A Pocketful of Rye

First Published: 1953
Setting: Baydon Heath, Surrey

Starring: Miss Marple, Rex, Adele, Elaine, Jennifer, Percival, Pat, and Lance Fortescue, Inspector Neele

Important Other People: Mary Dove, Vivian Dubois, the Crumps, Gladys Martin

The main concern I have is that this family allows a strange old woman into their home to investigate the crimes that have occurred. Now really, do we think that's a good idea? We've already had plenty of examples of crazy old ladies from other stories by Agatha, so we know that they did indeed exist during the 1950s. Good thing it was Miss Marple and not that crazy old lady Tommy and Tuppence know. It's very odd that Inspector Neele would allow Miss Marple to take such a large hand in the investigation. 

I didn't know General Paralysis of the Insane was a real thing, but when I looked it up, Wikipedia informed me that it is caused by syphilis. Nowhere in the book did I find mention that Rex had syphilis, but this was a classy family. 

Similar to Hercule Poirot's Christmas: The mills of God grind slowly, but they grind exceedingly small. Poor Rex. Poor Simeon. Maybe that's why you shouldn't let wealth go to your head. People get jealous, and then they kill you.

Interesting facts: Sir Henry is mentioned (my favorite). One of several books modeled after a nursery rhyme. 

Favorite? I do like this one quite a lot. Good characters, good twists. I feel bad for some of them, though. 

Death by: taxine, cyanide, strangulation

Body Count: 3; Cumulative: 124

The Count: Poirot-24, Miss. Marple-6, Tommy and Tuppence-2, Hastings-7, Japp-7, Colonel Race-4, Superintendent Battle-5, George-4, Goby-2, No Recurring Character- 6, Mrs. Oliver-2, Albert- 2, Superintendent Spence-1

Agatha's Life Lessons: Things you remember come in useful sometimes. "Life is cruel, I'm afraid."~Miss Marple. The mills of God grind slowly. You can't just stick labels on people. They're all very unpleasant people. If you've had a happy childhood, nobody can take that away from you. You can't change people. Human nature is much the same everywhere. People aren't always what they think themselves to be. Always think the worst. Children have got a lot of sense. You can't always help loving a sinner. One needs a great deal of courage to get through life. The wicked should not go unpunished. 

Up Next: Destination Unknown

Crooked House

First Published: 1949
Setting: Swinly Dean

Starring: Charles Hayward, Sophia Leonides, Josephine, Inspector Taverner

Important Other People: Roger, Clemency, Philip, Magda, Edith de Haviland, Brenda Leonides, Laurence Brown, Eustace, Nannie

Much like Taken at the Flood, Crooked House begins with World War II and introduces the drama within the backdrop of the post-war world. The war becomes the reason that Charles and Sophia meet and fall in love, a connection which leads to the events at the Leonides house.  Once again, we get an amateur involving themselves with a police case which is really none of their concern (The Moving Finger, anyone?), but in this instance, if Charles hadn't tried so hard to figure out what was going on, I don't think the case would have been solved. Either that, or the wrong people would have been arrested. 


One of the most interesting things about this book is, like There is a Tide, there is a powerful central male patriarch that the rest of the family revolves around, but that we never get to see. Whereas Gordon Cloade tried to help his family members by encouraging their more obscure interests, thus leaving them floundering when he died, Aristide Leonides provided for his family while he was alive, and safeguarded their future when he died by choosing a single heir to look after the family. I think Agatha may have wanted a do over with the execution of the male patriarch, which is why we get two such similar characters in back-to-back books. Aristide is better executed than Gordon, and we also feel his presence more throughout the book than we did with Gordon. We can more fully understand the dynamic personality he had because it lives on in the house.


Josephine knows everything, and she's always right. She reminds me of Joyce in Hallowe'en Party. They both ended up dead.

Interesting facts: There's an Arsenic and Old Lace shout out! Also, Sherlock Holmes is mentioned, which may be the only time he is mentioned in any of Agatha's novels. As my pal says, the book was "memorable because of the effort by the publisher to change the ending. The editors were unhappy with her choice of murderer, but Christie, as was her policy, refused to budge...The ending for The Crooked House remained unchanged, and the novel continues to shock new readers, much like The Murder of Roger Ackroyd." 

Favorite?  Of Agatha, yes. This was one of her top two favorites. As she says, "Of my detective books, I think the two that satisfy me best are Crooked House and Ordeal by Innocence." Personally, I can't say it's my favorite, but I did write a book report on it once, so I guess I like it enough.

