DameAgathaChristie

arlenefinnigan

Agatha Christie's Poirot | Agatha Christie

11 likes

BarbaraJean

The Burden | writing as Mary Westmacott, Agatha Christie

pick

I‘m finally catching up my last few reviews from February. This was the last book I read for the #MaryWestmacottBuddyRead, and while it was worthwhile, I think it was the weakest of the bunch. The Westmacott novels have all been so rich in their character development and examination of human nature, but here, the plot she chose to explore these particular characters didn‘t seem to serve her purposes well. (Cont‘d) ⬇️

CSeydel

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) Her themes were a bit muddled—and the conclusion even more so. Her insight into human nature was masterful as always, but the plot elements just didn‘t work together coherently for me. This landed as a low “pick” for me. Thank you to @CSeydel and the #westmakittens for this fantastic buddy read! I thoroughly enjoyed reading the Westmacott novels along with the #LMWBR group. 2w

Ruthiella My least favorite would be Unfinished Portrait, but this one would be a close second. 2w

34 likes2 comments

BookNAround

Murder at Mallowan Hall | Colleen Cambridge

I‘ve been halfway to a reading slump for weeks now so I decided I‘d pick something uncomplicated to read and hope it jogs me out of it.

44 likes

BarbaraJean

A Daughter's a Daughter | Mary Westmacott

pick

Another belated review from January!

I have been blown away by the depth of psychological insight in each of the Mary Westmacott novels. This was excellent as well, but also at times excruciating to read—mainly because of that depth of insight. Christie gives such a clear view of each character, and the motivations behind their actions, while simultaneously showing their inability or refusal to see others with the clarity needed. ⬇️

BarbaraJean For me, this book echoed some the avoidance and lack of self-awareness we see with Joan in Absent in the Spring, but with much higher relational consequences here. The ending felt rushed, but still—yet another high pick for another Westmacott novel!
#LMWBR #MaryWestmacottBuddyRead @CSeydel
And, this was my 1952 pick for #192025. @librarybelle (edited) 1mo

Librarybelle This one may be my favorite of the ones we read, though there are a couple that I didn‘t get to read yet. It was so good! 1mo

BarbaraJean @Librarybelle I think Absent in the Spring might be my favorite of the Westmacott novels—but honestly, they‘ve all been so good. The Burden I think was the weakest. 1mo

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Librarybelle

The Burden | Agatha Christie

pick

Can love be a burden? Westmacott/Christie writes a psychological study of family and how far one can go to protect a loved one. There are parts, especially at the end, that did not quite seem to fit with the rest of the narrative. However, it‘s Christie, and so therefore there‘s an in-depth study of human nature. Not as strong as others of her Westmacott books, but still a pick.

Thanks for hosting #LMWBR , @CSeydel !

#192025 #1956

80 likes

kezzlou85

A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie | Kathryn Harkup

pick

This was a fascinating look at the poisons, featured in many of her novels. It's quite detailed so was a bit heavy at times but I loved all the references. It's careful not to issue too many spoilers but I've read most so it didn't worry me, it just sparked a need to re-read the books. 4*

32 likes

KathyWheeler

Murder at Mallowan Hall | Colleen Cambridge

so-so

This was just okay. Phyllida Bright works for Agatha Christie and is also her friend. She loves Poirot, and when a murder happens at Mallowan Hall, she takes it upon herself to try to solve it Poirot style. Unfortunately, this book is pretty boring. There‘s far too much detail about the everyday tasks and clothing of the staff. Bright‘s Poirot-like villain and motive reveal speech at the end is far too long, pretentious, and boring.

26 likes

KathyWheeler

Murder at Mallowan Hall | Colleen Cambridge

The tagged book is really my nighttime book, but I hadn‘t yet picked a new walking book, so I listened to it on my #audiowalk today. I started reading North Woods while we were at the beach; its structure is really interesting. Agent to the Stars is our road trip book — it‘s about an agent who discovers his new job is to introduce a friendly, but ugly and stinky, alien race to humans. We are loving it.

23 likes

CSeydel

The Burden | writing as Mary Westmacott, Agatha Christie

#westmakittens #LMWBR #MaryWestmacottBuddyRead

@ruthiella @KathyWheeler @quietjenn @Librarybelle @kspenmoll @BarbaraJean @peanutnine @Roary47 @willaful @batsy @rubyslippersreads

CSeydel Here we go again with the “interfering always backfires.” I think she‘s right, but I also think it can be taken too far. 2mo

CSeydel I‘m also interested in what you all thought of the discussion between Llewellyn and Wilding about human nature. Wilding says, “To believe the best of someone is to call the best into being. People respond to one‘s belief in them.” Llewellyn disagrees: “To keep up being what someone expect you to be is to live under a great strain. Too great a strain leads eventually to collapse.” Which do you believe? Can they both be right? (edited) 2mo

Ruthiella Sure, they can both be right. I think everyone needs both, but in different doses and o 100% of one or the other would be harmful. The rehashing of previous themes wearied me a bit in this one, but maybe because we‘ve read them all back to back now. 2mo

