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The Gipsy: an Agatha Christie Short Story
Dickie Carpenter has a phobia of gipsies stemming from a terrifying childhood encounter. When his fears come back to haunt him, should he be frightened, or could a gipsy prove to be his salvation?
Librarian's note: previously published in the print anthologies, The Golden Ball and Other Stories, and The Hound of Death and Other Stories.
Librarian's note: previously published in the print anthologies, The Golden Ball and Other Stories, and The Hound of Death and Other Stories.
27 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1933
5 people are currently reading
278 people want to read
About the author
Agatha Christie
5,098 books76k 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 61 reviews
February 1, 2023
Fate, fortunetelling, reincarnation, and true love.
Dickie Carpenter is terrified of gypsies. Why?
He's been having dreams since he was a child of a gypsy that frightens him. When he runs into her in his waking hours as an adult, it changes the course of his life.
He confides in his friend, Macfarlane, who is the narrator of the story, and he recounts Dickie's tale to the reader.
After meeting a Mrs. Haworth at a dinner party, Dickie recognizes her as the woman he has seen in his dreams since childhood. Each time they meet she warns Dickie not to do certain things, and each time her warings are proven to be warranted.
She finally warns Dickie not to have a surgery.
At this point in the story, Macfarlane decides to pay her a visit and find out what her connection to his friend is really about.
I like the ending to this one!
A spooky sort of romance from the Queen of Mystery.
Originally published in 1933 in The Hound of Death and Other Stories.
Read as part of the short story collections The Last Seance: Tales of the Supernatural & The Golden Ball and Other Stories.
Dickie Carpenter is terrified of gypsies. Why?
He's been having dreams since he was a child of a gypsy that frightens him. When he runs into her in his waking hours as an adult, it changes the course of his life.
He confides in his friend, Macfarlane, who is the narrator of the story, and he recounts Dickie's tale to the reader.
After meeting a Mrs. Haworth at a dinner party, Dickie recognizes her as the woman he has seen in his dreams since childhood. Each time they meet she warns Dickie not to do certain things, and each time her warings are proven to be warranted.
She finally warns Dickie not to have a surgery.
At this point in the story, Macfarlane decides to pay her a visit and find out what her connection to his friend is really about.
I like the ending to this one!
A spooky sort of romance from the Queen of Mystery.
Originally published in 1933 in The Hound of Death and Other Stories.
Read as part of the short story collections The Last Seance: Tales of the Supernatural & The Golden Ball and Other Stories.
January 1, 2019
Not my usual Christie reading but it was good.
February 13, 2021
After breaking his engagement, a man opens up to a close friend. It turns out his breakup isn't just about the woman involved, but more to do with a sort of nightmare the friend has endured his entire life. This short, spooky tale was first published in Agatha Christie's short story collection, The Hound of Death, in 1933 (UK). It did not appear in print in the United States until 1971 (The Golden Ball and Other Stories).
The idea of fate is an interesting one. Can a person be saved from their fate if someone knows that outcome ahead of time? Or is fate sealed? It took me about half this story to understand what Christie was getting at....but once I saw it, it hit home. That was the way she crafted the story....not letting the reader grasp if this was about a ghost, a vision, fate/fortune....or maybe a mix of all of it. Interesting! And very entertaining!
I could not find an audio version of The Hound of Death story collection, so listened to this short story in an audio book of The Golden Ball and Other Stories. Only when I reached the tales in GB that were included in Hound of Death did I discover the audio was taken from a prior HOD audiobook. These stories are narrated by Christopher Lee! I love that man's voice -- he does horror, fantasy and supernatural stories SO WELL! Perfect!
BBC4 Radio broadcast a "modernized'' version of this story in the early 2000s. It was "modernized.'' While I applaud the adaptation of Christie's work for radio or television, I don't like it when the stories are fundamentally changed or modernized, so I skipped this one. It's no longer her story if it's radically changed. The modernized versions of 12 of her stories broadcast by BBC4 in the early 2000's are available -- Agatha Christie: 12 Radio Mysteries. So far I have resisted buying this collection because I know the stories have all been altered. I might change my mind at some point....but not yet.
