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Tommy & Tuppence #2.12
The Unbreakable Alibi: A Short Story
Previously published in the print anthology Partners in Crime.
A woman wants to prove that she was in two different places at the same time! Tommy and Tuppence are on the case.
36 pages, Unknown Binding
First published January 1, 1929
About the author
Agatha Christie
6,075 books78k followersAgatha Christie also wrote romance novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott, and was occasionally published under the name Agatha Christie Mallowan.
Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (née Miller) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She also wrote the world's longest-running play, the murder mystery The Mousetrap, which has been performed in the West End of London since 1952. A writer during the "Golden Age of Detective Fiction", Christie has been called the "Queen of Crime". She also wrote six novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. In 1971, she was made a Dame (DBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for her contributions to literature. Guinness World Records lists Christie as the best-selling fiction writer of all time, her novels having sold more than two billion copies.
This best-selling author of all time wrote 66 crime novels and story collections, fourteen plays, and six novels under a pseudonym in romance. Her books sold more than a billion copies in the English language and a billion in translation. According to Index Translationum, people translated her works into 103 languages at least, the most for an individual author. Of the most enduring figures in crime literature, she created Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple. She atuhored The Mousetrap, the longest-running play in the history of modern theater.
Associated Names:
Agata Christie
Agata Kristi
Агата Кристи (Russian)
Агата Крісті (Ukrainian)
Αγκάθα Κρίστι (Greek)
アガサ クリスティ (Japanese)
阿嘉莎·克莉絲蒂 (Chinese)
Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (née Miller) was an English writer known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. She also wrote the world's longest-running play, the murder mystery The Mousetrap, which has been performed in the West End of London since 1952. A writer during the "Golden Age of Detective Fiction", Christie has been called the "Queen of Crime". She also wrote six novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott. In 1971, she was made a Dame (DBE) by Queen Elizabeth II for her contributions to literature. Guinness World Records lists Christie as the best-selling fiction writer of all time, her novels having sold more than two billion copies.
This best-selling author of all time wrote 66 crime novels and story collections, fourteen plays, and six novels under a pseudonym in romance. Her books sold more than a billion copies in the English language and a billion in translation. According to Index Translationum, people translated her works into 103 languages at least, the most for an individual author. Of the most enduring figures in crime literature, she created Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple. She atuhored The Mousetrap, the longest-running play in the history of modern theater.
Associated Names:
Agata Christie
Agata Kristi
Агата Кристи (Russian)
Агата Крісті (Ukrainian)
Αγκάθα Κρίστι (Greek)
アガサ クリスティ (Japanese)
阿嘉莎·克莉絲蒂 (Chinese)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
June 25, 2024
A mystery without a crime.
A well-off (but not very bright) young man comes in to get a bit of help winning a bet and hopefully the girl of his dreams.
A smart and sassy Australian woman bets Montgomery Jones that he can't prove that she wasn't in TWO places at the same time.
And while a first glance it does indeed seem that this lovely young lady has superpowers, the Beresfords aren't ones to be easily fooled.
In this Tommy tries to imitate Freeman Wills Crofts' Scotland Yard detective Inspector French. I'm not at all familiar with him, so I have no idea if poor old Tommy succeeds or not.
He and Tuppence (but mostly Tuppence) do, however, succeed in solving the case.
Originally published in 1928's Holly Leaves, which was the Christmas special of the magazine, Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News.
Read as part of the short story collection Partners in Crime.
A well-off (but not very bright) young man comes in to get a bit of help winning a bet and hopefully the girl of his dreams.
A smart and sassy Australian woman bets Montgomery Jones that he can't prove that she wasn't in TWO places at the same time.
And while a first glance it does indeed seem that this lovely young lady has superpowers, the Beresfords aren't ones to be easily fooled.
In this Tommy tries to imitate Freeman Wills Crofts' Scotland Yard detective Inspector French. I'm not at all familiar with him, so I have no idea if poor old Tommy succeeds or not.
He and Tuppence (but mostly Tuppence) do, however, succeed in solving the case.
Originally published in 1928's Holly Leaves, which was the Christmas special of the magazine, Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News.
Read as part of the short story collection Partners in Crime.
October 25, 2018
Interesting and well written!
I haven’t read anything by Agatha Christie before but now I really want to read more of her work. ❤️
I haven’t read anything by Agatha Christie before but now I really want to read more of her work. ❤️
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May 22, 2025i'm sorry, but isn't hiring detectives to win your bet technically cheating 🤨?
