#61: Endless Night

Christie, Agatha: Endless Night. New York: HarperPaperbacks, 1967. Print. 245 pages.

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SETTING: Centered around Gipsy [sic] Acre, the name of a newly built home in a small village in England.  Small scenes also take place in other European countries (France, Germany, etc.). 

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SUMMARY: Michael Rogers, a self-proclaimed adventurer, finally makes it big: he marries a beautiful woman, becomes rich, and owns the home of his dreams.  But the cliched saying holds true for Michael: all good things come to an end...

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FAVORITE QUOTE: "What a mysterious thing sleep is.  You go to bed worrying about gipsies [sic] and secret enemies and detectives planted in your house and the possibilities of kidnapping and a hundred other things, and sleep whisks you away from it all.  You travel very far and you don't know where you've been, but when you wake up, it's to a totally new world.  No worries, no apprehensions." - Chapter 17, page 169.

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So... I know I said I wouldn't be back until August.  Well, I lied!  I realized that it isn't possible for me to study 24/7, and I found a used bookstore near the place I just finished rotating through!  I bought two books, including this one for $2.50 (!!!), and am so glad I did.  I love reading!
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Things I liked about this book:

1. Agatha Christie book!  I love everything she's written that I have had the pleasure of reading.  I love her writing and narrating style, and although I prefer her Poirot novels, I've recently been trying out her other series, and have really enjoyed them too (but not as much as the Poirot ones, of course, because those are the best).
2. The murderer!  Oh.  My.  Goodness!  Such a twist.
3. The ending!  The murdered got what he deserved.  Unfortunately, no justice for the victim.
4. Ellie.  So sweet and naive.  She was knowledgeable about business matters, but the underlying naivete allowed so many to take advantage of her.  I wanted to wrap her in a blanket and make sure no harm came to her, especially by the end of the novel.  She was only ever surrounded by greedy sharks.
5. The murderer's personality after he is caught.  He has a mental breakdown of sorts and his personality changes.  Well, I'm not sure if "changes" is the right word, actually... Might be more accurate to say that the details of his personality are finally revealed, and he is shown to be a complete narcissist.  This part of the book was written very well, and was very fun to read.

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People/things I didn't like about/in this book:

1. Michael Rogers.  He's such a lazy bum.  He became incredibly annoying at times and Ellie deserved someone who worked harder, not someone who lived off of her money.  I just wanted to slap some sense into him.
2. All the characters who took advantage of Ellie.  I won't name any names, of course, because that would give away the story, but I really hated them.
3. A little slow.  I was bored for about half the book, but the ending definitely made up for the boredom.  If this book was written by any random author, I probably would have at least contemplated giving up on it, but a Christie book?  Never!  I will always finish any book written by Agatha Christie.  She is the Queen of Mystery and my experience has taught me that she always delivers. 

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I loved this book!  The beginning was blah and I didn't think I'd like it, but I shouldn't have had any doubts.  The ending is incredibly sad, but such a great twist.  I finished reading the book at night, and was still thinking about it the next day.  Agatha Christie is Queen and excellent in her trade.  My favorite author of all time :)

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Recommend?  Yes!!!!!!

#59: Hostile Witness

Forster, Rebecca: Hostile Witness. Signet Fiction, 2004. E-book.

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SETTING: Hermosa Beach, California.

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SUMMARY: Giving up on criminal law after a traumatizing experience with a client three years ago, Josie Bates moves to Hermosa Beach, California, a quiet town that allows her to hide from both per personal and professional lives.  As soon as she starts becoming content with her life, she's once again thrown into the fast lane.  A college friend shows up at her doorstep one night, begging her to represent her 16 year-old daughter, who has been charged with the murder of her step-grandfather.  Initially reluctant, Bates finds herself putting her all into the case, thoroughly believing in her client's innocence. 

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FAVORITE QUOTE: "Kip Rayburn was nothing to look at.  He wasn't unattractive, simply unmemorable." - Chapter 11.

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Another free e-book from iBooks!  I picked this one because the little blurb was interesting, and I always love a good mystery novel. 

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Things I like about this book:

1. The storyline.  I read this book in two days!  I should have been studying... (I have a test coming up), but I couldn't put it down!  It was a sit-on-the-edge-of-your-seat type of book, and I haven't read one of those in a very long time!
2. Bates and Archer's relationship.  Archer is Bates' boyfriend, and they have a very healthy relationship with great boundaries and an understanding of how the other person works.  It's a very mature and realistic relationship.
3. Hannah Sheraton's character.  She is the accused in the novel and is such a complex person.  The author did a great job developing her and presenting her multi-layered character to the reader.
4. The exploration of obsessive-compulsive disorder.  This like is probably biased because I am currently in my psychiatry rotation, and it is always fun to see what you're studying in other settings.  Hannah Sheraton suffers from OCD and the author did a great job of defining it and fitting it into the story, especially into the crime.  Even better was the fact that the author explored why Hannah has OCD.
5. Linda Rayburn's thought process.  Linda is Hannah Sheraton's mother and she is a TERRIBLE mother.  I didn't like her character (see point #2 below), but I appreciated her view of things.  Her reasoning behind most of her decisions as a mother are terrible, but, the author makes sure to explain why she made those decisions.  And as the reader, I was able to see where she was coming from.  It served as a reminder that things aren't always black and white, and a person can make a terrible decision but have what they think is sound reasoning behind it.  This didn't make the decision correct or less despicable, but I found her thought process very interesting. 
6. Quick and enjoyable read.  It didn't take me long to finish the book, and it also didn't take a whole lot of brain power.  Kind of like a beach read.

