Staff Pick: Agatha Christie - 100 Years of Mystery (Part Three)

The Mirror Crack'd From Side to Side (1962)

Published in 1962, The Mirror Crack’d From Side to Side is one of the later Miss Marple novels.  

This book is not as well-known as some of Christie’s more dazzling works, but it is a well-written, intelligent mystery – I challenge you to solve the case before the reveal! It is also a poignant look at the decline of the old way of English life that Christie portrayed so well. The quiet village of St. Mary Mead is changing. There’s a new department store, a new housing development, and Hollywood star Marina Gregg has bought the old country seat of Gossington Hall. The old English families are being replaced by celebrities and movie stars, and quiet village life where everyone knows their neighbours is becoming a thing of the past.  

Miss Marple is feeling her age – she had a fall and is confined to her bed, fussed over by an overbearing (and hilarious) nurse. When a guest drops dead at Marina Gregg’s charity fundraiser, Miss Marple must rely on her network of friends and connections to try and solve the mystery from her sickbed. 

There is a melancholy undertone to this book at times, but there is also a good dose of comedy. Christie gently pokes fun at the gossip economy of small English towns, and Miss Marple, as usual, runs rings around the police detectives. This is easily one of my favourite Christies, and if you like Miss Marple it’s an essential read. 

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Submitted by Lisa.

The Secret Adversary (1922)

The Secret Adversary by Agatha Christie, is a fun and engaging read that can easily be read on its own, but I think it acts as a perfect starting point you can use to compare how Agatha’s work changes from her first entry into writing to her more established books even a few years later like The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. 

What I like about the book is, you can see it is one of her first entries into writing where she is finding her feet and figuring out what works and what does not work. One of the parts that stands out to me is the relation to Sherlock Holmes, which I think influences her writing in the fact there are two ‘main characters Tommy and Tuppence’.  Agatha experiments with an equal partnership, but the narrative naturally tends to give one character more prominence at times, which may help explain her later preference for a single central detective, like Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple.  

The story itself is very easy and enjoyable to read and can be completed at a brisk pace, you are able to consume a good portion of the book in one sitting no matter your reading speed, which I think is a testament to how engaging the story is, you are given a lot of information but there is very little filler. 

Overall, whether you are lost in Agatha’s fantastic but very large (and sometimes overwhelming! ) back catalogue or looking for a palate cleanser from reading Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple, Tommy and Tuppence and The Secret Adversary is a great place to begin your next read. 

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The Secret Adversary ebook on BorrowBox

Submitted by Eoin.

Read Part One here