February 19, 2022
Fallet var lite för enkelt att lösa och samspelet mellan Tommy och Tuppence kändes löjligt, tyvärr. Så slutsatsen är att novellen var okej, men inte mer.
August 17, 2021
I can't believe it took me this long to realise how fun reading Agatha Christie could be!
September 28, 2015
Löste gåtan efter typ 10 sidor, så kan jag bli Sherlock Holmes nya assistent nu?
(låt oss ignorera det faktum att typ alla andra som skrivit recensioner på den här novellen på Goodreads tydligen också hade löst gåtan innan den tog slut. Aldrig får man känna sig smart...)
Förutom att gåtan var väldigt lättlöst så var det en bra novell. Inget spektakulärt, men absolut läsvärt! Speciellt eftersom man får känna sig lite smart
(låt oss ignorera det faktum att typ alla andra som skrivit recensioner på den här novellen på Goodreads tydligen också hade löst gåtan innan den tog slut. Aldrig får man känna sig smart...)
Förutom att gåtan var väldigt lättlöst så var det en bra novell. Inget spektakulärt, men absolut läsvärt! Speciellt eftersom man får känna sig lite smart
September 26, 2015
Helt klart underhållande och en väldigt klyftig läsning.
August 12, 2022
A fun and slightly silly little story.
December 1, 2024
Kom igen! Vad var det för alibi? Finns ju så mycket bättre alibin
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 30, 2017
Blev lite besviken på slutet. Hade gärna velat veta hur Montgomery Jones och den unga damen reagerade. I övrigt en klassisk pusseldeckare i miniformat.
April 26, 2017
Fluff!
October 29, 2015
Jag är verkligen sämst på att lösa deckarmysterier, men det här löste jag efter bara ett par sidor. Extremt förutsebart. Hoppas att de andra novellerna är bättre, för jag blev väldigt besviken på den här.
August 11, 2016
The solution was WAY too simple! I was yelling at T&T as soon as their client finished his story.
January 2, 2026
A perfect short story that reflects the detective duo we know as Tommy and Tuppence Beresford.
Full of stereotypical gender and character types and awash with social memes of this time.
Previously published in the print anthology “Partners in Crime” (c1929).
Available also as an ebook since 2013 and now part of a set of twelve Devonshire mysteries in “Country Christie” (Sept 2025).
These short stories are often a hit or a miss for me but are a good introduction to the wide range of Christie’s writing. They are delightfully enjoyed by this author’s fans and me at times, some I have found are real gems.
All have something to offer the crime aficionado.
This one poses one of the stumbling blocks in this type of fiction. Forget the locked room case; how do you solve a puzzle with an unbreakable alibi?
Christie has fun with the process and allows Tommy and Tuppence to play detective. Of course the solution has been copied many times in the almost 100 years since this story was written. You may think as a modern reader of this genre, it is obvious. This doesn’t distract from the story; for me it reflects well on the genius that was Agatha Christie.
Full of stereotypical gender and character types and awash with social memes of this time.
Previously published in the print anthology “Partners in Crime” (c1929).
Available also as an ebook since 2013 and now part of a set of twelve Devonshire mysteries in “Country Christie” (Sept 2025).
These short stories are often a hit or a miss for me but are a good introduction to the wide range of Christie’s writing. They are delightfully enjoyed by this author’s fans and me at times, some I have found are real gems.
All have something to offer the crime aficionado.
This one poses one of the stumbling blocks in this type of fiction. Forget the locked room case; how do you solve a puzzle with an unbreakable alibi?
Christie has fun with the process and allows Tommy and Tuppence to play detective. Of course the solution has been copied many times in the almost 100 years since this story was written. You may think as a modern reader of this genre, it is obvious. This doesn’t distract from the story; for me it reflects well on the genius that was Agatha Christie.
April 28, 2021
tt vattentätt alibi är en novell som inte passade mig. Det är en klassisk gåta som går ut på att knäcka ett alibi (fast det gäller inte ens ett brott). På dessa få sidor hann jag inte bli intresserad av mysteriet. Det blev aldrig spännande, bara en lång radda av olika tider och olika alternativ för alibi. Lösningen på mysteriet var också den enklaste tänkbara, i alla fall om man läser spänningslitteratur…
Möjligen så läste jag den helt enkelt för snabbt, men Agatha Christie brukar ha förmåga att fånga läsaren relativt snabbt. Det var en nackdel att huvudpersonerna var Tommy och Tuppence, de huvudkaraktärer som jag tycker är minst intressanta av de som Agatha Christie skriver om. Minst intressanta, och minst engagerande.
