When You Just Need Some Pictures: Agatha Comics!

(all images in this post by us!)

I (Audrey) am always looking to find new and interesting items to add to my ever-growing Agatha Christie book collection, and so was very pleased to recently find several used copies of graphic novel versions of her works.

These terrific little adaptations are, understandably, quite abbreviated, and yet the essence of Agatha remains! I have so far acquired The Murder on the Links, The Man in the Brown Suit, Murder at the Vicarage, and Evil Under the Sun. I heartily recommend any of them to both long-time Agatha fans who are looking for a fun refresher and newcomers who new want a colorful introduction to #DameAgatha's works!

I found a good reference here of a list of the available adaptations and best purchase options.

-A.

Papa Poirot Gets Protective: Peril at End House | 1931

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"You are in danger - grave danger. I tell to you. I! And you do not know who I am?" -Hercule Poirot, Peril at End House, p. 23

We have come to the end of our first #YOAreadalong! Thanks so much to those of you who read Peril at End House with us this week - it was so fun to hear your thoughts and become better acquainted over Agatha! Also - stay tuned for the winner of our #giveaway announcement in the next few days! And, for those of you who haven't had a chance to read Peril yet, fear not! We will still give you our recap for this week, and you can join us for our next #YOAreadalong, Murder on the Orient Express!

The Sum of It:

Hercule Poirot is still "retired", but is happily reunited with his bestie Hastings for a seaside vacay. While getting their resort on, Poirot literally stumbles upon a cute girl named Nick Buckley who, while they are chatting, is nearly killed by a stray bullet. Poirot is obviously concerned for her safety and goes into full Papa Poirot mode and makes it his life mission to keep her out of harm's way. Nick is a little apprehensive (and sassy) at first about this total random foreign stranger making his way into her life and insisting that someone is trying to #MURDER her, but after Poirot has Hastings explain to Nick just exactly who they are dealing with (THE Poirot!), she takes him seriously.

Poirot suggests she find a fairly dull, yet reliable, friend to come stay with her to make sure there's no more attempted murder funny business going on so Nick says I HAVE JUST THE GIRL! Aka, her cousin Maggie. However, Cousin Maggie has been at Nick's fairly crumbly mansion, End House, for not even 24 hours when she is found #MURDERED, and apparently mistaken for Nick when she is killed! Poirot, feeling fairly devastated that he was not able to prevent this death from happening under his nose, vows to track down the killer before they are able to knock off their intended target.

Nick has surrounded herself with quite the cast of characters who sound like a real bunch of #newromantics in her crumbly old house, including Nick's cousin Mr. Vyse, a lawyer whom Hastings is immediately suspicious of on account of his being a lawyer and having blonde hair and an impassive face, Commander Challenger, a stalwart military man with a suntanned face and a not-so-secret love for Nick, Freddie (aka Frederica), Nick's alternatively zen and spastic (#cocaine) bff, and Mr. Lazarus, a glamorous and wealthy art dealer who is Freddie's not-so-secret man on the side. Nick is renting the lodge on her property to some VERY AUSTRALIAN AUSTRALIANS (Poirot finds them suspicious because they seem toooo sincere). Some characters outside the frame include Nick's secret lover, a wealthy, Lindbergh-style pilot trying to fly around the world, and Freddie's erstwhile husband. We also get to see Inspector Japp!

To help with sorting out all the potential suspects, Poirot creates a list of possible baddies, A-J, item J being someone who exists but is unknown. Nick gets locked up in a hospital (for her own protection), and Poirot gets down to business with the investigating, at one point even making Hastings pretend to be a medium conducting a seance (blessed Hastings), before revealing a red herring or two AND surprising everyone with the #DARKTRUTH in the end.

Because that's what we all do on our seaside vacays.

The YOA Treatment:

Though there are a million things we could touch on, we want to leave some of the discussion to you guys! A few things we want to highlight:

>The Agatha Wrap Up: one of the things that is just so deliciously satisfying about Agatha Christie novels is how you rarely (if ever!) have lingering questions after you finish the book. Each detail of the storyline is there for a reason, and if it isn't there to bring color or character to the plot, you're going to find out why it's included before the book is done. One reader (Kelly) pointed out that Agatha goes to the trouble of resolving a minor, minor plot point at the very end of Peril and how pleasant it is to end on that kind of note.