Death by: Eserine (poison), digitalin (poison), driving off a cliff

Body Count: 4; Cumulative: 108

The Count: Poirot-22, Miss. Marple-3, Tommy and Tuppence-2, Hastings-7, Japp-7, Colonel Race-4, Superintendent Battle-5, George-2, Goby-1, No Recurring Character- 5, Mrs. Oliver-1, Albert- 2

Agatha's Life Lessons: There's always a doubt about everything. It's a great mistake ever to say anything when you needn't. Men always think that a caveman must be the only type of person attractive to the opposite sex. If you want to find things out, you have to listen at doors. No show runs itself. Only the people you love can really make life unendurable for you. Love and happiness are two separate things. Men are not born equal. Men must look after themselves. 

Up Next: A Murder is Announced

Taken at the Flood (There is a Tide)

First Published: 1948
Setting: Warmsley Vale, London

Starring: Hercule Poirot, Lynn Marchmont, David Hunter, Rowley Cloade, Enoch Arden

Important Other People: Rosaleen Cloade, Jeremy and Frances Cloade, Lionel and Katherine Cloade, Adela Marchmont

I have to start by saying that even though I love this book, I don't love a lot of the characters. First of all, David. I know we're supposed to hate David, and I do, but that's not what bothers me about him. We keep getting this idea from Agatha about all those men who are only suited for wartime and can't seem to fit back into British society afterwards. David falls into that category, which is one reason why I don't like him. If you can't follow peacetime rules and societal norms, go back into the army. Or go somewhere else. Don't just sponge off of other people. This is really the crux of my issue with David: he keeps saying that the Cloades aren't entitled to Gordon's money, but it's okay for him to spend the money that technically belongs to his sister (I know this isn't totally accurate, but I don't want to give away any important plot twists). First of all, I think the Cloades ARE entitled to Gordon's money. He told them to rely on him, and so they did. It's not like they didn't work or do anything for themselves. There's lots of characters in lots of her other books that really don't do anything because they or their relative has a lot of money. The Cloades all work, at least to some degree. But why does David think the Cloades can't sponge, but he can? That is my least favorite thing about him, and it makes me really mad every time I read this book. He doesn't work! At all! He gets all of his money from Rosaleen. The Cloades all do work. The double standard he yells about to Lynn all the time makes me angry. Someone, please tell me why he thinks it is okay for him to use her, but it wasn't okay for the Cloades to use Gordon. I really don't understand it at all.


Lionel has no backbone, Adela is weak, and Jeremy just messed everything up for him and Frances. Frances is awesome, though. I wish more of her characteristics were in Lynn, so that Lynn would be a little bit more awesome. 


Let's talk about Lynn. I like a strong female lead (obviously, since Sad Cypress is my favorite). I admire Lynn for her strength and her loyalty, but both of those qualities disappear throughout the book! She throws them by the wayside (and pretty much turns her back on her family) when she starts getting closer with David. She was a WREN, for goodness' sake, but with David, she becomes a totally different person. Secret assignations, cheating on her fiancee, sneaky phone calls. I don't like it. Lynn, you know better, and you know he's a scoundrel. She loses her head and her sense of self, and I don't like it. 


Don't read this if you haven't read the book! But I do have to complain about something really quickly. Rowley tries to strangle Lynn. For real. As in, to kill her. Why exactly does she go back to him? David is a rotter, and she shouldn't be with him (especially since he's going to prison or to get hanged), but Rowley tried to KILL her. At the end, she says that she wants danger in her life, and that she will always be a little bit afraid of him, so that will be the danger in her life. Are you kidding??? Go skydiving, eat raw eggs, or run off to Africa if you want danger. Don't stay with him, Lynn! That ending really makes me mad. And before that, I had really liked Rowley! Except that he tried to make someone commit perjury. Maybe I don't like Rowley all that much.


I've come to a conclusion. I don't really like any of these characters (except Frances and Hercule). They all have some good characteristics, but they all pull these smarmy moves that I really don't like. So maybe I like this book because it's about unpleasant people whose lives are worse than mine? Maybe not. I don't think I'm going to like this book as much next time I read it, and that makes me really sad.

Interesting facts: The title is taken from a line in Julius Caesar by Shakespeare. Japp is mentioned. Matthew Bunson tells us, "...Christie took the unusual step of using World War II as the backdrop for Taken at the Flood. At the start of the novel, London is suffering through the Blitz."

Favorite? YES. I love Frances. I love the plot, and the twists. I love Hercule in this book. 