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Things I didn't like about this book:

1. Bates became really annoying in the middle of the book.  She was whiny and immature and her attachment to the case became unprofessional at times.  Lawyers are supposed to stay within the boundaries of the law, and there were times when her emotions completely disregarded this point of professionalism.  She did what she wanted to do because she thought it was good for her client, not taking into account what her client might want.  She sometimes had a holier-than-thou attitude and that is a characteristic I cannot stand.
2. Linda Rayburn.  I hated her for the majority of the book because she is a terrible, selfish person.
3. Judge Rayburn.  One twisted man.

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I really enjoyed this book.  It isn't going to ever become a classic, and will probably be forgotten after a generation of readers, but it's fun and quick, and a nice book for summer when it sometimes gets too hot to even think.

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Recommend?  Yes!

#57: A Study in Scarlet

Doyle, Arthur Conan: A Study in Scarlet. Ebook.

(Sorry again for the limited citation; this ebook didn't give any details about who created it, etc.)

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SETTING: Mostly in London and various parts of Utah.

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SUMMARY: This first story in the Sherlock Holmes series details how Holmes and Dr. Watson meet and become a team, as well as the first mystery they solve "together" (I put this word in quotes because it's mostly solved by Holmes, of course).  This mystery starts out with the perplexing murder of a well to-do American and the disappearance of his secretary.  As is the case with Holmes' stories, there is more going on than initially meets the average person's eye.

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FAVORITE QUOTE: "'I should have more faith,' he said; 'I ought to know by this time that when a fact appears to be opposed to a long train of deductions, it invariably proves to be capable of bearing some other interpretation.'" - Part 1, Chapter 7.

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I started reading this book a few months ago and was almost done with it when I stopped reading it for some reason.  I picked it back up last week, only to realize that I didn't remember the majority of the story!  Particularly what was written in part 1, which takes place in London and details the murder.  So I started reading it again from the beginning.  The inspiration behind resuming the book in the first place?  I'm happy to report that I started watching the show Sherlock!  And I LOVE IT.  I have been experiencing what can only be described as intensely geeky moments when I watch each episode, mostly because, out of the five episodes I've watched so far and the five books associated with them, I've read four of the books.  During each of those four episodes, I had the best time comparing the show and the book.  They obviously use the books as only a small inspiration for the story, and those who have watched the show and read the books are aware that the show varies greatly from the stories.  Anyhow, for my own entertainment, I'll write an additional post about which similarities and differences I like and do not like between the show and books. 

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Things I liked about this book:

1. The writing.  I love Holmes' novels, but they are sometimes too lengthy.  This one, however, was the perfect length.  It was an even more enjoyable read for me because the story was split into two distinct parts: part 1 details the murder, while part 2 gives a complete back story about the murder.  And speaking of back story, the #2 thing I liked about this book is...
2. The back story.  I haven't read too many murder mysteries where the author provides such a thorough background of the inspiration behind the crime.  Doyle goes all the way to the beginning, or as far back as is appropriate for the reader, and gives a richly detailed account of why this crime occurred.
3. Holmes use of homeless children as his eyes and ears on the street.  Of course this would not be something that worked in present day, luckily because we've become attuned as a society to what a horrible injustice it is to have homeless children (won't get into the debate about homeless adults here...).  But Holmes' reasoning behind why he uses homeless children rather than an official person to collect information on the street is so brilliant yet simple: people are more likely to talk to someone who isn't official.
4. Dr. Watson and Holmes' friendship.  I love it in every story.  And I also love that these stories are written from Watson's point of view; they are transcriptions from his personal journal and thus narrated by him.  If Holmes was the narrator, the stories would get obnoxious really quickly.
5. Holmes' way of thinking.  Obvious once he explains it, but not something the common person would conclude themselves. 
6. The motivation behind the crime.  This isn't a point that I usually like.  The motivation behind the crime is generally something terrible, but this story is an exception.  You definitely feel for the perpetrator.

 Thing I didn't like about this book:

1. The fact that I read the majority of this book a few months ago and forgot so much of it!  Now, I know that this occurrence is mostly my fault.  It is my own lack of attention and choosing to read a few pages of the book at a time in an inopportune setting that resulted in me forgetting so much of it.  And of course I have to take into account that I have the tendency to forget a lot about the storyline of books I've read in the past (which was the main motivator for creating this blog).  However, I have to put at least half of a percent of the blame on the book.  If it was super attention grabbing then it is less likely I would have forgotten so much, especially regarding the details of the actual murder.

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I really enjoyed this book, more so because I started re-reading it after I watched Season 1, episode 1 of Sherlock: A Study in Pink (a cute change to the title, in my opinion).  I'm now reading two books simultaneously, a non-Holmes novel written by Doyle and a young adults' book.  We'll see which one I finish first!

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Recommend?  Yes! 

#56: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes

Doyle, Arthur Conan: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. Ebook.
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SUMMARY: A collection of 12 Sherlock Holmes short stories.
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FAVORITE QUOTE: "'I have come for advice.'
'That is easily got.'
'And help.'
'That is not always so easy.'" - Adventure V: The Five Orange Pips.
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I downloaded this book on my iPad a few months ago, but didn't get around to reading it until recently.  I apologize for the incomplete citation above; the version I downloaded didn't provide any information regarding who created this electronic version, the year it was created, etc.  This post will differ from the usual set-up I have because this book is a compilation of short stories and not a novel.  
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The main thing I liked about this collection of stories: 

• The stories, although short, were each enjoyable because of their brevity.  I like Sherlock Holmes novels in general, but sometimes they have the tendency to drag on.  Each of these stories had a complete beginning, middle, and end.  However... (see below).