>Sassy Poirot: Poirot is particularly sassy in this book. He and Hastings have their typical bickering, but it's at new heights during their End House adventures. Poirot is calling Hastings his "faithful dog", turning up his nose at English breakfasts, and makes a passionate plea for Hastings to get a Poirot-esque mustache (and to part his hair in the middle so as to be more symmetrical and aesthetically pleasing). Hastings observes that he repressed a "shudder at the thought." We also get some standard Poirot-to-Hastings zingers, including: "Hastings has a singularly beautiful nature. It has been the greatest hindrance to me at times." Of himself, Poirot cutely says, "I am convinced that le bon Dieu created Hercule Poirot for the express purpose of interfering. It is my metier."

>Classic Hastings: Hastings has previously revealed himself to be 100% certain of many things, and as a general rule he is almost always wrong and then totally baffled by his own wrongness. Poirot has picked up on this trend, saying to his friend after a particularly certain character assessment: "You have an extraordinary effect on me, Hastings. You have so strongly the flair in the wrong direction that I am almost tempted to go by it!" Hastings also recounts his own bafflement in an adorable story about Poirot's one failed case, saying "And I smiled, for at the time that Poirot told me that tale, he had instructed me to say "chocolate box" to him if ever I should fancy he was growing conceited! He was then bitterly offended when I used the magical words only a minute and a quarter later." So mysterious can't imagine why Poirot was annoyed by that.

>Style: This feels like quintessential Agatha and Poirot. The storytelling is pretty tight, although not quite at its zenith, and the mystery offers the classic set of twists at the end that leave you marveling at Agatha's creativity. Though some of the red herrings just FEEL like red herrings, it's fantastic how she ties them into the story so that even though they're not the main solution to the mystery, they are a part of the whole in a really clever way.

We also get a little more of a look into some of the big questions one could consider in mystery writing. In her autobiography, Agatha mentions that she is much more interested in the victim of the crime than the perpetrator. In this book, Poirot shares this perspective as he is discussing one of the many attempts on Nick's life, saying to her "For me -- I have different work to perform. I have the innocent to think of, not the guilty -- the victim, not the criminal." But this doesn't mean that Poirot isn't also trying to get into the psyche of the murderer. As he is trying to work through all his theories with the trusty Hastings, he exclaims "Motive!", saying "Let us come back to that, and regard this problem calmly and methodically. To begin with, how many kinds of motive are there for murder? What are the motives which lead one human being to take another human being's life?"

What did you love or hate about the book?? If this is your first Agatha reading experience, are you hooked? Did you already run out to your local book store or fire up the ol' Amazon account and grab some more? Will you join us for our next #YOAreadalong?? TELL US ALL YOUR THOUGHTZ AND FEELINGZ!!

#YOAreadalong Discussion: Peril at End House

(image from here)

Hello everyone!

I hope by now you are in the loop on our #YOAreadalong (and also our #giveaway!) If you aren't, be sure to check out our previous post or catch up with us on social media (Instagram, Twitter, or Facebook) to find out more details.

We wanted to create a little list of discussion questions and a post where we can all dialogue together about our reading progress. But don't feel limited at all about the questions we have below! We want to hear all your Peril thoughts and feelings!

Characters:
>any favorite characters? any you just don't trust?
>how do we feel about Poirot in this book?
>best Poirot moment?
>what about Hastings? Favorite ridiculous statement? Does Poirot underestimate him?

#MURDER:
>was the victim a surprise to you?
>who do you initially suspect is the murderer?
>best red herring award?

Story:
>What stands out to you about the writing?
>Anything you love (or don't) about the story?
>If you're an Agatha fan, how does this compare to your favorites?
>If you're new to Agatha, how did this meet your expectations?

Since everyone is reading at their own pace, spoilers may be inevitable - post and read at your own risk! :)

Don't forget that when you make a comment on this post (or any of our social media posts about this #YOAreadalong) you will be entered to win a copy of Murder on the Orient Express!

Happy Reading!

-A. & E.

The Real Housewives of St. Mary Mead: The Murder at the Vicarage | 1930

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"If I were at any time to set out on a career of deceit, it would be of Miss Marple that I should be afraid."
- Leonard Clement, The Murder at the Vicarage, p. 194

The Sum of It:
This week we finally joined the host of delightful characters in the tiny village of St. Mary Mead in their crime adventures with #DameAgatha's first full-length novel "starring" Miss Jane Marple. We say "starring" because, while Miss Marple does in fact do the majority of the crime solving, the events of The Murder at the Vicarage actually unfold through the eyes (and narration) of the lovable, middle-aged vicar, Leonard Clement.