Death by: Head bashed in (cosh), shooting, morphia

Body Count: 3; Cumulative: 104

The Count: Poirot-22, Miss. Marple-3, Tommy and Tuppence-2, Hastings-7, Japp-7, Colonel Race-4, Superintendent Battle-5, George-2, Goby-1, No Recurring Character- 4, Mrs. Oliver-1, Albert- 2

Agatha's Life Lessons: There is a tide in the affairs of men, which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune. One should never struggle against the inevitable. Ill-will is the aftermath of war. Some people thrive only in war- they are dangerous otherwise. What a person really is, is only apparent when the test comes. What happens to the ivy when the oak round which it clings is struck down? Nobody is cut off from the mercy of God. The world is becoming a difficult place to live in, except for the strong. The tragedy of life is that people do not change. Where you are not, there you will want to be. One can't blame anyone else for the things one decides to do with one's eyes open. 

Up Next: Crooked House

One, Two, Buckle My Shoe (The Patriotic Murders)

First Published: 1940

Setting: London, Exsham

Starring: Hercule Poirot, Inspector Japp

Important Other People: Mabelle Sainsbury Seale, Alistair Blunt, Morley, Amberiotis

To me, this is another example of a murderer asking for help from Hercule Poirot. Seriously, what is wrong with these people?? I don't want to give anything away, but time and again people think they can outsmart Poirot, and time and again he proves them wrong. The plot of this book also pretends to be about so much more than it actually is. Once again, Poirot has to clear away the clutter to get to the heart of the issue- someone murdering someone else. No matter how else it is dressed up to be, it still is a murder committed by an evil person.

The underlying theme of the importance of politics and globalization in this book are a direct result of the events that were happening at the time. Even though there is thought that the book was written before the fall of 1939 (see below), the world was going through a tumultuous time, both politically and socially. I think Agatha was responding to that with the tone of the book, even though there are no real references to the war or what was about to happen in Europe.

Interesting facts: Although this novel was published during World War II, there are very few references to the war itself. Matthew Bunson, who wrote The Complete Christie, says that this puts the time period of the novel before the Nazis invaded Poland in 1939.

Favorite? Not at all. Dull and unnecessarily confusing.

Death by: shot, anesthetic, medinal

Body Count: 3; Cumulative: 79

The Count: Poirot-19, Miss. Marple-1, Tommy and Tuppence-1, Hastings-7, Japp-7, Colonel Race-3, Superintendent Battle-4, George-1, Goby-1, No Recurring Character- 3, Mrs. Oliver-1

Agatha's Life Lessons: Relations don't always know everything. In every profession and walk of life there is someone who is vulnerable to temptation. If a man feels a woman expects a lot of him, he tries to live up to her ideal of him. Don't trust the respectable people. You can't beat plain common sense. The gap between theory and practice is a wide one. One must not yield too soon- there is pleasure in the chase. Manners help you along in life. One doesn't like things one cannot explain (especially Hercule Poirot!)

Up Next: Evil Under the Sun

Death in the Air (Death in the Clouds)

First Published: 1935

Setting: London, Paris

Starring: Hercule Poirot, Japp, Jane Grey

Important Other People: Fouriner, Norman Gale, Mr. Clancy, the Duponts

The idea of the innocent being affected by a murder as well as the guilty is one which Christie explores in many other novels. Here, we see the characters go back to their lives after the murder, and we see what they experience as people associate them with the crime until the murderer is unmasked. That is especially interesting given that the murderer suffers a lot in their professional life after the murder, so one would wonder why they chose to commit it in such a public manner...but oh well.

Mr. Clancy is introduced as an absent-minded writer, a parody on Agatha herself, as well as a precursor to Mrs. Oliver. I like Mr. Clancy because I feel like Agatha just wrote about herself, and the character did not change throughout subsequent novels in the way that Mrs. Oliver did.

This is one of the first novels that introduces science as one of Agatha's passions. She has two archaeologists, and ends with them going off on an expedition, which is something Agatha herself was passionate about. Also, it leads us to Murder in Mesopotamia, coming up in a few...

Interesting facts: Ariadne Oliver (who has not yet appeared as Agatha's alter ego) in a later novel makes reference to a book she wrote once where she got the length of a blowpipe wrong, and many fans wrote to her to inform her of it. This one small detail, around which so much of the novel revolves, is actually kind of a big deal to get incorrect.

Favorite? I like it in that it happened in an enclosed space, and thus the suspect list is significantly shortened, causing Poirot to really have to use his little grey cells to find the answer (similar to Murder on the Orient Express, Cards on the Table, Death on the Nile, Murder on the Blue Train). I also like that the jury at the inquest finds Poirot guilty of murder...