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The main thing I did not like about this collection of stories: 

• It would have been nice if, at the end of some of the stories, there was an elaboration of what happened to the criminals and/or victims.  A few of the stories felt like they ended too abruptly.  They got to the point of the mystery and provided the necessary information that proved it had been solved, but some further information about those involved in the case would have been appreciated.

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Here are a thought or two for each story:

1. Adventure 1: A Scandal in Bohemia.  A woman blackmails her ex-lover.  The ex-lover was an ass for breaking things off with her because she wasn't of the same class as him.  I'm glad she was happy at the end.
2. Adventure 2: The Red-Headed League.  The victim in this story is lacking a few files in the upstairs department, and it is unfortunate that people like him can be taken advantage of so easily.
3. Adventure 3: A Case of Identity.  The parents of this victim are EVIL.  And love really can blind even the most level-headed of people.
4. Adventure 4: The Boscombe Valley Mystery.  I liked the way Holmes handled this situation.  Things aren't always black and white, and the fact that Holmes does not reveal who the criminal is to the masses was a noble decision.
5. Adventure 5:  The Five Orange Pips.  This story was the scariest of the 12.  Left me with chills.
6. Adventure 6: The Man with the Twisted Lip.  It's a shame that getting money through deceitful means is sometimes easier than making an honest living.
7. Adventure 7: The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle.  Funny place to hide a diamond...
8. Adventure 8: The Adventure of the Speckled Band.  Another evil step-parent taking advantage of their step-daughter(s).
9. Adventure 9: The Adventure of the Engineer's Thumb.  Holmes doesn't find the villain in this story!  Such a rare occurrence.  
10. Adventure 10: The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor.  I felt very sad for the victim in this story.  I understand why his wife did what she did, but doesn't make it any less terrible!
11. Adventure 11: The Adventure of the Beryl Coronet.  This whole family is messed up, and I'm pretty sure that, if Doyle was to continue writing this story, all three of them would have a very sad ending.
12. Adventure 12: The Adventure of the Copper Beeches.  Another case of greedy parents doing horrible things to their children.  This was a theme in a few of the stories in this compilation...

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Short stories are usually not my pick because they tend to leave me feeling unfulfilled.  I prefer longer, detailed stories, but this book is an exception.  I loved each story, and although I was left wanting at the end of a few, I am glad to have read them.
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Recommend?  Yes!  I enjoyed reading this book.

#55: Dead Man's Folly

Christie, Agatha: Dead Man's Folly. New York: HarperCollins Publisher, 1956. Print. 226 pages.

SETTING: Nasse House in Devon, a county in South West England.

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SUMMARY: The successful Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, is suddenly called upon by famous mystery author, Ariadne Oliver, to come to Nasse House, a beautiful country property where she is a guest.  A crime has yet to occur, but Ms. Oliver feels an impending evil is upon Nasse House.  She is unfortunately correct...

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FAVORITE QUOTE: "'I think when one is old, the death of anyone who is young upsets one out of proportion.  We old folks expect to die, but the child had her life before her.'

'It might not have been a very interesting life.'

'Not from our point of view, perhaps, but it might have been interesting to her.'" - Chapter 16, part 2, page 187.

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With just a little more free time than before, life has become so relaxing!  Our school bookstore was recently revamped and now provides a very comfortable place to sit and read.  I missed reading a good Poirot novel, so decided that this would be the next book of choice!
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Things I liked about this book:

1. The storyline.  It was very simple, but I was hooked from start to finish.
2. Poirot's methods of deduction.  It's not explained all the way until the end, as in any good mystery novel, but when the grand reveal happens, Christie manages to tie everything together very nicely.
3. The subtle clues scattered throughout the book.  Piggybacking off of the last point, she brings all the little clues she gives the readers together at the end, and everything makes sense, as it always does.
4. Christie's writing style.  But you already know this :)
5. Hercule Poirot himself.  One of my favorite detectives, only in close competition with Sherlock Holmes.  He is eccentric and has his own unique methods of successfully completing his work, and most importantly, he stays true to his character, regardless of what other people say about him. 

Things I didn't like about this book: 

1. We aren't given any information as to the fate of the criminals.  It made the story feel a little incomplete to not know what the final outcome was.

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I love Christie's novels, especially ones featuring Poirot, and I rarely have any dislikes.  I pick these novels when I want a good book without having to go through the effort of shopping around for one.  My book soul was successfully satisfied.

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Recommend?  Yes!

#52: Gone Girl

Flynn, Gillian: Gone Girl. New York: Random House LLC, 2012. Print. 555 pages.

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SETTING: North Carthage, Missouri, with flashbacks in New York City.

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SUMMARY: Amy Dunne mysteriously disappears on the morning of her 5th wedding anniversary, with all clues pointing to her husband, Nick Dunne, as the suspect. 

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FAVORITE QUOTE: "He killed my soul, which should be a crime.  Actually, it is a crime.  According to me, at least." - Part 2, page 321.