Leonard lives in St. Mary Mead with his MUCH younger wife (#cradlerobber), hysterically named Griselda (NOTE: Griselda has become one of our most beloved Agatha characters! See more about her below), and his teenage nephew, Dennis. The three are a fairly merry trio: Griselda loves the  gossip (#teaandscandal), Dennis loves the local bigwig's daughter, Lettice Protheroe, and Leonard loves to sit back and watch it all happen. Old Leonard's life get a bit more exciting when he stumbles upon the local bigwig's wife, Anne Protheroe, making out with young, local hottie/misunderstood artist, Lawrence Redding. Things get even MORE interesting when Leonard comes home one day to find Anne's cranky old husband, Lucias, #MURDERED in his study (and bleeding on the carpets, so rude)!

Just as the investigation gets underway, Lawrence Redding confesses! Then Anne Protheroe confesses! Everyone can't wait to confess! But, of course, it can't be that tidy. Their confessions don't fit in with the facts of the crime, literally everyone in St. Mary Mead had some sort of beef with dearly departed Lucias (Miss Marple counts 7 suspects), and so the true killer must be found. Who else but Miss Marple to help the police sort out the whole nasty business?

A Brief Interlude to Pay Homage to Griselda:
The pure delight of Vicarage rests in its characters, and in particular, the hilarious interactions between Leonard and Griselda Clement. Leonard first describes his wife thusly:

"My wife's name is Griselda - a highly suitable name for a parson's wife. But there the suitability ends. She is not in the least meek."

He goes on to recount how they had a whirlwind romance, she had loads of boyfriends, but chose him in the end because, in her words, "It's so much nicer to be a secret and delightful sin to anybody than to be a feather in his cap." Griselda hosts "tea and scandal" group with all the village biddies on Wednesday afternoons at 4:30 (Miss Marple included!), is proudly sitting for one of Lawrence Redding's paintings (she likes to tease that she sits in the nude), and is more than once called upon for Nephew Amusing Parties. Griselda is pure delight and her witty banter with Leonard is very reminiscent of the Tommy and Tuppence relationship that we also love so much!

The YOA Treatment:
With this story we get our first real introduction to Miss Marple in her natural habitat, the village busybody with keen observational skills and a tendency to expect the worst of people. After long familiarity with Miss Marple as a beloved figure in fiction, it was interesting to be reminded that not everyone finds her nosiness charming, with many of her neighbors talking about her with a verbal eye roll. By the time the mystery is solved, many of her fellow villagers have developed a bit more respect for her skill and nuance, but it was good to be reminded that she's not just the sweet old lady we get an impression of from the tv adaptations. (We also meet Nephew Raymond who is basically an early 20th century hipster, all snobbery and boredom, kind of hilarious).

Agatha seemed to take particular pleasure in writing Miss Marple, and her readers found a connection with her new character as well. Vicarage is considered one of Agatha's best works and even her contemporary, Dorothy L. Sayers, wrote to #DameAgatha to give her approval: "Dear old Tabbies [speaking of Miss Marple and her old lady cronies] are the only possible right kind of female detective and Miss M is lovely...I think this is the best you have done - almost."

-A. & E.

#Readalong UPDATE: Peril at End House

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Hello, dear readers!

We wanted to share an update on our #Readalong for next week! Quick reminder - we will be reading Peril at End House, so if you want to participate and haven't bought it yet, might we suggest grabbing a copy soon!

Here are a few more details:

• We will be sharing a post on Monday, March 21st with some questions/thoughts/feelings about Peril at End House upon which we shall be musing as we read - our plan is to add comments to that post throughout the week and we would LOVE to hear from you as well!
• To spice things up even FURTHER, we are going to be having a #GIVEAWAY as part of the read along! Be on the lookout on social media over the weekend to see details on how to enter!
• We also can't wait to see all your #readalong Tweets and photos on social media - let's plan to use the hashtag #YOAreadalong so we can find you all!

-A. & E.

OY with the Short Stories Already: The Mysterious Mr. Quin | 1930

“In moments of great stress, the mind focuses itself upon some quite unimportant matter which is remembered long afterwards with the utmost fidelity, driven in, as it were, by the mental stress of the moment. It may be some quite irrelevant detail, like the pattern of a wallpaper, but it will never be forgotten.” 

