Tag Archives: audiobooks

Audiobook Mini-Reviews: Two by Christie

24 Nov

‘Tis the season for road trips and Agatha Christie audiobooks! My husband and I recently traveled to his mom’s for a pre-Thanksgiving visit and then on to a college football game. Accompanying us was Agatha Christie’s famed detective, Hercule Poirot. Hugh Fraser’s narration is a must for us, but the book he read, Appointment with Death, was not a hit. Poirot did not show up until the book was about 2/3’s of the way finished. He took the accounts of the characters and came to his conclusion, one that came out of left field for us. I think we would have enjoyed the book more if Poirot had been involved more.

It has been busy-busy at my house and finding time for exercise has been challenging. But with Hercule as a walking partner, I have a great excuse to get out and moving. Dumb Witness is Hercule at his finest. Colonel Hastings is also along for the ride and the story is told from his perspective. I love his little asides about Poirot’s idiosyncracies. The mystery kept me engaged and guessing and it was not far-fetched.

Do you listen to audiobooks while traveling, commuting or exercising?

What are your favorites?

 

51k1-ngydgl-_sx330_bo1204203200_Among the towering red cliffs of Petra, like some monstrous swollen Buddha, sits the corpse of Mrs.Boynton. A tiny puncture mark on her wrist is the only sign of the fatal injection that killed her.

With only 24 hours available to solve the mystery, Hercule Poirot recalled a chance remark he’d overheard back in Jerusalem: “You see, don’t you, that she’s got to be killed?” Mrs. Boynton was, indeed, the most detestable woman he’d ever met . . . .

 

 

51o-ktmw8xl-_sx326_bo1204203200_Miss Emily was old, rich, and afraid – and now, she’s dead. Her terrified plea to Hercule Poirot came a little too late. All that’s left is a house full of greedy heirs, and a very strange letter that could solve the mystery – or add to it.

This title was previously published as Poirot Loses a Client.

Roadtrip “Reading” — Agatha Christie Audiobooks

13 Oct

My husband and I have been on the road so much for the past few months. We have made trips to Virginia (twice), Florida, Colorado, Massachusetts and Mississippi. Whew! People did say we would have more time when the nest was truly empty! Well, of all of those destinations, only two didn’t involve kids ;).

Our audiobook listening didn’t start up again until this past weekend. We made the rounds of Mississippi, visiting friends and family and celebrating with our youngest son and his fiancée. Accompanying our road trip was Hercule Poirot. We have been systematically listening to Agatha Christie’s series in order of publication, but got a bit out of order on this trip. We listened to Cards on The Table set in the mid-1930s and The Third Girl set in the early 1960s. In the first novel, Poirot is in his prime and a well-known detective; the other novel features a Poirot confronted with the assertion that he is too old. In both novels, Poirot rules the day and exposes the bad guys. We really enjoyed Cards on The Table. The Third Girl — not so much. It was just too far-fetched with much of the evidence withheld from the reader until the very end. As always, Hugh Fraser did a wonderful job of bringing Poirot to life. A recurring character, Ariadne Oliver, also brought a good dose of levity.

While we enjoy traveling with Poirot, we would not recommend The Third Girl. However, Cards on The Table was one of our most enjoyable reads.

51ticept0sl-_sx326_bo1204203200_Mr. Shaitana is famous as a flamboyant party host. Nevertheless, he is a man of whom everybody is a little afraid. So when he boasts to Hercule Poirot that he considers murder an art form, the detective has some reservations about accepting a party invitation to view Shaitana’s private collection. Indeed, what begins as an absorbing evening of bridge will turn into a more dangerous game altogether.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

51qqqm5gfil-_sx329_bo1204203200_A perplexed girl thinks she might have killed someone . . . . Three single girls shared the same London flat. The first worked as a secretary; the second was an artist; the third who came to Poirot for help, disappeared convinced she was a murderer. Now there were rumours of revolvers, flick-knives and blood stains. But, without hard evidence, it would take all Poirot’s tenacity to establish whether the third girl was guilty innocent or insane . . . .