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I recently went home, a last minute decision, and I desperately needed a book to read on the flight out of DC to make the journey pass as fast as possible.  I didn't have much time to find a book before I reached the airport, so my selection was what was available to me in the small, Hudson News store near my gate.  I really wanted to read one of Gregory Maguire's books, but the store's selection only consisted of books currently on the bestsellers list (I think the NY Times bestseller list, but they didn't clarify).  Anyways, this was the one I ultimately decided on.  My likes and dislikes are probably a little skewed, for better or worse, because I watched the movie first.  I had no plans to read the book after I watched the movie, but since I had a pretty narrow selection of books to choose from, this seemed like my best bet.
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Things I liked about this book:

1. It's written VERY well.  Although the book is easy to follow and keeping the details organized isn't a challenge at all, it is written in a very smart style that I really enjoyed.  I can't quite name what that style is, but I love it, and will probably read her two other books sometime in the future.
2. The narrators.  There were two narrators, both speaking in first person.  I like this style of narration, where it alternates between two points of view, and the author did a fabulous job.  
3. The use of Amy's diary to relate the events of the "past."  So tricky.
4. The storyline.  Well thought out and smooth from beginning to end.  All the details were aligned very well and I didn't find any contradictions.
5. The complexity of Amy's mind.  Did I think she was crazy?  Hell ya!  But trying to track her mind was an entertaining exercise.

Things I didn't like about this book: 

1. The ending.  Holy crap, people are messed up!  I was hoping for a happier ending.
2. There wasn't a single character I really loved.  There was a character I was rooting for, but there wasn't anyone I was particularly attached to by the time I finished the book, which is unusual.  I think because of that, I wasn't sad when I finished the book.  A little unsatisfied with the ending, but not sad like I usually am when I finish a story.

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I'm sorry my list of "things I liked about this book" is short and not nearly as detailed as it should be.  Since I watched the movie before reading the book, it only felt right to include the things I liked solely from the book, not the things I liked from both the book and the movie.  I absolutely wish I had read the book before watching the movie because knowing the progression of the story definitely took away from thoroughly enjoying the book.  Not surprisingly, the book was better than the movie, but I think that's saying quite a bit about the book considering I really enjoyed the movie!  There were a few scenes in the book that were excluded from the movie, but that didn't take away from the movie fairly portraying the overall story.  All in all, the best way I can sum it up is that the overall ambiance and feel of this book was to my liking, and I was so engrossed that I finished reading most of it on the plane (about five hours of reading).

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Recommend?  Yes!

#49: The Housewife Assassin's Handbook

Brown, Josie: The Housewife Assassin's Handbook. Signal Press Books, 2011. Ebook.

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SETTING: Hilldale, a community in Orange County, California.

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SUMMARY: Donna Stone is not only a trained assassin working for Acme Corporation, a black ops organization, but also a widow and the mother of three young children.  Her initial inspiration for joining the organization was to find the individual responsible for her husband's death, her husband who was also an assassin for Acme.  Little does she know that nothing is as it seems...

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FAVORITE QUOTE: "It's then that I realize that I know nothing about him.  Sure, he is a legend on the spook loops.  But we are all more than the sum parts of our missions." - Chapter 9.

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HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

This is not the type of book I'll ever have on my "to read" list.  Ever.  But it is the type of book I will read when there's nothing else at hand and I DESPERATELY need something to read, for example to make the time pass on my flight home this winter break.  This book is free via iBooks, is a mystery novel, and seemed light hearted, so I figured I'd give it a go.  

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Things I liked about this book:

1. Donna Stone's awareness of her flaws.  The main character of the book does it all, but she is also very aware of her weaknesses.  I appreciate that the author of the book didn't create a perfect character, but rather someone who was "relatable."

Thing I didn't like about this book:

1. Poorly written.  There is very little complexity in this book.  It is an easy read, I'll give it that, but it's easy because it's written at a 5th grade reading level.  That would be perfectly acceptable, except for the fact that this a book written for adults.  To further clarify: I would say that The Hunger Games books were written at this level, and although I didn't enjoy that aspect of the books, I did acknowledge that the target audience was young adults.  This series is written for adults, and I would have liked the book much more if it read as such.
2. Poor character development.  The writer provides you with bits and pieces of each character in a haphazard fashion and expects that to count as satisfactory character development.  It is absolutely not.  Her characters are idiotic the majority of the time and often lack a clear train of thought.  If such assassins existed in real life, we would be in a great deal of trouble.
3. Predictable.  All the "twists" in the novel were easily predicted chapters before they actually took place.  The mystery aspect of this book can hardly be called that.

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This book was not very good, but since it made four hours of the journey home go by much quicker than it otherwise would have, it gets some points.  I almost started the second book in the series, but luckily the rest of the flight home was occupied by sleep.  But who knows, unless I'm a little more proactive and find a better book to read, the second in this series may be on the menu for my flight back at the end of winter break.  My brain is craving something that requires more thought though, so I'm going to put the effort in to finding an appropriate book.

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Recommend?  Nope.  Too many other books out there that are a better use of your time.  Unless of course you're looking for a "beach" read (i.e. something that requires you to use 0.5% of your brain...).

#48: The Mysterious Affair at Styles

Christie, Agatha: The Mysterious Affair at Styles. Project Gutenberg, 2008. Ebook.

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SETTING: Styles Manor in Essex County, England, north-east of London, during WWI.

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SUMMARY: Arthur Hastings, the narrator of this story, is invited to spend some time at Styles Manor by his good friend John Cavendish.  Within a day of his arrival, John's stepmother, who inherited the manor upon John's father's (her husband's) death, is found dead in her locked bedroom.  Enter the famous Belgian detective, Mr. Hercule Poirot, who brilliantly solves the mystery.

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FAVORITE QUOTE: "Poirot was an extraordinary looking little man.  He was hardly more than five feet, four inches, but carried himself with great dignity.  His head was exactly the shape of an egg, and he always perched it a little on one side.  His mustache was very stiff and military.  The neatness of his attire was almost incredible.  I believe a speck of dust would have caused him more pain than a bullet wound." - Chapter 2.