― The Mysterious Mr. Quin

The Sum of It:

As indicated in this post's title, this book is a set of short stories that are all set in different locations and involve different characters, with the exception of two: Mr. Satterthwait, an older man with impeccable culinary appetites and an interest in nosing about in other people's drama, and Mr. Harley Quin, a mysterious stranger who turns up at opportune moments to help Mr. Satterthwait figure out who done it and strategically seats himself in such a way that a stained glass window makes his outfit look colorful and so that shadows fall across his face, making him look like he's wearing a mask. LIKE A HARLEQUIN, GET IT? His function is that something about him helps other people remember important but seemingly insignificant details that are essential to mystery solving. He does this by staring at people from dark corners and asking questions like "why?"

The YOA Treatment:

Ok. With every apology and all due respect to Dame Agatha, this book was REALLY tough for me to get through. A set of short stories, which is not my favorite medium to begin with so I could be impaired by my bias, these tales are each so sketchy plot-wise as to be at times truly confusing in the way they careen along to a marginal resolution. The two characters who link everything together, the eponymous Harley Quin and his friend Mr. Satterthwait, appear throughout, but Mr. Quin hardly ever says anything, and at the end turns out to be some kind of potentially spiritual being (Is he Death? Is he, like, a ghost? I honestly do not know). The additional characters in each story are totally forgettable, if they even take hold in the imagination long enough to care what resolution there is to the mystery. I suspect this is why Harley Quin hasn't taken hold as a character in literary history in the same way as Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple. 

In her autobiography, Agatha mentions that at points in her career, writing was more of a job than a joy. The way these plots and even the theme and character of Harley Quin feel unfinished and unresolved, I can't help but wonder if this set of stories was written during one of those moods. We've read that allegedly Agatha really liked Harley Quin as a character, so I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt til I try another of his books, but so far I am noooot feelin' it. SORRY AGATHA!!

-E.

A Quartet of Red Herrings: Murder in the Mews | 1937

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"Leave it to Hercule Poirot. The lies I invent are always most delicate and most convincing." 

-Hercule Poirot, Murder in the Mews, p. 116

The Sum of It:
We have returned, dear readers, to the short stories this week. Murder in the Mews is actually the name of the first short stories in a collection of four, all of which feature the most darling of the Belgians, Hercule Poirot. I shall give a petite summary for each below:

1.) Murder in the Mews: a young woman returns home one evening to find that her roommate has shot herself. However, there is not a single suicide note to be found, and a mysterious man was perhaps the last one to see her alive...smacks something of murder rather than suicide, does it not? Hercule Poirot teams up again buddy cop style with Chief Inspector Japp and it's the most the delicious fun: Japp is always telling Poirot to "stop jabbering to yourself" and Poirot educates Japp on fine French cuisine (Omelette aux Champignons?! #YASPLEASE). Oh and did I mention this whole thing started because the two of them were out celebrating Guy Fawkes' Day together? #BFFs

2.) The Incredible Theft: it's your typical weekend house party of an eclectic mix of government big wigs, various Lords and Ladies, and (#wildcard) a super hottie woman who is definitely maybe a spy. But of course some very important documents will be stolen! Hercule Poirot is summoned quite literally in the middle of the night to sniff out the culprit. This story contains one of my favorite Poirot moments to date as he attempts to recreate the cry of a maid which startles a suspect:

"Here I scream," said Poirot helpfully. He opened his mouth and emitted a shrill bleat. Lord Mayfield turned his head away to hide a smile and Mr. Carlile looked extremely uncomfortable.
"Allez! Forward! March!" cried Poirot. "It is your cue that I give you there."

3.) Dead Man's Mirror: Poirot receives a rather vague letter from a Sir Gervase Chevenix-Gore (the names, Agatha, the names!) inviting him to his huge estate to talk about a "family matter." Poirot shows up, but only to find Sir Gervase already dead. Oh, it's suicide? Of course it's not! #MURDER Poirot works through a vast cast of very eccentric characters to find the truth of who killed Sir Gervase, and, more importantly, what exactly happened to his mirror.

4.) Triangle at Rhodes: Poirot is on vacay by the sea, mostly hanging out with the other single randos, when in stumbles a love triangle of a beautiful aging actress Valentine, her jealous husband, and a handsome young potential boy toy. Poirot watches from the sidelines as the jealousy escalates from not only from Valentine's brooding husband, but boy toy Douglas's mousy young wife as well until Poirot can take no more and attempts to prevent the inevitable #MURDER. Alas, the lovely Valentine is poisoned in full view of everyone, but of course, Hercule has already worked out who has slipped a little something into her glass.

