Introduction
My second favourite Agatha Christie ever, second only to Sleeping Murder. How she managed to think up so many excellent plots is beyond me. There is no-one to even touch the number of quality books that she had published. Anyone who hasn't read one, please do - there's something ... Read review
The Leonides were one big happy family living in a sprawling, ramshackle mansion. That was ... more
until the head of the household, Aristide, was murdered with a fatal barbiturate injection. Suspicion naturally falls on the old man's young widow, 50 years his junior.
Advantages: Keeps you intrigued until the end. Surprising ending, quite takes your breath away. Disadvantages: Just that the ending is so good, you can't forget it, so re-reading means it has to be done knowing the ending.
Introduction
My second favourite Agatha Christie ever, second only to Sleeping Murder. How she managed to think up so many excellent plots is beyond me. There is no-one to even touch the number of quality books that she had published. Anyone who hasn't read one, please do - there's something to charm everyone.
The plot
Charles Hayward returns from his Foreign Office post abroad, with the aim of asking his girlfriend, ... ...on arrival that her grandfather, Aristide Leonides, has died and that it was not an accident. His father being the Assistant Commissioner, means that Charles has special access to information and he accepts Sophia's invitation to go and stay with the Leonides family to help solve the murder. If the murderer is the "right" person, ie Aristide's young widow, Brenda, then all will be well and Sophia can happily marry Charles. If it turns out ... more
Introduction My second favourite Agatha Christie ever, second only to Sleeping Murder. How she managed to think up so many excellent plots is beyond me. There is no-one to even touch the number of quality books that she had published. Anyone who hasn't read one, please do - there's something to charm everyone.
The plot Charles Hayward returns from his Foreign Office post abroad, with the aim of asking his girlfriend, Sophia Leonides, to marry him. He is shocked to find on arrival that her grandfather, Aristide Leonides, has died and that it was not an accident. His father being the Assistant Commissioner, means that Charles has special access to information and he accepts Sophia's invitation to go and stay with the Leonides family to help solve the murder. If the murderer is the "right" person, ie Aristide's young widow, Brenda, then all will be well and Sophia can happily marry Charles. If it turns out to be one of the other members of the family, including Sophia's mother, father, uncle, aunt, great-aunt and brother and sister, then the issue of marriage may be more complicated.
There are many twists and turns and another murder before the truth is finally discovered. The plot is skilful at leading you up the garden path to the extent that you don't even suspect the real culprit. I'm quite good at guessing the murderer before the end - but failed miserably with this one! The ending will not disappoint.
Characters Beautifully portrayed, in a way that only Agatha Christie and a handful of other authors can. She gives away just the right amount of information on each character to make you suspect/not suspect them as you read through. Descriptions of Sophia's little sister, Josephine, and her weird habit of spying on people are particularly strong.
Conclusion Fabulous book. Sucks you in from the beginning and doesn't let you go until the end. There is an eerie feeling of creepiness throughout the book - descriptions of the house help provide this. The ending, my favourite bugbear with much crime fiction, is stunning, unexpected and totally took me by surprise. It's a good job the book is not too long, otherwise I would have exploded before the end (or been forced to read the last couple of pages…). That is one of the main differences with Agatha Christie and other writers - she knew just how long to make a book without losing the reader's interest. So many authors these days seem to think they need to make their books as long as possible - when actually, half the length would have been much better.
Advantages: The murderer is clearly drawn and then so cleverly veiled the surprise at the end is stunning. Disadvantages: None - you want to read it again to see how you missed the obvious.
I thought I knew what to expect from this book as I am a strong Christie fan, but I was totally wrong. Her plots are always intricate but she always plays fair and gives you all the points necessary for you to accurately work out the murderer. I duly read and become thoroughly engaged and literally could not put it down - and wasn't even close to the actual murderer.
The Characters
Without giving away any of the plot, the story revolves around ... ...successful Grandfather, Aristide. He has two surviving very different sons who do not have any of his flair for business and who are both married to very different women. Roger and Clemency lead an austere life within their apartment in the Leonides house, while Philip and Magda have a flambouyant loud apartment for them and their three children. Magda is a successful actress who loves to be the dramatic centre of attention.
Aristide loves his family ...
workangel 21.03.2006
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Crooked House - Agatha Christie
Advantages: - Thrilling, good treatment to details of every character. Disadvantages: -Might appear unbelievable at a few instances
...resides in a crooked house brings uneasiness to the reader about some crookedness which might have crept in the personality of the resident. The best part about the book is, the murderer and the murdered, none seem to be guilty and none seem to be innocent. Overall, an enjoyable read. ...
welwisher 20.10.2009
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Crooked House - Agatha Christie
Advantages: Fascinating insight into human nature Disadvantages: Not Poirot/Miss Marple, if that matters to you
Agatha Christie once described this book as "the best loved of all my children", and I can see why.
It's a lot more skilfully crafted than much of her work, with some finely drawn characters.
The narrator is drawn into events by falling in love with a girl who wants the mystery of her grandfather's death solved before she will marry him. We are then taken to the world of the family, who live in a "crooked house", under the rule of her deceased ... ...father, a man who is emotionally repressed, her brother, good looking but disabled, her little sister, ugly but clever, her aunt, a gifted scientist, her uncle, engaging but disorganised, her great aunt, who holds the family together, her grandfather's much younger ex wife...etc. One of them has murdered her grandfather: the head of the family, but who?
The story is skilfully played out. The narrator's father is a police officer, and he keeps an ...
joycarole 27.09.2004
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Crooked House - Agatha Christie
Product Information for "Crooked House - Agatha Christie" »
Product details
Author
Agatha Christie
Title
Crooked House
Genre
Crime
Type
Fiction
ISBN
0002311097; 0006751296; 0007136862; 0330288237
Manufacturer's product description
Volume 48 in the Agatha Christie Collection (1949) Limited edition of 1000 copies worldwide The Leonides were one big happy family living in a sprawling, ramshackle mansion. That was until the head of the household, Aristide, was murdered with a fatal barbiturate injection. Suspicion naturally falls on the old man's young widow, fifty years his junior. But the murderer has reckoned without the tenacity of Charles Hayward, fiance of the late millionare's granddaughter...
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