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There's a huge possibility that I read this book once before.  The story felt new, but the title was familiar, and this is also the first Hercule Poirot book written by Christie.  It's quite possible that I read it so long ago that I forgot the story.  My forgetfulness regarding which books I have and haven't read was the main inspiration for starting this blog, so I guess from this point forward, I won't forget.  I picked that quote as my favorite because it is such a perfect description of Poirot, and a description that Christie fabulously maintains in all of her Poirot novels.  

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Things I liked about this book:

1. Poirot!  My favorite detective!  I love his style, both personal and professional.  Working with a person like that would be productive and constantly entertaining.
2. The culprits.  Just like the last Christie book I wrote about, I was again wrong about who did the deed.  
3. The romantic relationships in this novel.  They became one of the main themes, and it was a nice fit in a crime/mystery novel.  I usually find romance in a crime novel annoying, but not this time around.
4.  Incorporation of real life activities in the novel.  The story was written during WWI and, as Christie usually does, she incorporates that as the backdrop of this novel.

Thing I didn't like about this book:

1. The amount of time spent detailing different poisons that can be used to murder someone.  Seemed extraneous and unnecessary.

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I really enjoyed this book, as I usually do.  Agatha Christie has a formula that I enjoy, and she has yet to disappoint me.  Even when I branched out from the Poirot books, I was still satisfied. 

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Recommend?  Yes!

#47: The Secret Adversary

Christie, Agatha: The Secret Adversary. Project Gutenberg, 2008. Ebook.

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SETTING: London, England in the year 1919.

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SUMMARY: Tommy Beresford and Tuppence Cowley are both bored, out of work, and dying for an adventure, especially after having experienced life as a soldier and a war hospital volunteer, respectively.  As fate would have it, they find themselves in the midst of a big mystery after Tuppence receives a strange job offer from an even stranger man.  Their curiosity in finding out who this man is eventually leads them into the service of the British intelligence, as they are on a hunt for this same man!

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FAVORITE QUOTE: "'What fun it will be,' responded Tuppence. 'Marriage is called all sorts of things, a haven, and a refuge, and a crowning glory, and a state of bondage, and lots more.  But do you know what I think it is?' 

'What?' 

'A sport!' 

'And a damned good sport too,' said Tommy." - Chapter 28.

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I finished reading this book at least a month ago, if not longer, but I haven't had time to write about it until now!  I realized today that I'd already forgotten quite a bit about this book, and if I didn't type down my thoughts now, I'd forget everything!  This entry is very sparse, but I did my best.  One of my hopes for 2015 is to read more, and hopefully with that, write about the books I read in a more timely fashion. 

On a different note, I downloaded this book onto my iPad via iBooks, and all I could find regarding publication information is what I have above.  I'm not even sure if this is the right way to cite this book, but oh well...

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Things I liked about this book:

1. Tommy and Tuppence!  I loved them in the last Agatha Christie book I read, and loved them again in this one.  This book provided me with their backstory, and I really appreciated that.  If I had to pick a favorite though out of the two, it would definitely be Tuppence.  She's such a strong and creative character!  But they are a fabulous team, and I'm sad that there are only four Tommy and Tuppence books.
2. Julius Hersheimmer and Jane Finn. I thought I wouldn't like them, each for their own reasons, but they surprised me in the end. 
3. Annette.  All I can say is... what?? A twist I didn't anticipate at all.  In retrospect, though, I probably should have...
4. The culprit.  I thought I had an idea of who it was, but I was completely wrong!  I've become better at identifying the culprit, especially in Agatha Christie's books, but I guess I'm not quite the expert I thought I was!
5. Where the treaty was hidden at the end.  The best hiding place oftentimes is right in front of your nose.

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As you can see, I don't have a dislikes section for this book.  As far as content is concerned, I didn't have any dislikes.  This is an easy, comfortable read, and if you're looking for anything grand or mind-blowing, you've reached for the wrong book.  

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Recommend?  Yes!

#46: N or M?

Christie, Agatha: N or M?. Glasgow: William Collins Sons & Co, Ltd., 1990. Print. 217 pages.
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SETTING: The hotel Sans Souci in the small seaside resort of Leahampton, England during World War II.
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SUMMARY: Tommy and Tuppence Beresford were once a star team for the British Intelligence, accidentally discovered after the First World War.  With the coming of World War II, the pair find themselves without any work, dying of boredom, until a chance mission gives them the opportunity to hunt down two German spies, only known by the code names "N" and "M."
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FAVORITE QUOTE: "'...The man who said explanations were a mistake was quite right.'" - Chapter 13, pages 188-189.
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If you've been following my blog, you know that I LOVE Agatha Christie novels.  I would only read Hercule Poirot's stories for the longest time, but once I exhausted all of them (or at least I think I have), I started on the rest of her novels.  Luckily, there are a lot, and I've learned to like her other detectives (of course not as much as Poirot :P).  This book is very short, but my free time has also been short, and it took me nearly a month and a half to finally finish it!
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Things I liked about this book:

1. Tommy and Tuppence Beresford.  They're great together!  I do favor Tuppence a little more; she's hilarious and really matter-of-fact about everything. 
2. The ease of keeping track of each character.  There are a lot of characters in this novel, as there should be in any good mystery novel, in my opinion, in order to successfully keep the reader guessing the culprit.  The characters in this book are described fully and in a satisfying manner, and if I ever lost track of one of them, it was my own fault.
3. Who "N" and "M" are.  It actually wasn't much of a surprise, and the reader figures out who N is about 3/4 of the way through the book.  But the way that these two characters disguise themselves as harmless Brits on vacation is very creative!
4. That the book was written during WWII.  It was published in 1941.  This point is one that I like about all of Christie's novels.  If the plot is during some major historical event, then it's very likely she wrote it as that event was happening.  It's pretty cool to think that what she wrote in this novel could very well have been happening in reality at the exact same time she was writing it.
5. Morse code via snoring.  Won't say more on that, but very clever!
6. Betty's fate.  It makes for a nice ending :)

Things I didn't like about this book:

1. The revelation of "N" and "M."  Going back to #3 above, it really wasn't a surprise who those two characters were.  I like mystery novels where there's a little more of a *gasp* factor. 

