bit forced, but I enjoyed it.

Marple: Expert on Wickedness by Mark Aldridge (2024)

A thorough examination of Agatha Christie’s Miss Marple stories as well as tv and radio dramatizations and adaptations. A+ work. I looked forward to getting back to it every night.

Miss Marple and the Thirteen Problems by Agatha Christie (1932)

aka The Thirteen Problems, aka The Tuesday Club Murders

The first 13 Miss Marple stories: The Tuesday Night Club, The Idol House of Astarte, Ingots of Gold, The Blood-Stained Pavement, Motive v. Opportunity, The Thumb Mark of St Peter, The Blue Geranium, The Companion, The Four Suspects, A Christmas Tragedy, The Herb of Death, The Affair at the Bungalow, Death by Drowning.

Very entertaining.

Three Blind Mice and Other Stories by Agatha Christie (1950)

The other stories are Strange Jest, Tape-Measure Murder, The Case of the Perfect Maid, The Case of the Caretaker, The Third-Floor Flat, The Adventure of Johnnie Waverly, Four and Twenty Blackbirds, and The Love Detectives.

Lots of fun.

Undoctored by Adam Kay (2022)

I loved his This is Going to Hurt in November 2018 and I liked this one, too. Funny, horrifying, painfully honest.

Wild by Amy Jeffs (2022)

Poetic re-tellings of Old English, Welsh and Irish tales. Fewer wood engravings than her previous book, Storyland (which I liked a lot in June 2024), but I think I liked these texts even more.

my favourite reads of February 2025

Ayoade on Top by Richard Ayoade (2019)

Short, autobiographical tidbits sprinkled amidst an extremely detailed analysis of the 2003 Gwyneth Paltrow movie View from the Top. I haven’t seen the movie, but it sounds terrible. The book is a bit strange at times, but really funny.

A Deadly Affair: Unexpected Love Stories from the Queen of Mystery by Agatha Christie

Audiobook narrated by Judith Boyd, Hugh Fraser, Joan Hickson and David Suchet.

A collection of Christie’s short stories. Not as gripping as her novels, but still enjoyable.

Glorious Exploits by Ferdia Lennon (2024)

Lampo and Gelon, two unemployed potters in 412 BCE Syracuse, decide to put on the play Medea starring Athenian prisoners-of-war being starved to death in a quarry.

It won the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction, which surprises me because I found it terribly sad. Creative and well-written, for sure, but definitely sad.

Howards End by EM Forster (1910)

I was inspired to finally read this after watching an excellent adaptation on PBS at Christmas time. After the briefest of romances between young Helen Schlegel and Paul Wilcox falls apart, Helen’s sister Margaret befriends Paul’s ill mother, Ruth. After Ruth’s death, the Schlegel and Wilcox families continue to grow closer, despite their very different approaches to life.

I enjoyed it, but it was a bit slow at times.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie (1926)

Audiobook narrated by Hugh Fraser.

Poirot is drawn out of his rural retirement, and the growing of vegetable marrows, to solve another murder. I’ve read this so many times I practically have it memorised, but I still love it. Pure comfort reading.

Normal Rules Don’t Apply by Kate Atkinson (2023)

Audiobook narrated by Paterson Joseph.

A collection of interconnected stories, all a bit eerie, creepy, unsettling and sad. It was good, like everything Atkinson writes, but I’m not sure I’ll be recommending it as heartily as Life After Life and A God in Ruins.

You Could Make This Place Beautiful by Maggie Smith (2023)

A collection of short – sometimes very short – pieces about her marriage breakdown, drawn-out divorce, the ugly aftermath and development of a new normal with her children. She writes of her husband’s disdain for her writing career so her success must be absolutely delicious. I am delighted for her.

my favourite reads of January 2025

Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey (1949)

Not long after his parents’ deaths in a plane crash, thirteen-year-old Patrick Ashby disappears. He leaves a vague farewell note and his folded jacket near a cliff well known as a suicide spot, but his body is never found. Eight years later, cash-strapped Brat Farrar is recognized by a friend of the family as a dead-ringer for Patrick and together they scheme to reintroduce “Patrick” just in time for him to collect a large inheritance. Will Brat get away with it?

An excellent book. I loved it.

Dead Famous by Greg Jenner (2020)

An examination of celebrity (mostly human, but also the odd animal) from every possible angle.

Fun, fast-paced, really enjoyable.

Mike and Psmith by PG Wodehouse (1909)

Mike and Psmith meet at boarding school and hijinks ensue immediately. Like some of Wodehouse’s early work, it’s a bit heavy on the cricket for someone who does not know or care about cricket, but it’s still a lot of fun.

An A+ Christmas present from Charlotte!

Sad Cypress by Agatha Christie (1940)

Audiobook narrated by David Suchet.

