#61 The Big Four by Agatha Christie
Solving murder mysteries is an every day occurrence for Detective Hercule Poirot, but how will his “little grey cells” measure up 
against four brilliant adversaries? Poirot and Arthur Hastings first learn about the existence of The Big Four when approached by a stranger who unfortunately dies before he is able to reveal the whole truth. Poirot soon finds himself obsessed with unmasking and defeating The Big Four. Will our hero emerge victorious, or will he find himself as one of the Four's victims?
Agatha Christie is the author I usually turn to when I find myself in the mood for a mystery. Unfortunately, it's impossible to write as much as Christie did during her in lifetime without occasionally coming across a dud. Unlike other Poirot novels, the storyline in The Big Four reminded me less of a quirky murder mystery, and more of James Bond. Although I typically applaud authors for trying something new, it's a risk that doesn't always pan out. Hastings and Poirot are unconvincing as action stars, and the elements that normally make Poirot's cases so compelling are noticeably absent. Part of Poirot’s appeal is although we watch his methods, we never see his master plan until it is revealed to us, in all it's impressive intricacy, at the end of the book. In this novel, there is no satisfying build up of evidence for us to follow. Instead there are several mysteries that are solved at a rapid pace. This time Poirot's solutions seem less brilliant than haphazardly thrown together. The fact that he is always right in in his reasoning seems less impressive than contrived.
Another area where the novel falls short is characterization. Christie's books are typically populated with fun, quirky characters who are made more intriguing when you realize that any one of them could be the killer. The members of the Big Four on the other hand never develop much above bland, mustache twirling villains. This is particularly disappointing given that one of the villains is basically an evil Marie Curie, which has the potential to be so much fun. I discovered after reading this, that The Big Four was originally published as a series of short works, which would explain the somewhat choppy nature of the plot, something I found irritating while reading the book. The Big Four ends up coming across as rather repetitive, with far too many scenes of Poirot running to the rescue, and Hastings getting knocked out. The novel has a rushed feeling from beginning to end which seriously weakens the ending.
It's true that Christie's early novels are not her greatest, but The Big Four is the first one of the the early Poirot cases I've come about to fail for me on pretty much every level. It's one strength is it's length. At just north of two hundred pages, it's a relatively quick read. Still, if you're thinking about getting into works by Agatha Christie, I would not recommend starting here at all.
Rating: one and a half stars
Length: 208 pages
Source: paperbackswap
Other books I've read by this author: The Tuesday Club Murders, Dead Man’s Mirror, They Came to Baghdad, 4:50 to Paddington, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Sleeping Murder, The Secret Adversary, The Secret of Chimneys, Hallowe’en Party, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, Death Comes as the End, Appointment with Death, A Caribbean Mystery, A Murder is Announced, The Under Dog and Other Stories, Death on the Nile, Murder on the Orient Express, Death in the Air, Murder in Three Acts, Murder in Mesopotamia, Evil Under the Sun, And Then There were None, Murder on the Links
Next I will be reviewing Fables, Vol 8: Wolves by Bill Willingham and Morning Glories, Vol 1: For a Better Future by Nick Spenser
xposted to temporaryworlds, bookish, and goodreads
against four brilliant adversaries? Poirot and Arthur Hastings first learn about the existence of The Big Four when approached by a stranger who unfortunately dies before he is able to reveal the whole truth. Poirot soon finds himself obsessed with unmasking and defeating The Big Four. Will our hero emerge victorious, or will he find himself as one of the Four's victims?
Agatha Christie is the author I usually turn to when I find myself in the mood for a mystery. Unfortunately, it's impossible to write as much as Christie did during her in lifetime without occasionally coming across a dud. Unlike other Poirot novels, the storyline in The Big Four reminded me less of a quirky murder mystery, and more of James Bond. Although I typically applaud authors for trying something new, it's a risk that doesn't always pan out. Hastings and Poirot are unconvincing as action stars, and the elements that normally make Poirot's cases so compelling are noticeably absent. Part of Poirot’s appeal is although we watch his methods, we never see his master plan until it is revealed to us, in all it's impressive intricacy, at the end of the book. In this novel, there is no satisfying build up of evidence for us to follow. Instead there are several mysteries that are solved at a rapid pace. This time Poirot's solutions seem less brilliant than haphazardly thrown together. The fact that he is always right in in his reasoning seems less impressive than contrived.
Another area where the novel falls short is characterization. Christie's books are typically populated with fun, quirky characters who are made more intriguing when you realize that any one of them could be the killer. The members of the Big Four on the other hand never develop much above bland, mustache twirling villains. This is particularly disappointing given that one of the villains is basically an evil Marie Curie, which has the potential to be so much fun. I discovered after reading this, that The Big Four was originally published as a series of short works, which would explain the somewhat choppy nature of the plot, something I found irritating while reading the book. The Big Four ends up coming across as rather repetitive, with far too many scenes of Poirot running to the rescue, and Hastings getting knocked out. The novel has a rushed feeling from beginning to end which seriously weakens the ending.
It's true that Christie's early novels are not her greatest, but The Big Four is the first one of the the early Poirot cases I've come about to fail for me on pretty much every level. It's one strength is it's length. At just north of two hundred pages, it's a relatively quick read. Still, if you're thinking about getting into works by Agatha Christie, I would not recommend starting here at all.
Rating: one and a half stars
Length: 208 pages
Source: paperbackswap
Other books I've read by this author: The Tuesday Club Murders, Dead Man’s Mirror, They Came to Baghdad, 4:50 to Paddington, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Sleeping Murder, The Secret Adversary, The Secret of Chimneys, Hallowe’en Party, The Mysterious Affair at Styles, Death Comes as the End, Appointment with Death, A Caribbean Mystery, A Murder is Announced, The Under Dog and Other Stories, Death on the Nile, Murder on the Orient Express, Death in the Air, Murder in Three Acts, Murder in Mesopotamia, Evil Under the Sun, And Then There were None, Murder on the Links
Next I will be reviewing Fables, Vol 8: Wolves by Bill Willingham and Morning Glories, Vol 1: For a Better Future by Nick Spenser
xposted to temporaryworlds, bookish, and goodreads