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Hercule Poirot books are still my absolute favorite, but I did enjoy this novel, and I have put the first Tommy and Tuppence novel written by Christie, The Secret Adversary, on my list!  Hopefully with the Christmas holiday rolling around soon, I'll be able to read it in a more timely fashion... 
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Recommend?  My answer for all of Agatha Christie's novels: YES!

#45: The Hound of the Baskervilles

Doyle, Arthur Conan: The Hound of the Baskervilles. London: Penguin Books Ltd., 1986. Print. 236 pages.

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SETTING: London, England and Dartmoor in south Devon, England.

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SUMMARY: The most recent baronet of Baskerville Hall is found dead, presumably having died of a heart attack.  A close family friend, however, believes his death is due to a centuries old family curse resurfacing.  Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson are implored to investigate the mystery and ensure the safety of the next Baskerville in line to adopt the position of baronet.

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FAVORITE QUOTE: "'...You interest me very much, Mr. Holmes.  I had hardly expected so dolichocephalic a skull or such well-marked supraorbital development.  Would you have any objection to my running my finger along your parietal fissure?  A cast of your skull, sir, until the original is available, would be an ornament to any anthropological museum.  It is not my intention to be fulsome, but I confess that I covet your skull.'" - Chapter 1, pages 8-9.

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I finally made time to visit my favorite used bookstore in DC!  And I came away with not only this treasure, but an Agatha Christie novel as well (which will be my next read)!  I was looking for a comfortable, relaxing read, preferably a mystery by an author I already liked.  It's probably terrible to say this, but I wasn't in the mood to try something new and take a chance at being disappointed.  Sherlock Holmes novels definitely fit into the "books I'm guaranteed to enjoy" category :)

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Things I liked about this book:

1. The ease with which the story is delivered.  I've always been satisfied with the Sherlock Holmes novels and short stories because they are narrated in such a smooth and easy-going manner.  It's a relaxing read, and that's exactly what I was looking for.
2. Dr. Watson as the narrator.  It's a great choice for a narrator, as compared to using a third person narrator or Sherlock Holmes himself. 
3. Sherlock Holmes' activities during the entirety of the novel.  He is a sneaky man who isn't afraid of denting another character's pride in the name of solving the mystery. 
4. The Stapleton family.  I won't say more...
5. The ending.  As is seen in all of the Holmes stories, Doyle provides a nice synopsis of the entire story from Holmes' point of view.  It ties everything together very nicely, and supplies the reader with any details they may have missed.  It's like the pretty, pink bow on the package.

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Things I didn't like about this book:

1. NOTHING.  I got exactly what I was looking for :)

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This review is pretty sparse, but there isn't much else I feel like I need to share about this novel.  These types of story lines are simple and easy to follow, and, for lack of a better word, they are comfortable.  When life gets too busy, I like that comfort of having the perfect book at hand for my leisure-reading.  This novel met all of my criteria for such a book, and I couldn't be more satisfied.  I'm excited that I already have another such novel at hand!  The rest of this year will be very busy, and I will definitely look to these types of novels to provide me with a much needed distraction from everyday life.

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Recommend?  Yes!

#44: Inferno

Brown, Dan: Inferno. New York: Anchor Books, 2013. Print. 611 pages.
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SETTING: Florence, Italy.
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SUMMARY: Robert Langdon, the famed Harvard University professor of symbology, once again is at the center of a mysterious adventure.  After waking up at a Florence hospital with no recollection of how he arrived there and a head wound of unknown origin, he, along with Dr. Sienna Brooks, a physician who was caring for him at the hospital, find themselves rushing around Florence trying to solve a mystery that is somehow connected to Dante's Inferno.   
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FAVORITE QUOTE: "When it came to the circumstances of the world, denial had become a global pandemic." - Epilogue, page 610.
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I am very sorry to inform you, dear readers, that I actually read this book two months ago, and thus have forgotten many of the points that I wanted to share with you.  I started off the school year much busier than anticipated, and am only finding time now to create the blog entry for this novel.  I will do my best to recollect as much as I can! 
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Things I liked about this book:

1. The integration of real life organizations and resources into the story line.  This aspect is what I admire the most about all of Dan Brown's novels.  He takes real life entities and places them in a fictional setting, with the end result of creating a story that seems like it could actually play out in reality.
2. The transhumanist movement as a main topic of the novel.  I didn't know about transhumanism at all before reading this book, and I was inspired to research the topic after finishing the novel.  To what extent I agree with their goals and theories is something I will not expand on here because it'll probably amount to an essay's worth of writing.
3. The infectious disease aspect.  I won't say anymore because I don't want to ruin the story!
4. Going off of the last point, having the head of the WHO as a main character.
5. Sienna Brooks' character.  She is incredibly badass.  Misguided, without a doubt, but totally awesome.