I enjoyed this story. I listened to it twice and found that I missed a couple important lines early in the story. This is one you have to read/listen to carefully to fully understand the ending. Very well told! I'm enjoying these short stories.
The Hound of Death short story collection was first published in 1933 as part of a publisher's publicity campaign. Readers could cut out a coupon in the publisher's magazine and pay seven shillings to receive one of six books. The short stories were later re-published in a version for sale in bookshops in 1936.
The idea of fate is an interesting one. Can a person be saved from their fate if someone knows that outcome ahead of time? Or is fate sealed? It took me about half this story to understand what Christie was getting at....but once I saw it, it hit home. That was the way she crafted the story....not letting the reader grasp if this was about a ghost, a vision, fate/fortune....or maybe a mix of all of it. Interesting! And very entertaining!
I could not find an audio version of The Hound of Death story collection, so listened to this short story in an audio book of The Golden Ball and Other Stories. Only when I reached the tales in GB that were included in Hound of Death did I discover the audio was taken from a prior HOD audiobook. These stories are narrated by Christopher Lee! I love that man's voice -- he does horror, fantasy and supernatural stories SO WELL! Perfect!
BBC4 Radio broadcast a "modernized'' version of this story in the early 2000s. It was "modernized.'' While I applaud the adaptation of Christie's work for radio or television, I don't like it when the stories are fundamentally changed or modernized, so I skipped this one. It's no longer her story if it's radically changed. The modernized versions of 12 of her stories broadcast by BBC4 in the early 2000's are available -- Agatha Christie: 12 Radio Mysteries. So far I have resisted buying this collection because I know the stories have all been altered. I might change my mind at some point....but not yet.
I enjoyed this story. I listened to it twice and found that I missed a couple important lines early in the story. This is one you have to read/listen to carefully to fully understand the ending. Very well told! I'm enjoying these short stories.
The Hound of Death short story collection was first published in 1933 as part of a publisher's publicity campaign. Readers could cut out a coupon in the publisher's magazine and pay seven shillings to receive one of six books. The short stories were later re-published in a version for sale in bookshops in 1936.
January 25, 2020
Not a murder mystery! My 1st Agatha Christie, and awesome! On first listen : a creepy tale about phobias. Second time : a very sad love story about sacrifice and fidelity. It's also a book within a book, where self-will triumphs and is rewarded with true love. Meticulously crafted!
Fave Dialogues :
------------
"Do you believe, Mr. Carpenter, that for every one of us, there is another person, destined to be our sole love and care?"
"Oh, I'm sure of it."
"And what if, for some reason, we should fail to meet that person... or we should meet them at an inappropriate time... and how do we know when we have met that person, how do we know when we have encountered our fate?"
"Best if I know. It's jolly hard sometimes to know what one's feeling. Whether one's feeling what one thinks it is, or... Well, then, this is where we must part."
"Yes."
=============
=============
"Is this the power to see things before they happen?"
"Yes! Forwards or backwards, past and future - it's all the same... There is another existence. And time there doesn't merely stream past in a regular even flow. Rather it runs like a mighty river, deep and unpredictable, its currents and undertones likely to pull us in unexpected directions. And it sweeps us along, only to return us to the point we thought we'd passed long ago. And no matter how many times we drown, we never truly die. We go where we are taken - backwards, forwards, slaves of time... We have all been here before."
"But if you're right -"
"I am right."
"Then there's nothing we can do about our fate."
"Precisely. We try, and we fail."
"That's pretty harsh."
"Yes. It's a harsh universe, with perhaps one consolation."
"Oh?"
"Love. The beautiful, all-consuming forgetfulness of love. You are in love, aren't you?"
"Yes, I am."
.
Fave Dialogues :
------------
"Do you believe, Mr. Carpenter, that for every one of us, there is another person, destined to be our sole love and care?"
"Oh, I'm sure of it."
"And what if, for some reason, we should fail to meet that person... or we should meet them at an inappropriate time... and how do we know when we have met that person, how do we know when we have encountered our fate?"
"Best if I know. It's jolly hard sometimes to know what one's feeling. Whether one's feeling what one thinks it is, or... Well, then, this is where we must part."
"Yes."
=============
=============
"Is this the power to see things before they happen?"
