Elle Hartford
Another delightful chapter in the series!
Brighton's voice is so funny and identifiable. His narration is perfect as the mystery unravels. And it's so rewarding to see the way all his human friends pitch in! The mystery itself had some great twists and a suspenseful conclusion. Plus, we get a little hint of what might be coming up next in the series . . .
I love this series, and absolutely recommend it to cat and cozy lovers alike!
I sat on this review for a while, thinking about it. Some of the criticisms other reviews point out are totally valid–dated observations, quick & somewhat questionable relationships. However . . . I really did enjoy this book! Ariadne is such a fun “stand in” for Christie, and I really enjoyed her presence and interactions with Poirot. The mystery itself unfolds slowly, true, but it is fascinating in the end, and resolves well. And I kind of enjoyed the relationship twist, though it is sudden. (As often happens in these stories!) Overall, I think this might be one of my favorite–or at least among the most memorable–Poirot adventures so far.
I didn't read any reviews before I began, and did not realize off the bat that this is actually a collection of short stories, not a novella! My copy is pretty old school and doesn't have a table of contents (and the back cover copy is pretty limited, focusing only on the titular story). So I was a little surprised at the pacing and sudden end of the actual “Witness for the Prosecution” story, haha. That said, many of the stories are enjoyable and suspenseful, and it was a nice quick read!
I was hesitant at first, but Peter Shandy won me over–particularly after Helen arrived on the scene; I found their relationship amusing and sweet. The actual mystery I did not follow as carefully, especially as there are lots of cutaway scenes toward the end. However, the characters were intriguing, as was the setting itself!
Fascinating–not least because of all the other reviews, haha.
I personally enjoy it when Christie does a mystery from multiple POVs (as opposed to just following Poirot). It was interesting following the Cloade family, and honestly, the narrative felt more like a meditation on British society right after WW2; there are a lot of angles on how times have changed, etc.
The mystery itself was intricate. I was able to catch a few of the key clues, but I didn't put it all together until Poirot talked it out at the end.
Speaking of, the end is, indeed, strange. Even a few chapters before the end, I thought Poirot was being just annoyingly vague (which actually is not a frustration I usually have with him!). But then the epilogue is surprising, as others noted. It definitely doesn't read well today. I can almost-sort of imagine why Christie did it, in the context of a post-war novel about safety . . . But also I wonder if she was just shoe-horning in the “romantic” ending? XD
Either way, the puzzle is still a worthy one!
I can't even. This was adorable!!! I read it in one sitting!!
While the plot itself doesn't have anything to do with ffxiv and you could easily read it without knowing the game/worrying too much about spoilers (aside from a few character developments), it's a pleasure to read if you know ffxiv well and love its NPCs. There are plenty of nods to ffxiv storyline and memorable quotes, and many jokes that made me laugh aloud!
For those who are curious about who shows up: we get to see Alphinaud, Alisaie, G'raha, Estinien, and Krile team up against Zenos, Asahi, and Yotsuyu regularly in a series of classic high school manga scenarios. Y'shtola, Urianger, Thancred, Emet-Selch, and Tataru feature often as teachers. There's also fun sidelines with Ryne and Gaia, Sadu and Magnai, Aymeric, Haurchefant, and Ysayle, Lyse, Edda, moogles, and namazu . . . And other side characters too! And there are some lovely little details (I personally love Urianger as a tarot reader! and Aymeric as class president!).
Basically, if you're the type to buy ffxiv merch or enjoy fanart or crush on NPCs (ahem) or just enjoy alternate universe storylines, you'll probably enjoy this book as much as I did. And I would absolutely love a sequel!
This was such a fun and unique mystery, with plenty of twists!
Brighton the cat is the star, of course, and his observations are very amusing. But the characters around him are sweet and endearing too, an extended family and friends who support each other throughout the investigation. (You can read more about their adventures in the Prickly Pear series, but even if you haven't done so yet, it shouldn't be difficult to meet them all now!)
The investigation itself moves along well. I won't spoil anything, but things do get tense–and, naturally, Brighton has an important role to play!
Overall, I enjoyed this book very much, and am looking forward to the next one. :D
A very thoroughly researched ode not only to Sherlock, but to Sherlockian fans and Conan Doyle (and his fellow author friends!) as well.
I will say, I don't actually read a lot of historical fiction, so I never quite got the hang of two mysteries running side by side in two eras. It's really cool, don't get me wrong, but with the narrative switching every other chapter and the characters in both storylines doing lots of footwork, I found it a little taxing to keep up. Everything resolved satisfactorily, though. I was left with one or two little questions, but I still absolutely can appreciate the storytelling. Reading the notes at the end just made me appreciate it more, I think!
Fascinating–particularly from a literary point of view, as someone who is slowly reading all the Poirot novels (we'll get to Miss Marple eventually, haha!).
The actual mystery is precisely what you'd expect from Christie and Poirot. I think what interested me was that it really does read like an adaptation of the play: much of the characters' movements and dialogue absolutely seems like it could have come out of stage directions and a script. That's not a bad thing. For me, since I recently had the pleasure of seeing The Mousetrap, I found it really cool to be able to “see” in this novel the way Christie was envisioning Black Coffee. (And from my understanding, she wrote the Black Coffee script first, so I found it enjoyable to compare the two plays and see where The Mousetrap built upon Black Coffee.)
It's worth it for anyone who's serious about Agatha Christie, of course, but it's also a fun little mystery in its own right!
Maggie is a very wry and funny narrator, and I love some of her friends. That said, I kind of hate her family . . . Maybe we're supposed to, or maybe I'm a little too sensitive, haha. But I really wanted her to be more upset with them. And her relationship dilemma should not be a dilemma! Overall, though, it's fun to see how she expands into her world and develops, and the mystery was engaging!
Much of the story involves Maggie's two younger coworkers, who are lots of fun, and of course her boss, who (I'm agreeing with Maggie here haha) is one of the best people in town. The theme of ostracisization is a little tough in this one, but it's wonderful to finally see Maggie embrace her actual relationship! ;)
A very thoroughly-researched (it even includes pictures) account of the spaces in Holmes' story which Watson was never able to fill in, particularly the beginning of his practice and “the lost years.”
The stories put forward are completely plausible, though the storytelling itself is just a little wandering and slow to start. It definitely feels like sitting together looking through a scrapbook. I wasn't sure what to expect at first, but once I realized that, I found it interesting and clever!
A really fascinating collection of stories, great to read at a cabin in the woods! ;) There's an introductory note about each author/story which is quite helpful, but sometimes it does give the story away a bit; if you're sensitive about spoilers, maybe read those introductions after reading the stories they pertain to.