The YOA Treatment:
One thing #DameAgatha does very well is the red herring. Or, as Poirot likes to call it, the "kippered herring." While Agatha (like many mystery novelists) employs this tactic in many of her novels, it's a particularly prevalent mechanism in this set of short stories. It also seems like Agatha was doing some trial runs of some of her ideas in this book - most obviously Triangle at Rhodes. The setting and characters are nearly identical to her later full length novel, Evil Under the Sun (although much of the murder plot line is different.)

I do enjoy many of Agatha's short story collections, but this was not one of my top favorites. In a review of this collection from 1937 in The Times Literary Supplement, Simon Nowell-Smith also felt this was not Agatha's best work and astutely observed: "The fact is that the reader of today demands to participate in a detective story, and no living writer, unless occasionally Miss (Dorothy) Sayers, can find room in a short story for this extra detective." I completely agree with Mr. Nowell-Smith. These four stories were fun, but I didn't feel the same excitement of following along the trail of clues with Poirot and Japp as I do in so many of her novels that I love.

-A.

THIS IS NOT A DRILL: And Then There Were None is (almost) HERE!

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This is a Public Service Announcement to make sure that all of you Agatha Christie fans out there are aware that:

a) The BBC has made a brand, spanking new adaptation of what has been voted Dame Agatha readers's favorite book, And Then There Were None,
b) It's (apparently) INCREDIBLE,
c) (and) Those of us in America have only mere days left to wait until we can view it too! The first installment of And Then There Were None is airing THIS SUNDAY NIGHT (March 13) at 8/7c on Lifetime!

Oh, did you say you wanted to see a preview? NOT A PROBLEM! Please click here to see it in all its spooky glory!

We will definitely be watching - will you? Or have any of you lucky ducks already seen it? Let us know in the comments below or on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram all your And Then There Were None thoughts and feelings.

-A. & E.

Banter, Blunts, and a Ham Merchant: Partners in Crime | 1929

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"I want things to happen. Exciting things. Wouldn't you like to go chasing German spies again, Tommy? Think of the wild days of peril we went through once." - Tuppence Beresford, Partners in Crime, p. 2

The Sum of It:
This week we have dived head first back into the adventurous and terrifically witty world of Tommy and Tuppence Beresford with Partners in Crime. The one-time Adventurers for Hire duo from The Secret Adversary are settling into married life, and settling rather badly. After all their excitement in Secret Adversary they want more than just home life. Lucky for the Beresfords, high-up-spy-man Mr. Carter comes to the rescue with a proposition: would Tommy and Tuppence like to pose as a Mr. Blunt and Secretary at the International Detective Agency in order to find out more about some fishy "foreign business" involving blue letters from a Russian ham merchant who just wants to find his refugee wife?? Um, #YASPLEASE

What follows is a truly jolly collection of short stories with many #DameAgatha classics: stabbings at costume parties, poisoned chocolates, a lady hiding from her fiance' while undergoing "slimming treatments" #dubiousscience, disappearing ladies, and that's just the start! We will be honest: the mysteries in Partners in Crime aren't necessarily mind blowing, but the dialogue is just so scintillating, it's a pure delight to read. Take this passage from chapter 1:

"Don't you ever have a wild secret yearning for romance - adventure - life?"
"What have you been reading, Tuppence?" asked Tommy.
"Think how exciting it would be," went on Tuppence, "if we heard a wild rapping at the door and went to open it and in staggered a dead man."
"If he was dead he couldn't stagger," said Tommy critically.
"You know what I mean," said Tuppence. "They always stagger in just before they die and fall at your feet just gasping out a few enigmatic words. 'The Spotted Leopard' or something like that."

Now tell us you don't want to read a whole book of that delightful repartee...

The YOA Treatment:
One of the particularly fun things about Partners in Crime is Agatha's not so subtle nods to the detective classics sprinkled throughout the cases. Tommy and Tuppence have great bookshelves of classic detective novels in their office and they often reference them in their exploits, and decide to try solving crimes in the style of many of their favorites (Tommy even pretends to be blind at one point while imitating Thornley Colton, the blind Problemist. Fortunately Agatha and Tommy avoid insensitivity by having him pledge to donate loads of money to a charity for the blind). One of Audrey's favorite instances is Tommy's attempts at the eccentricities of Sherlock Holmes:

"He picked up a violin which lay on the table, and drew the bow once or twice across the strings. Tuppence ground her teethe and even the explorer blenched...As the visitor left the office, Tuppence grabbed the violin and putting it in the cupboard turned the key in the lock. 'If you must be Sherlock Holmes,' she observed, 'I'll get you a nice little syringe and a bottle labeled Cocaine, but for God's sake leave that violin alone."