Things I didn't like about this book:

1. The way Robert Langdon solves the series of clues in the novel.  A constant joke among my classmates is the way that Dr. House figures out his patients' ailments.  Something very incosequential is usually occurring, for example he'll be tossing a baseball up and down.  The baseball will then proceed to drop and roll along an empty hallway, and once it stops, he'll find a sudden spark of inspiration that leads him to the right diagnosis.  Langdon's process of unraveling clues is equally ridiculous at times.
2. This novel wasn't as exciting as Dan Brown's previous novels in the Langdon series.  This could be because his formula for writing these books is becoming old and predictable.  His outlines for all four novels are very similar, and considering I have read Angels and Demons and The Da Vinci Code more than once, I think I'm becoming adept at predicting what the next step in the story will be.  I will admit, however, that I did not have enough skill to predict the climax or the ending of this novel.  So there is still some intrigue left in the way he creates his stories. 

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For as long as I'll live, I can confidently say that I will read every single fictional novel that Dan Brown will publish until his death.  The same can be said of novels published by JK Rowling and Gregory Maguire.  There are some authors who, even if they have a formula for their books, write novels that I find myself eager to finish.  I have a feeling of contentment while reading them, and sadness upon finishing them.  It's like coming home to a familiar place, with something new added to it that's fascinating and exciting, and once you have to leave, you can't help but feel a little sad.  
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Recommend?  Yes.  Even if it's the 10th novel in the Langdon series and absolutely predictable, I'll still recommend that you read it because Dan Brown's writing style is one that I enjoy.

#34: And Then There Were None

Christie, Agatha: And Then There Were None. New York: Berkeley Books, 1993. Print. 204 pages.
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SETTING: Indian Island, a fictional island off the Devon coast (South West England).
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SUMMARY: A random, mismatched group of ten individuals are invited, each for a very different reason, to Indian Island by the illusive Mr. U. N. Owen.  Once there, they quickly realize that all is not as it seems, and a fortuitous chance at an all-expense-paid escape from reality is actually bringing them closer to realities that they would rather forget.
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FAVORITE QUOTE: "They were five enemies linked together by a mutual instinct of self-preservation." - Chapter 13, page 143.
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A friend came to visit me in DC last week, and during the shutdown, unfortunately, which crushed her plan to visit the Smithsonians.  But she was still able to check a substantial amount off the trip's to-do list, including a trip to New York City.  Luckily, this was a fairly free weekend for me compared to most, and I was able to accompany her!  I decided I needed a slimmer and less involved book to occupy my time during the trip there and back so when I took her to Dupont Circle, my favorite neighborhood in DC, we stopped by my favorite secondhand bookstore where I found this little gem!  I've been wanting to read another Agatha Christie book for a while, and I have a vague memory of reading this one once before when I was very young.  However, since I didn't remember the story, and more importantly the ending, I figured it wouldn't hurt to reread it.
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Things I liked about this book:

1. Agatha Christie!  Enough said.  I've loved every book I've ever read authored by the Queen of Crime.
2. Short, quick, fun, stress-free read.  It took me all of 6ish hours to read it.
3. Varied group of characters that the reader is able to get to know well in a short period of time.  I was able to grasp the salient points of each character's person within the first few pages, and by the time I finished the book I had a very clear idea of each character's personality.
4. You're kept guessing the entire time as to who the culprit is.
5. The poem that is the basis for the events in the story.
6. The murderer's reason for committing the crime.  A disturbing reason, but interesting nonetheless.  And it gives an incite into just HOW varied people's personalities are.  Completely sane individuals who are acting within social boundaries could actually have very horrible and nefarious reasons for their actions.  A troublesome thought...

Things I didn't like about this book:

1. The racist undertones (against all non-European, non-Christian groups).  Whether or not Christie was racist or some of the language is just the norm from that time, I cannot say.  I read her biography a long time ago for a grade school book report, but I've forgotten everything I learned from that project, and a quick Wikipedia search didn't shed any light on the topic.
2. No Hercule Poirot!  No detective at all until the end, actually.  In my book, a Hercule Poirot-centered novel is always preferable.

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I absolutely love Agatha Christie's writing style.  It's simple, to the point, and perfect for those times when I want a purely entertaining read.  Because the novels are usually relatively short, I also don't feel guilty when I take out chunks of studying time to read, because I know it'll be over fairly quickly.  On a different note, I also like that after finishing each of her novels, I'm usually left with some type of important reminder about human nature.  In this novel's case (and many of her other novels), the reminder is that nothing is as it seems, that trust must be earned and is not something to be handed out lightly to strangers.  Especially in present times where social media makes it incredibly easy to become "friends" with people without actually having any quality interactions, this is a necessary concept to keep in the back of our minds.
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Recommend?  Yes!  Fun, easy, light reading will always be recommended by me.

#26: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd

Christie, Agatha: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd. New York: Berkeley Books, 2004. Print. 358 pages.
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SETTING: King's Abbott, England (a fictional village).
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SUMMARY: The deaths of Mr. and Mrs. Ferrars approximately one year apart (evidence pending, they are believed to be a murder and suicide, respectively) have brought more intrigue and life to the little village of King's Abbott than it has ever felt before.  However the death of Roger Ackroyd, a wealthy individual known to have had a romance with Mrs. Ferrars after her husband's death, brings the famous detective Hercule Poirot out of his newfound retirement to solve this baffling case.  Dr. James Sheppard, a friend to all of the recently deceased, serves as our narrator and Poirot's unofficial assistant.
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FAVORITE QUOTE: "'Now that you remind me of the fact, it is true that there is one more thing.  It would be unwise on your part to attempt to silence me as you silenced Mr. Ackroyd.  That kind of business does not succeed against Hercule Poirot, you understand.'" - Chapter 26, page 353.
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First off, HAPPY SPRING!!!  The weather in DC is finally beautiful and the birds are chirping, even on the gloomy days (like today)!  