Death by: Boomslang (rare poison), prussic acid (cyanide)

Body Count: 2; Cumulative: 37

The Count: Poirot-10, Miss. Marple-1, Tommy and Tuppence-1, Hastings-5, Japp-5, Colonel Race-1, Superintendent Battle-2, George-1, Goby-1, No Recurring Character- 2

Agatha's Life Lessons: Murder affects the innocent too. Knowledge is security, knowledge is power. Everyone keeps something back. It's no good to regret what is already done. An answer depends on the question that is asked. Girls have to be able to fend for themselves. Meekness doesn't pay. If there's one fellow after a woman, there's sure to be another as well. To men, that women grow old is the great tragedy of life. Nothing is too sensational. Even a nine-day's wonder doesn't last longer than 9 days. Sensationalism dies quickly, fear is long-lived. In one approaches a problem with order and method, there should be no difficulty in solving it. Everyone likes talking about themselves. When everything else fails, music remains. Science is the greatest romance there is. One needs much courage to live. Always start at the beginning.

Up Next: The ABC Murders

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd- Day 7

First Published: 1926

Setting: King's Abbot, England

Starring: Hercule Poirot, Dr. James Sheppard

Important Other People: Caroline Sheppard, Inspector Raglan, Ralph Paton, various Ackroyds

First and foremost, this book totally changed the way detective stories are written and reinforced the idea that we should always suspect everybody. It is completely unnecessary for me to say that Agatha was ahead of her time and is an absolute genius, but then again, I just said that. And now we all know it's true.

Weakness of character is the major theme throughout the book. We see weakness as a motive for the actions of many people- the one who stole the money, the marriages and engagements that abound, and of course, the blackmail and murder that occur. Weakness tends to be the downfall of most of the people in King's Abbot, and it takes the genius of Poirot to unravel the various ways this trait shows in different individuals throughout this story. The one person whose weakness is never explicitly mentioned in Caroline's. Her particular weakness lies in her fierce loyalty and compassion for her brother. Because of this weakness where he is concerned, she is often blinded to some of his actions and decisions. Thus, she never confronts him about some of the curious points in the narrative that he glosses over or chooses not to focus on. He says at the end of the book that he feared her the entire time and that it is curious she did not guess what actually happened. In fact, it is not curious at all, once we recognize that she chose not to draw the (obscurely) obvious conclusions regarding James because she could not allow herself to attribute these actions to him. Thus, weakness once again becomes a character flaw for nearly everyone in the village. Her not jumping to conclusions where the murderer is concerned is completely uncharacteristic- meaning that it is done deliberately, albeit unconsciously. I also am confused when he says that she will never know what happened. The truth will have to come out at the end, won't it?

There is much talk about Caroline as the inspiration for Miss Marple. I would like to first share what Agatha has to say on that point: "I think it is possible that Miss Marple arose from the pleasure I had taken in portraying Dr. Sheppard's sister...she had been my favorite character in the book- an acidulated spinster, full of curiosity, knowing everything, hearing everything: the complete detective service in the home." She says it is possible. I believe that she only got that idea once people starting saying it, because really, they are extremely dissimilar. I've already talked about Caroline's weakness. That characteristic is not at all apparent in Miss Marple. She's much too elderly and badass. More realistically though, Caroline is known throughout the village as a gossip and someone who jumps to conclusions that are usually correct. Miss Marple is not a gossip- she is a seer. She knows everything, plain and simple, and doesn't need to jump to conclusions because she already knows the facts. Also, Caroline seems much more sprightly and dependent on others (what would she do without James in her life?), while Miss Marple is OLD and can take care of herself very well, thank you.

One last thing: it all depends on what is sufficient to break a man. The whole story is about relativity.

Interesting facts: Colonel Melrose is in this book as well. Superintendent Hayes makes a brief appearance. Japp is mentioned again!

Favorite? For sure. Of Agatha as well. She should be proud of herself, seeing as it completely rewrote the typical detective story.

Death by: Veronal (suicide x 2), Stabbing

Body Count: 3; Cumulative: 9

The Count: Poirot-3, Miss. Marple-0, Tommy and Tuppence-1, Hastings-2, Japp-1, Colonel Race-1, Superintendent Battle-1

Agatha's Life Lessons: All the troubles in the world can be put down to money- or the lack of it. Many crimes have been committed for the sake of less than 500 pounds- it all depends on what is sufficient to break a man. "Never worry about what you say to a man. They're so conceited they never believe you mean it if it's unflattering." And lastly, and most importantly... Everyone always has something to hide.

Up Next: The Big Four