Självklart kommer jag att läsa de övriga tre novellerna i paketet, och mer av Agatha Christie. Nästa gång kanske jag har lägre förväntningar.
Betyg: 2
https://lottensbokblogg.wordpress.com...
Möjligen så läste jag den helt enkelt för snabbt, men Agatha Christie brukar ha förmåga att fånga läsaren relativt snabbt. Det var en nackdel att huvudpersonerna var Tommy och Tuppence, de huvudkaraktärer som jag tycker är minst intressanta av de som Agatha Christie skriver om. Minst intressanta, och minst engagerande.
Självklart kommer jag att läsa de övriga tre novellerna i paketet, och mer av Agatha Christie. Nästa gång kanske jag har lägre förväntningar.
Betyg: 2
https://lottensbokblogg.wordpress.com...
October 22, 2022
En snabbläst och charmig liten historia om Blunts Briljanta Detektivbyrå och ett fall där någon befinner sig på två platser samtidigt.
Gulligt och smart, men det märks att folk inspirerats genom tiderna att använda Agatha Christies idéer till egna verk. Såhär 2022 känns det inte lika omvälvande, även om det tveklöst är fyndigt skrivet.
Gulligt och smart, men det märks att folk inspirerats genom tiderna att använda Agatha Christies idéer till egna verk. Såhär 2022 känns det inte lika omvälvande, även om det tveklöst är fyndigt skrivet.
April 9, 2023
Det ubrydelige alibi af Agatha Christie ⭐️⭐️⭐️ ~
Endnu en lille ferienovelle fra @novellix.dk - og selvom jeg ikke har læst andet Agatha Christie end Mordet på Orient Ekspressen, er sproget og stilen umådeligt velkendt og hyggeligt. Dog skal man ikke regne med det store mysterie, den er hurtigt regnet ud, men blot læses for sproget og nostalgien. #agathachristie #detubrydeligealibi
Endnu en lille ferienovelle fra @novellix.dk - og selvom jeg ikke har læst andet Agatha Christie end Mordet på Orient Ekspressen, er sproget og stilen umådeligt velkendt og hyggeligt. Dog skal man ikke regne med det store mysterie, den er hurtigt regnet ud, men blot læses for sproget og nostalgien. #agathachristie #detubrydeligealibi
December 22, 2022
Another rollicking Tommy and Tuppence story. In this case they need to decide which alibi is correct. What ai did enjoy about this Agatha Christie story is that it enabled you to not only follow the plot but try to figure out the answer.
June 14, 2026
U potpunosti atipicna prica koja donosi jednu zagonetku koja njje ni blizu zlocinu. Ali upravo zbog toga prica je originalna i zanimljiva. Svidjela mi se i usudio bih je se nazvati i najboljom dosad. Iako sam dosao i sam do rjesenja jer je bilo jedno jedino moguce u tom slucaju.
November 2, 2017
Even een leuk tussendoortje. Mijn eerste van Agatha Christie en ik hoop dat er in de toekomst meer zullen volgen.
December 3, 2017
Klassisk Christiehistoria. Inte så farligt eller spännande. Känns som serien Par i Hjärter, med Bruce Willis, som gick på 80-talet. Inte riktigt min grej, men gulligt på ett oförargligt sätt.
September 28, 2018
Cute and enjoyable story.
March 24, 2019
Agatha Christie is the best!
December 28, 2020
Härlig liten novell från Christie. Älskar personkemin mellan detektivparet, så nyanserade karaktärer på så några sidor. Slutet såg jag från MILS avstånd, men ändå bra och tillfredsställande.
February 4, 2021
Jag giller verkligen dessa små mysterier och häpnas över hur mycket information och känsla man kan få in på så få sidor.
August 30, 2022
Trevlig plot och infallsvinkel. Och helt ok upplösning.
December 29, 2022
Jeg gættede svaret på gåden i starten af bogen, og så forsvandt spændingen lidt
August 16, 2023
Vanaf het begin al duidelijk wat de oplossing moet zijn. Wel heel langdradig beschreven
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September 10, 2023En trivsam historia även om till och med jag kunde räkna ut hur det låg till innan dom gjorde det.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews