Tara ’s Comments (group member since Jul 12, 2017)

Tara ’s comments from the Reading the Detectives group.

Listening to The Murder Room by P.D. James. Its not up for our group read until December, but its the only James book currently available from my library. So far I'm enjoying it for the mere fact that the narrator is not Penelope Dellaporta, who has narrated all of the audiobooks in the series thus far, and who has a whiny, irritating voice.

I've never heard of this game either, and I think adults should bring it back!
I did apple bobbing as kid in the 80s, but I was never very good at it. Certainly not a game for these infectious times.

Ellen wrote: "I just finished Dorothy and Jack: The Transforming Friendship of Dorothy L. Sayers and C. S. Lewis by Gina Dalfonzo. Since I am a big fan of both of these authors i..."

This looks interesting Ellen. Is it a collection of their letters, or more of a biographical work of their friendship?

Reading Bats in the Belfry which is starting out strong. Who doesn't love a drawing room discussion about how to dispose of a body?

Jessica wrote: "I absolutely loved the scene with the child and the spy glass, but forgot about it instantly. I share the same questions as mentioned above, Sheila’s mother was the connection known beforehand and ..."

Totally agree Jessica. I tend not to like the later Suchet Poirot seasons, but I thought this one was pretty well done (in terms of understanding the storyline), although there were some plot elements made rather obvious early on.

Annabel wrote: "One of the things that always strikes me in this book is that Christie didn't really seem to know much about children. In the opening scene, the fact that there are so many children of different ag..."

Perhaps wishful thinking Annabel. I got the impression, at least from the boys who helped, that they took it as an opportunity to have one over on the girls, so it was more of a prank on their part than helping out per se.

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Oh, Tara. those both look good. My library does not have the Buddy Levy title, but has instead his Labyrinth of Ice: The Triumphant and Tragic Greely Polar Expedition. I recently re..."

I love artic exploration too, so I will have to check out his book on that topic. And it goes without saying that the best non-fiction are the books that read like fiction.

Susan in NC wrote: "Tara wrote: "Susan in NC wrote: "I enjoyed it as a good easy, fun read and listen, but did seem a lot of coincidences- like Colin just happened to be on hand as the girl runs out screaming! And aga..."

Susan, there is a lot of "I don't want to speak ill of the dead, but..." only to proceed to do exactly that.

Sandy wrote: "Tara and Elizabeth, I am also an armchair traveler and have read and enjoyed both those books. I have been to the Peruvian Amazon a couple of times (once for birds, once for fish) and the local air..."

How exciting Sandy! I don't deal very well with either heat/humidity or insects, so the Amazon is definitely not on my short list of travel destinations.

Elizabeth (Alaska) wrote: "Tara, have you read Candice Millard's The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey? Early exploration of an uncharted river by Roosevelt. There is plenty about the Amazon i..."

I have not Elizabeth, although it looks very good. I have Through The Brazilian Wilderness: The President's Last Great Adventure on my bookshelf, and I hope to get to it eventually. I've also read River of Darkness: Francisco Orellana's Legendary Voyage of Death and Discovery Down the Amazon which was excellent.

I wonder if the GA examples of "assisted" suicide have to do with the absence of actual evidence. Perhaps in those cases, the detectives know they could never prove their case in court, and therefore are providing the only form of justice that is likely to occur? Sadly, that case isn't true here, and is that much more egregious given that its committed by a police officer. It also could have been more understandable if the murderer was going after people who had perpetrated crimes during the Holocaust, but what moral standing do you have for straight up revenge against innocents? It makes you wonder why Daniel became a cop in the first place.

Bicky wrote: "Great beginning, decent middle, atrocious end. Absolutely uncalled for and unexplained coincidences.

Like Sandy and Colin I distrust Christie when she meddles with espionage. Can one say she never..."

I enjoyed N or M?, despite not being a huge Tommy and Tuppence fan in general.

Frances wrote: "This was one of my least favourite Poirot's so far-I felt there was too much strange Psychologizing, Mrs Oliver just started to grate on my nerves after a while with her inability to get to the poi..."

I was also reading/listening to 3 Christie books at once, which although I didn't get too muddled, was a bit much. But now, no more Poirot until November!

I recently finished The Lost City of Z: A Tale of Deadly Obsession in the Amazon, about a journalist's journey to learn about the fate of early 20th century British explorer Percy Fawcett. I love travel and adventure tales, particularly to far flung places that I will never visit. I think I would have enjoyed it more if the author had spent less time talking about his own journey to the Amazon, and more time on the polarizing, larger than life Fawcett.

I'm reading The Chinese Orange Mystery, my first by Ellery Queen. I was concerned by comparisons to Philo Vance, who I found to be quite insufferable, but so far, its a fun, very different read.

The beginning reminds me of another recent read, Agatha Christie's The Clocks, (view spoiler)[which also featured a temp typist discovering a dead body. (hide spoiler)] I haven't really been a PD James fan thus far, but I'm enjoying this book more than I have others.

Normally I put Christie novels into one of two categories--either a great mystery or great characterizations (and of course the best of the best have both). This book, while not in my top five list, had a good mix of both, and therefore maintained my interest despite being a bit thrillery (not my particular cup of tea).
Another Goodreads group of mine is just reading The Mysterious Affair at Styles, and its a good reminder that way back then Poirot was described as being quite old. Its an absolute miracle the man is still alive and lucid (despite the repeated references people make to his crazy outside the box ideas being an indication of senility).

My version of the book had a character list in the front that also listed the page number they enter into the story, so I had a good idea going in that Poirot would arrive rather late. It also specifically called out that Ann had an alibi for one of the murders, which should have been more of a clue than I picked up on.
I enjoyed this more than I thought I would, especially in the latter half of the book when the pace picked up.
I've heard it said that the mark of a great chef is how well they can make an omelet (the simpler a dish, the harder it is to hide mistakes.) So maybe there is hope for Mrs. Summerhayes after all.

Finishing this book, I'm a bit sad to think of the lost possibility of an Ariadne series of books. I would have gobbled those up! But perhaps she works better as a sidekick and sounding board for Poirot.
I was amused reading about the young men with their long hair and outrageous fashions. I suspect Christie neither understood or approved.

I was concerned this book might be a bit like Hercule Poirot's Christmas, in that despite the obvious nod to certain seasons and activities, you wouldn't get the feel that that holiday is supposed to convey. Luckily however, Christie was able to create an eerie atmosphere, even though the titular Halloween party happens at the very beginning of the book. There was something creepy about the people and the place, and you really felt like it could have been anyone. I had suspected Mrs. Drake early on, but then dismissed her as being too obvious. I didn't suspect that she had an accomplice though.
Is this Christie's only book with child murders? Despite its popularity (and overuse IMO) in today's mysteries, it certainly was not a common GA trope (at least in what I have read), and another bold decision on her part, as you could see some readers being turned off by that.