Sherlock Holmes isn't the only detective Agatha paid homage to - in fact she even left a few hints at Hercule Poirot! There are many instances of Tuppence or Tommy encouraging the other to "use your little grey cells, mon ami" #tresadorbs. Ol' Tommy at one point dresses up as a parson and imitates the well known clerical sleuth Father Brown.

Agatha owes the roots of her own mysteries to the work of her predecessors, and tells in her autobiography about a conversation with her sister Madge, who had introduced her to some of her favorite detective story authors, including Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Paul Beck, and Gaston Le Roux. She told Madge after reading a Paul Beck book called The Mystery of the Yellow Room that she would like to try her hand at writing a detective story. Madge basically said "yeah right good luck" but from that moment, Agatha says she was "fired by determination" that she would write a detective story. And how!

- A. & E.

Where in the World are YOU Reading? | World Book Day!

Buenos dias, everyone! We learned from our beloved leaders at the Agatha Christie Trust that today is World Book Day! What a great day. They asked everyone where they are reading an Agatha Christie story this week, which we thought was a great question!

We'd love to know where the folks who visit our page are reading, whether you're working on an Agatha story this week or another great read. Let us know in the comments, or on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram! We love reading with you.

- E.

The Return of Bundle Brent: The Seven Dials Mystery | 1929

"I never faint," said Bundle. "But you might as well get me a cocktail. I shall certainly need it. Then lock the door of the room again -- don't forget -- and take all the door keys back to their proper doors. And, Alfred -- don't be too much of a rabbit. Remember, if anything goes wrong, I'll see you through." - The Seven Dials Mystery, p. 109

The Sum of It All

The Seven Dials Mystery happily returns us to Chimneys, the great estate first visited in The Secret of Chimneys. Though we meet some new folks in this one, we also happily reunite with some of our pals from the last trip, including the feisty Bundle Brent, her father Lord Caterham, anxious and ambitious politician George Lomax (aka Codders because of his eyes, which are googly like a cod fish), and his Labrador-like assistant Bill Eversleigh. 

Our story opens on a group of young peeps gathered for a country weekend at Chimneys, hosted by some wealthy older people who are renting the estate while Lord Caterham and Bundle are traveling on the Continent. Apparently back in the day it was totally normal for an old couple to invite a group of six young adults out to hang around in the country for a few days. One of the girls was named Socks (ohh British people). One of the fellas, a Gerry Wade, finds himself victim of a violent crime (well, other people find him, to be clear) the very same morning the rest of the group was hoping to awaken him with a practical joke involving eight alarm clocks. Gerry's friends, including Bundle, start wondering what's going on, and quickly find themselves in the mix with what appears to be a highly mysterious and international gang of mystery that wears masks that look like clock faces at their meetings, each of them referred to by the others only by their assigned hour of the day. 

It is hard to summarize these books in such a way as to lead readers down the road without giving away the store! Agatha doesn't reveal the real bad guy in this one until the very, very end, and I was fairly certain it was a completely different person until that very page. Get it, Agatha! By the time she wrote this one, she was really hitting her stride, mystery-wise.

The YOA Treatment

Despite people (men) constantly fussing that she shouldn't be involved with solving the mysteries at hand on account of DANGER, Bundle takes it upon herself to get to the bottom of things. When trying to track the baddie, she puts on her riding pants and climbs down a trellis (after being told to stay safely ensconced in her room while the  men handle things). When she can't figure out what the mysterious Seven Dials entails, she insists on hiding in their lair to figure it out straight from the source (despite a fella telling her she musn't risk it; she just asks for a gimlet [both cocktail and tool varieties]. When she wants to know what's going on, she goes straight to Scotland Yard and demands answers (and won't take no as a valid one). And all the while she manages to do it with witty reparte' and gets a couple fellas to fall in love with her while she's at it (immediately following proposal acceptance, Bundle tells her fiance: "Unless you pull yourself together and become sensible, I shall very likely change my mind." No time for nonsense, they had some bad guys to catch.) 

As always, I totally enjoyed the sparkling dialogue, for which Agatha has a real gift. But I also enjoyed meeting yet another of the "girl adventuress" characters that Agatha also had a gift for creating. From her autobiography, we learned that as a child, Agatha regularly invented stories and characters with distinct personalities to pass the time and occupy her imagination. She kept those pals with her for years, and I think once she grew up the clever girls she imagined as a kid made their way into her stories in the form of leading ladies like the delightful Bundle Brent. And aren't we lucky! 

- E.