I gave this book to a friend as a present, but seeing as he was not going to read it anytime soon, I quickly took the chance to borrow it.  I've been looking for a lighthearted, quick read, and this was a most convenient acquirement!  Not to mention it took me approximately six hours over two days to finish the book (it's very short and the font is fairly large), so I don't feel too bad taking it away from his company.  Before heading to my likes and dislikes of this novel, I have one thing to say: This is THE MOST BRILLIANT NOVEL I HAVE READ IN MY LIFE THUS FAR.  And I'm not saying this from my biased stance of loving all things Christie.  This book is just fabulous.
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Things I liked about this book:

1. The narrator.  He will blow your mind into the depths of space, and open it up all at the same time.  But not until the very end of the novel, mind you, so you'll have to be patient while reading.  I don't want to give away too much, so apologies if this is vague.  I will forever be thankful for having read this novel because it gave me an entirely different perspective on narrators, narration, and who to trust when being told a story.  
2. It is a great display of how storytellers have the ultimate power to manipulate what is being related to the listener(s).  Speech, sentence formation, grammar, etc. are dangerous tools in the right hands.  Enough can be said without giving anything away at all, while just the right words can put you on the entirely wrong track.  Again, absolutely brilliant.
3. Hercule Poirot.  He is my favorite out of all of Christie's detectives.
4. The ending.  IT IS GREAT.
5. Poirot's characteristic step-by-step method of revealing the criminal at the end of the novel.  It never gets tiring.

Things I didn't like about this book:

1. The unnecessarily long Mahjong scene.  It could have been cut in half, maybe even one-third.
2. Not necessarily something I didn't like about the book, but Mrs. Ackroyd (Roger Ackroyd's sister-in-law) is incredibly incredibly incredibly annoying.  I wanted her to go away every time she started speaking.

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I LOVED THIS NOVEL!  Hands down my favorite mystery out of all of the Christie novels I have read.  I always enjoy her novels, but I can't ever remember being this excited and so ready to recommend one of her novels to others as I am right now.  It's been a long time since I've finished a book with a new perspective on how to read books, and I loved that it is a great reminder of the importance of being a critical reader.  As a reader, you must always analyze and be skeptical of every word you read, even in fiction.  True, it can be argued that fiction is fiction and thus not reality, but we learn a lot about our reality from fiction (at least I do), so why not look at it with the most critical eye possible?  You'll finish the book having learned more, and, as Poirot says, your "little gray cells" will probably thank you for it.  And you'll hopefully find yourself a tad bit smarter as a result.  
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Recommend?  YES!!!  Very short and quick read, so no excuses will fly!

#22: Cat Among the Pigeons

Christie, Agatha: Cat Among the Pigeons. New York: Black Dog & Leventhal, 1959. Print. 297 pages.
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SETTING: Majority of the novel takes place at the Meadowbank School for Girls (fictional institution) in England, but significant parts also occur in Ramat, an incredibly wealthy country in the Middle East.
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SUMMARY: The murders of teachers at the prestigious Meadowbank School for Girls are believed to be tied to the earlier death of the Prince of Ramat and a set of missing jewels worth three-quarters of a million pounds (assuming this is the 1950s value; worth multiple millions in today's currency, at the very least).
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FAVORITE QUOTE: "Miss Johnson had had a sizable dollop of brandy administered to her to pull her together after her discovery of the body.  The result was a slightly added loquacity." - Chapter 8, page 111.
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I thought I had read all the Hercule Poirot mysteries by Agatha Christie because I read the Hercule Poirot Casebook, but I idiotically failed to pay attention to the fact that those are a collection of 50 Poirot short stories Christie wrote, and not a collection of all of her novels featuring Poirot.  In retrospect, that was a VERY stupid thing to miss, seeing as I had read some of her Poirot novels before, and they were all definitely lengthier than any of the individual stories in the Casebook.  Anyhow, I'm glad I was mistaken because Poirot is my favorite detective in Christie's mystery novels, and it's great to know I haven't exhausted all of the Poirot novels in existence.  I checked this book out of the local library in my hometown yesterday and finished it yesterday.  Yes, that should be an indication of how much I love Agatha Christie's work.  I eagerly fly through them in a single day if given the time!  And, might I add, it's fantastic having so much time on hand!  Winter break is AWESOME.
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Things I liked about this book:

1. Agatha Christie!!!  One of my favorite authors.  Hands down.
2. Hercule Poirot!!!  One of my favorite detectives.  Hands down.
3. The espionage element of the book.
4. Parts of the book take place internationally.  Christie's novels are great because they take you to different parts of the world.
5. Julia Upjohn's character.  She's one of the few sharp pupils introduced from the School.
6. What they end up doing with the stash of jewels.  The story concludes nicely :)

Things I didn't like about this book:

1. Poirot is not brought into the novel early enough.  I really love his character, and was patiently waiting for him to pop up, and he did so in the last quarter or so of the novel.  I was disappointed by that!  The more Poirot, the better.
2. The storyline was a bit too simple.  Would have enjoyed a more complex mystery.

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I thoroughly enjoyed this book!  It's a very quick and satisfying read, and Christie delivered, as usual.  I LOVE AGATHA CHRISTIE.  I did a book report on her in 4th or 5th grade after my mother introduced me to one of her novels, and I've been in love with her books ever since.  When I'm looking for a comfortable read that'll take me to a fantastical place, Christie's books are my first go to.
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Recommend?  YES!  I love all Hercule Poirot mysteries by Agatha Christie, so a definite, hearty YES!