"Yes! Forwards or backwards, past and future - it's all the same... There is another existence. And time there doesn't merely stream past in a regular even flow. Rather it runs like a mighty river, deep and unpredictable, its currents and undertones likely to pull us in unexpected directions. And it sweeps us along, only to return us to the point we thought we'd passed long ago. And no matter how many times we drown, we never truly die. We go where we are taken - backwards, forwards, slaves of time... We have all been here before."
"But if you're right -"
"I am right."
"Then there's nothing we can do about our fate."
"Precisely. We try, and we fail."
"That's pretty harsh."
"Yes. It's a harsh universe, with perhaps one consolation."
"Oh?"
"Love. The beautiful, all-consuming forgetfulness of love. You are in love, aren't you?"
"Yes, I am."
.
January 19, 2018
ეს მოთხრობა აგათა კრისტის კიდევ ერთი შედევრია. მოთრობას განსაკუთრებულ ელფერს სძენს ასევე ის, რომ მასში ვერც პუაროს შეხვდებით და ვერც მის მარპლს. აქ გამომძიებელი თქვენ ხართ, თქვენზეა დამოკიდებული, თუ როგორ გაიგებთ ტექსტს (მართალია, აგათა ბოლოსკენ მაინც ხსნის საიდუმლოს, თუმცა სანამ ბოლო ნაწილს მიადგებით, მთლიანად იკარგებით მოთხრობის ჯადოსნურობაში).
ნაწარმოებში იდეალურადაა წარმოჩენილი კარპენტერის შიში და მაკფერლეინისა და მისის ჰავორტის უცნაური ნიჭი. აგათა კვლავაც და კვლავაც ავლენს თავის წერის უბადლო ნიჭს. მოთხრობაში აგათა მერი კლარისა მილერი რთავს მრავალ ჟანრს, თუმცა მათ შორის გამოსარჩევია მისტიკა (ისევე, როგორც აგათას სხვა ნაწარმოებებში).
პ.ს. ვერ ვხვდები, რატომ აქვს მოთხრობას Goodreads-ზე ასეთი დაბალი შეფასება (3,12).
ნაწარმოებში იდეალურადაა წარმოჩენილი კარპენტერის შიში და მაკფერლეინისა და მისის ჰავორტის უცნაური ნიჭი. აგათა კვლავაც და კვლავაც ავლენს თავის წერის უბადლო ნიჭს. მოთხრობაში აგათა მერი კლარისა მილერი რთავს მრავალ ჟანრს, თუმცა მათ შორის გამოსარჩევია მისტიკა (ისევე, როგორც აგათას სხვა ნაწარმოებებში).
პ.ს. ვერ ვხვდები, რატომ აქვს მოთხრობას Goodreads-ზე ასეთი დაბალი შეფასება (3,12).
July 5, 2019
I didn't like it one little bit. A book about the supernatural . I totally understand why she switched to her trademark mysteries.
December 27, 2020
After listening to this - and rewinding several times - I still had no idea what this story was all about. Something to to with a gipsy (obviously), but I did not have a clue what the connection was to the death.
Audiobook
About 24 minutes
NOTE: I've noticed that I don't seem to care much for Christopher Lee's narrations. All of his voices are too similar, they drone on and on in my head, and I constantly lose the thread of the story.
Audiobook
About 24 minutes
NOTE: I've noticed that I don't seem to care much for Christopher Lee's narrations. All of his voices are too similar, they drone on and on in my head, and I constantly lose the thread of the story.
November 28, 2015
Another supernatural one. It was ok, again no case to solve. A supernatural mystery, not so interesting.
January 26, 2020
I found it, despite some interesting dialogues, boring.
September 16, 2019
Two young men are engaged to sisters. They talk about their bad dreams and Dickie confesses something odd; all his life a woman wearing a red head scarf has warned him against going across a bridge, or entering a room, or getting engaged. Each time something has happened to him. His fiancee breaks it off after yet another warning.
Later when he’s about to have an operation, there the gypsy is again.
His friend Robert is sceptical. But the first man says she’s real, and he tells him her name, Mrs Alistair Haworth.
***
Christie evidently loved psychics and the supernatural.
This one has a very Gothic feel, reincarnation, fate crossed lovers, pre-determination, the moors and so on.
