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Saturday, April 7, 2018

Agatha Christie Readathon - 2018 - Book One - The Secret Adversary

James J. Cudney at This is My Truth Now has invited us to an Agatha Christie Readathon during the month of April.  I've never participated in a readathon or been part of a book club but I have really enjoyed getting to know Jay this past year through his 365 plus 5 blog series and I absolutely love Agatha Christie so I knew that even though I was already committed to doing the A to Z Blogathon, I'd have to give it a shot. 



Jay sponsored a poll to come up with four titles for the month and the first book chosen was The Secret Adversary.  This is the first in the series that features Tommy Beresford and Prudence Cowley (Tuppence to her friends) as the detectives, or Young Adventurers as they decide to call themselves. 

I've read a lot of Agatha Christie but I haven't read any in a long time and I don't remember this story so it was a fun one to start with.  The inscription on the dedication page is:  "To all those who lead monotonous lives in the hope that they may experience second-hand the delights and dangers of adventure."  Agatha Christie.

While I don't consider my life especially monotonous, I certainly don't get much dangerous adventure in it and I am delighted by Dame Agatha's treatment of the subject. 

I'm not going to give a synopsis of the story as you can find that on Goodreads and other places.  I will instead talk about my favorite parts.  Being a romantic at heart I enjoyed the interaction of Tommy and Tuppence and watching that love story unfold.  I also liked the way Agatha Christie took one character and put them into a precarious position and left them there for a bit while she went on to the other character and put them in a precarious position of their own.  It definitely made me want to keep reading so I could make sure they each came out of it okay.  In the end, even though I thought I knew who Mr. Brown really was, I was surprised by the ending.

In her autobiography, Agatha Christie had this to say about the idea for this story, "That, I thought, would make a good beginning to a story - a name overheard at a tea shop - an unusual name, so that whoever heard it remembered it."  Jane Finn.  Would that be a name that would stick in your mind?  Are you one who eavesdrops? 

Just because I can, I'm using this book to fill the category of a book about a heist in my PopSugar challenge.  There was, after all, some stolen documents at the bottom of the whole thing. 

Unfortunately, the next book in the Agatha Christie Readathon is Peril at End House and I have been unable to get a copy of that one in time to start tomorrow so I've picked another one of her books, Hallow'een Party, since one of the categories in PopSugar is a book set at Halloween.  I won't review it for the readathon but at least I'll be reading with you in spirit. 

As for Mr. Cudney, he is an author himself, his first work being Watching Glass Shatter which is a little mystery too, along with some great family drama.  He is about to launch his second work, Father Figure, and I am excited to read that one also! 

It's not too late if you want to join the Agatha Christie Readathon.  Just click the link and you can get all the deets.  While you're there, check out the rest of Jay's stuff.  He's great. 

 


8 comments:

  1. Janet -

    I'm so glad you participated in the Agatha Christie Readathon! I've linked your review on the page @ https://thisismytruthnow.com/agatha-christie-readathon/the-secret-adversary/.

    Thank you for such a great nod to me. Your review is wonderful. I'm sorry you'll miss the next Hercule Poirot one, but we'll join you again in the weeks after. Maybe I'll find a way to link your review somehow else, too!

    I love the addition of the autobiography clip - thank you! Sharing this now... :)

    J

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    1. Thanks for organizing it, Jay. I have the other two books already in my collection so no worries there. It's easy to say nice things about a nice person. :)

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    1. Isn't it? Looking forward to a month of Agatha.

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  3. I have all of Agatha Christie's books... I read my first while at my dad's business partner's house while he and his wife and my dad and mum went out for the evening. This was a long time ago. They had a colour TV, which we'd nerve seen before, and my brother and I watched dTop of the Pops on it, then I turned my attention to the pile of books left for me... a towering pile of Agatha Christie. I won't post its name here as it was not PC in those days let alone now, but it was the one where people are invited to an island and get picked off one by one. But the time they returned I was scared witless but hooked and dad's partner gave me the books, which i added to thereafter. I thin of all her books, that one still scares me most - mainly they are not that frightening, just fun to read! Liz http://www.poetryroundabout.com (I'm doing Z to A!)

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    1. Yes, that was a good one. Even the movie was scary. Thanks for stopping by. I'll go and visit you now too.

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  4. Great review. Very interesting about how she got the idea for the story. I must read her autobiography sometime.

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    1. Thanks Lisa. I have the "Bedside, Bathtub and Armchair Guide to Agatha Christie" and it is very informative too!

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