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BarbaraJean I appreciate what Christie was trying to do here, but I don't think it was executed well. Her insight into human nature is masterful, but the plot elements just didn't work together coherently for me. I agree with the “interfering always backfires,“ to a point, but wasn't the opposite the problem in A Daughter's a Daughter? I don't think it's a universal rule, and I think Christie knows it. She had a hard time communicating that complexity here. 2mo

BarbaraJean @CSeydel @Ruthiella Yes, I do think Llewellyn and Wilding can both be right about this. It depends a whole lot on who the person is who's being “believed in.“ Some people will rise to the best that is believed of them, others will collapse under the expectations, and still others will resent and therefore want to go against those expectations. I agree about the repetition of themes--but it's also clear this was the first of these novels she wrote! 2mo

quietjenn I agree with what others have said - both can be true to an extent and the balance is the key here, as it is with so many things. Very often, interfering gets you nowhere, but Not Interfering is sometimes easier said than done. I wouldn't say that this book resonated with me particularly. It's probably one of my least favorites and I'm glad it was short. 😅 And I really liked Baldock. 2mo

CSeydel @BarbaraJean @quietjenn @ruthiella Great observations! 2mo

Librarybelle Yes, I think both can be right about their human nature observations. And, I agree that this one seems to be the weakest of her non-mystery novels. I‘ve not read all of them as of yet - I plan to read those I missed this year! - but this one seemed not as polished, if that makes sense. @BarbaraJean is right that Christie had a hard time communicating the complexity of interference. @CSeydel @Ruthiella @quietjenn 2mo

36 likes8 comments

CSeydel

The Burden | writing as Mary Westmacott, Agatha Christie

#westmakittens #LMWBR #MaryWestmacottBuddyRead

@ruthiella @KathyWheeler @quietjenn @Librarybelle @kspenmoll @BarbaraJean @peanutnine @Roary47 @willaful @batsy @rubyslippersreads

CSeydel Llewellyn and his visions were so strange to me. I‘m still ruminating on what he represents. I thought the religious overtones of Shirley “paying the price” for Laura‘s sin was discomfiting, but perhaps that was the intention. 2mo

CSeydel In this one she weaves in a religious dimension, using the story of Job to drive home the point that God has God‘s plan and we are really not capable of understanding God‘s priorities and purposes, only human ones. I think her point here is that when we “try to help” we inevitably fail because we only see from our perspective, not that of the recipient of the help. What do you think? 2mo

Ruthiella I think it was in interesting decision to include such a mystical character. I don‘t agree with his interpretation of Laura‘s actions or their results, personally. The story of Job makes me think more of Greek gods, toying with humans for their own amusement. 2mo

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BarbaraJean Other than providing a deus ex machina for Laura at the end of the book, and giving us an outside perspective of Shirley and Richard, I didn't think Llewellyn added much to the novel. I felt that last third of the book would have been better from Shirley or even Richard's perspective. I was troubled by the implications of the religious aspect: both Shirley “paying the price“ for Laura's sin, or our helplessness to understand higher purposes. 2mo

BarbaraJean I think the idea that help/interference is misguided, because we cannot understand another's perspective, isn't well-supported by the narrative. Mainly because I don't think the problem was Laura “helping,“ it was Henry being an ass, and with Richard, it was Shirley not understanding herself or what she needed. Maybe the problem was the plot Christie chose to explore these ideas! Overall, I thought the message was muddled. 2mo

quietjenn It was ... odd? I honestly found the book, overall, a bit disjointed and I definitely was not expecting a televangelist who has had visions of Laura his entire life swooping in to show her what love is! 2mo

CSeydel @BarbaraJean I was thinking of Laura killing Henry as her trying to help Shirley be happy, but it backfired. The premise seemed to me to be that Shirley would have been better off continuing to be unhappy caring for Henry rather than the soft, comfortable life she had with Wilding. It was definitely a hard message to accept. 2mo

CSeydel @quietjenn Definitely threw me for a loop as well. Not sure if it was just a device to allow a 3rd-party, objective view of Shirley‘s later life, but the visions went over my head - I didn‘t understand why that was necessary 2mo

CSeydel @BarbaraJean I agree, the religious angle in this one didn‘t sit well with me either 2mo

Librarybelle I was a bit confused as to Llewellyn‘s purpose. It seems to come out of nowhere, unless you consider Laura‘s prayers at the beginning of the novel. I‘m puzzled why Christie chose a religious discussion - it‘s a little out of character for her novels, at least to me. @CSeydel @Ruthiella @BarbaraJean @quietjenn 2mo

Ruthiella @Librarybelle It seemed out of character to me too. In her mystery novels, the few times spiritualism or the mystical comes up, it is always debunked. 2mo

Librarybelle @Ruthiella Yes! She gives many pages to the religious discussion in this one rather than her mysteries, except maybe Hallowe‘en Party (though I‘ve not read that one yet. I‘ve only seen the new Poirot movie very loosely based on it). 2mo

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