Rather creepy.
4 stars
Later when he’s about to have an operation, there the gypsy is again.
His friend Robert is sceptical. But the first man says she’s real, and he tells him her name, Mrs Alistair Haworth.
***
Christie evidently loved psychics and the supernatural.
This one has a very Gothic feel, reincarnation, fate crossed lovers, pre-determination, the moors and so on.
Rather creepy.
4 stars
March 13, 2021
Another supernatural tale from Ms. Christie, which are not my favorite. A man meets a woman at a house party and she gives him a warning. He continues to run into her and she continues to warn him against whatever it is he plans to do. When he decides to have surgery, she recommends against it. He tells his friend of all this, just in case something were to happen when he is under the knife. He dies on the operating table and his friend visits the woman to tell her. She tells him the she has visions of the future and says that she shouldn’t see him again. The next morning when he goes to her house, he discovers that she is dead, killed by her husband.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 4, 2019
I love this story, it actually makes me cry. The atmosphere builds nicely to the climax, then you think everything is fine and dandy, but the final word makes you question everything...somehow. Can we truly not change our fate, or can love and hope prevail to save us in the most dire of circumstances? It seems that it can, but like any good story, this one keeps you thinking after the end, and I found myself wondering if the reality presented was in fact real. Great read.
August 21, 2016
Could have been great, was a short story
January 2, 2017
A bit dark story more than her usual ones. The idea was beautiful, yet it was somewhat too much, specially that the ending.
May 30, 2017
Strange tale....
March 8, 2019
Loved the supernatural elements in this story but not not the story. Weird ending.
October 6, 2019
2.5/5
March 30, 2020
Read 2020
June 12, 2021
Very sad little story from Agatha Christie.
Did not expect it.
September 1, 2024
The Gipsy: A Short Story by Agatha Christie
First published in 1933
GR thumbnail -
Dickie Carpenter has a phobia of gipsies stemming from a terrifying childhood encounter. When his fears come back to haunt him, should he be frightened, or could a gipsy prove to be his salvation?
My thoughts -
Here, AC delves into the realm of the supernatural again. This time the tale involves soothsaying among other things. Nicely done and recommended. Therefore, 4 stars - meaning - Very Good - better than most - as per my individualized rating system.
First published in 1933
GR thumbnail -
Dickie Carpenter has a phobia of gipsies stemming from a terrifying childhood encounter. When his fears come back to haunt him, should he be frightened, or could a gipsy prove to be his salvation?
My thoughts -
Here, AC delves into the realm of the supernatural again. This time the tale involves soothsaying among other things. Nicely done and recommended. Therefore, 4 stars - meaning - Very Good - better than most - as per my individualized rating system.
August 26, 2020
the Last Séance: Tales of the Supernatural
My Rating System:
* couldn't finish, ** wouldn't recommend, *** would recommend, **** would read again, ***** have read again.
My Rating System:
* couldn't finish, ** wouldn't recommend, *** would recommend, **** would read again, ***** have read again.
August 18, 2021
Gipsies creep a guy out, he trusts a surgeon and croaks. Now if he'd been creeped out by surgeons. . . . Then a Scotsman sees some bloody rocks, the gipsy drinks herself to death, the end. . . . If you could cheat fate it wouldn't be fate.
December 4, 2021
Dickie Carter is haunted by a recurring vision of a dark gypsy woman. Every time the gypsy warns Dickie and he doesn’t follow her advice, things go terribly wrong.
I was both bored and confused by this story. Too much focus on the supernatural.
I was both bored and confused by this story. Too much focus on the supernatural.
February 12, 2018
Another short dramatization of a Christie gothic-feel short story.
December 3, 2019
I'm pleasantly lost about the end of this - did he die or is it meant to be ambiguous?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 22, 2020
Want to see more...
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Quick and delightful
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Quick and delightful
June 19, 2020
Kind of an odd story about a gentleman believed he is cursed by a gypsy. The gypsy has a gift. I found it quite similar to the principle of Stephen King’s The Shining/ Dr Sleep
January 31, 2021
Just odd
September 30, 2021
Very much again confused lo l
April 1, 2022
I legit don't know what the purpose of this story was...
Displaying 1 - 30 of 61 reviews