Elinor Carlisle is accused of poisoning Mary Gerrard, her late aunt’s companion, after Elinor’s fiancé confesses he is in love with Mary. The case against Elinor couldn’t look more bulletproof, but Poirot investigates anyway.

David Suchet is a great narrator.

Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray (1848)

At almost 700 pages (of very small print), I started Vanity Fair last November and read a chapter per day, aside from a couple weeks at Christmas when my girls were home. Best friends Becky Sharp and Amelia Sedley leave their girls’ school and head out into very different futures. The book’s original subtitle was ‘A Novel Without a Hero’, which is absolutely true since almost everyone in it is terrible. They scheme, lie, cheat, steal, manipulate, boast, blame, condemn, shun, and bootlick in a constant jostle for social superiority.

It’s a bit wordy, yes, but hilarious. I honestly looked forward to reading it every single day.

my favourite reads of November 2024

Celebrating the Seasons with the Yorkshire Shepherdess by Amanda Owen (2021)

I can’t remember how this book entered my orbit, but it was an interesting glimpse into a lifestyle very different from my own. I especially liked the many photographs of absolutely gorgeous Yorkshire landscapes.

One, Two, Buckle My Shoe by Agatha Christie (1940)

Audiobook narrated by Hugh Fraser.

Poirot’s dentist seemingly commits suicide, but Poirot sets out to prove it was murder.

The Secret Hours by Mick Herron (2023)

I’m torn about whether to include this in my favourites because it was easily my least favourite Herron book. It starts off really well, but then gets bogged down with way too many words and much too little action. I’m not sorry I read it, but I wouldn’t recommend this one like I do his others.

The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie (1922)

Audiobook narrated by Nadia May.

Tommy and Tuppence, the Young Adventurers, are tasked with finding Jane Finn, who has important government papers and has disappeared. Not my favourite Christie, but still enjoyable.

Treasure Island!!! by Sara Levine (2011)

There is a book reviewer and blogger I follow whose taste is pretty reliably the exact opposite of mine, so when I saw she disliked this book, I immediately ordered it and I wasn’t disappointed.

A young woman becomes obsessed with Stevenson’s Treasure Island and blows up her entire life by trying to live by its maxims of “boldness, resolution, independence and horn-blowing.” I love these unlikeable protagonists.

my favourite reads of October 2024

Dumb Witness by Agatha Christie (1937)

Audiobook narrated by Hugh Fraser.

Elderly Emily Arundell suspects a member of her household is trying to kill her and, sadly for her, she is correct. Features a star turn by Bob the dog.

Evil Under the Sun by Agatha Christie (1941)

Audiobook narrated by David Suchet.

Glamorous movie star Arlena Marshall ends up dead on a beach and neither her family nor anyone else at their resort seem particularly bothered by that, but Poirot solves the case anyway. A particularly good Christie, in my opinion.

Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie (1923)

Audiobook narrated by Hugh Fraser.

Another rich, elderly person suspects he is going to be murdered by a member of his household and he is also correct. Unfortunately, Poirot has a knack for responding to these pleas for help just a little too late.

To Love and Be Wise by Josephine Tey (1950)

A famous young American photographer goes missing during a hike in the English countryside and good old Inspector Grant is called in to figure out what happened to him. A clever and entertaining mystery.

Wilderness Knits by Linka Neumann (2021)

I haven’t knit many sweaters lately, but if anything was going to tempt me to start one, it would be a design from this book. Lots of appealing patterns.

my favourite reads of August 2024

Dead Lions by Mick Herron (2013)

Audiobook narrated by Gerard Doyle.

I read this a couple years ago, but got the audiobook when I saw the library added it. Exciting, well-plotted and, as usual, better than the tv adaptation. (Which is also very good, I think.)

The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey (1948)

Probably my favourite so far in My Summer of Tey. A teenager accuses a middle-aged woman and her mother of holding her hostage and beating her. They didn’t – but how to prove you didn’t do something? Loved it.

Hercule Poirot’s Christmas by Agatha Christie (1938)

Audiobook narrated by Hugh Fraser.

Weird and inappropriate timing, but I needed an audiobook and this was available so whatever. Clever plotting, very enjoyable.

Psmith, Journalist by PG Wodehouse (1915)

Not my favourite Wodehouse, but Psmith is a very amusing character and I enjoyed it a lot.

A Shilling for Candles by Josephine Tey (1936)

Josephine Tey does it again! An actress is found drowned on a beach and it is assumed to be suicide until a coat button is spotted tangled in her hair. Cue the twists, turns and red herrings.

The Moving Finger by Agatha Christie

Audiobook, perfectly narrated by Richard E Grant.

I checked this out after watching the Joan Hickson version on VisionTV one night and not only was it better than the tv adaptation (this should go without saying), but it was even better than I’d remembered from my first read however many years ago. Ideal treadmill listening.