All About Agatha (christie)

It's time, at long last, to meet the mysterious Mr. Quin! This is a special, spooky little corner of the Christieverse that may be a favorite with some fans, and unknown to others. Join us as we parse not only his first mystery but the literary provenance of his character, which may be the biggest mystery of all....

We've all experienced the well-worn trope of the unreliable female narrator at this point, but in this story we have the rare example of the *unwilling* female narrator... with quite interesting results. So join us, as our poor hostess Dolly Bantry is cajoled into telling a tale of vegetal mayhem and murder. Just don't call her Mrs. B.

This week's short story relies on both arcane technical knowledge *and* dubious cryptography, and yet it was not written by Dan Brown. Go figure. Come and sit a spell with us at Gossington Hall, at the seemingly never-ending Bantry dinner party. It's Sir Henry Clithering's turn to tell a tale, and he does not disappoint. Plus: a bonus peek at the softer side (or is it?) of Miss Jane Marple!

It’s time for Dame Agatha’s first Middle Eastern-set novel! And while there is much to discuss here (including the fascinating real-life inspiration for our murder victim), unfortunately there wasn't quite as much to love in either the novel or the Suchet adaptation. Still, it wasn’t nearly as bad as drinking a glass of hydrochloric acid!

What better way to say goodbye to 2017 than with a tale of overlooked--hence underestimated--women? And who better to solve such a tale than our very own Miss Jane Marple? Though let's be real: she isn't ours... she is very much her own, thank you very much. Happy New Year to all; we look forward to bringing you much, much more Christie in 2018!

Last year we had M. Poirot over for a Christmas visit, so we figured it was only fair to extend the invitation this year to our dear Miss Marple. Luckily she accepted... with a dark tale of sandbagging, impoverishment, and domestic discord! And this is why we cherish her so: she keeps it real, that Jane Marple. Happy holidays, everyone!

A serial killer is on the loose… or *is* he (or she for that matter)? Come deep-dive with us--into the depths of this unusual Christie novel, in which our analysis gets granular enough to identify not one but two points of intersection between this novel and podcast favorite The Man in the Brown Suit. (I know; we were surprised too… surprised, and delighted.) Does Christie pull off everything she's trying to achieve here? Perhaps not, but we enjoyed the ride nonetheless.

Miss Marple is back! And perhaps better than ever in this inaugural tale of the Tuesday Night Club redux, a.k.a. part two of The Thirteen Problems. Get your thinking caps on because Miss Jane Marple is about to school us all. We wouldn't have it any other way. (Okay, Kemper, at least, wouldn't have it any other way....)

For the Americans among us, we may be looking forward to a little R&R over the impending Thanksgiving break, and why not add a little T&T to that equation? Regardless of your nationality, join us in this quaint little counterfeit caper, in which our favorite married detectives are shown the money, and then some.

Just as you, dear listener, have probably done, we have gone out and watched the Kenneth Branagh adaptation of Murder on the Orient Express! And we have thoughts. So many thoughts.... Take a listen to our off-the-cuff remarks, and then feel free to share yours with us; we'd love to hear from you. (Except maybe if you're Josh Gad. Although actually, if Josh Gad were listening to this podcast we would in fact love to hear from him. E-mail us, Josh!)

Also known as the OG Jazz Age version of The Bridge meets Snakes on a Plane. There is a lot to unpack in this one, including our mixed/middling feelings about it despite its dishy setting. Come unpack with us; just beware that by the end of the episode contents may have shifted during your listening experience....

It's Hallowe'en! (Yes, we are wedded to that apostrophe, unfortunately.) Join us (IF YOU DARE) as we dissect (LIKE CREEPY SCIENTISTS) two rather horrifying Christie short stories... with lots and lots of references to horror movies both high and low, of course. You may never feel the same way about dolls or husbands ever again.

Quick: we say "Gilda," you say... what? Rita Hayworth? Gilda Radnor? Well, after this episode you very well may say "Ghost Cop." It's another caper courtesy of our pals Tommy and Tuppence, and this time Tommy is dressed up as a priest from a previous (failed, naturally) case. Can he do his best Father Brown impersonation and figure out whodunit? That is honestly an open question when it comes to these two, so you'll just have to listen to find out!

Time to get your screwball on! This may be Christie's most Wodehousian story yet (and it's certainly got some competition). Join us as we dive into a delightfully lighthearted Tommy & Tuppence caper. Oh, and also: were you aware that FUTURE PRESIDENT RONALD REAGAN once played Tommy in a live televised adaptation of this very story?! Because we certainly were not. So much yet to learn about the Christieverse....

Get ready for some drama! Both from this theater-saturated novel and from your intrepid co-hosts, as one of us quite liked this one, the other, less so. But it's not all tragedy, because stage plays aren't the only things to come in three parts. So too do... love triangles! And we know how Papa Poirot enjoys a romance. So join us as we debate the merits of this rare Hercule Poirot novel to feature another detective, one Mr. Satterthwaite of "The Mysterious Mr Quin" fame. He too enjoys a side-dish of romance amidst a generous helping of murder. Let's dig in.

What happens when our adorably mischievous young married duo T&T get up to no good at a '20s masquerade? Someone gets stabbed through the heart, of course! Nor do the horror and hijinks end there, not even close.... For one thing, we've got both 50 Cent and Andrew Lloyd Webber in this episode; what could possibly go wrong?

Get ready for some light-hearted banter, folks, because Tommy and Tuppence are back! T&T sightings are relatively sparse in the Christieverse, but this early collection of short stories will help tide us over, as will the early '80s TV adaptations. Prepare to be delighted.

We officially turned one year old! Come celebrate with us by engaging in a granular evaluation of the state of our novel rankings thus far, with many a blast from the past! (Mary Cavendish and Jane Wilkinson will be pleased.... Anne Bedingfeld, not so much. Sorry Anne.) Plus our thoughts on this crazy little projects of ours, including what makes Christie so gosh-darn special. Honestly, we could talk about that any time, but a birthday is an excellent excuse.

One might be inclined to ponder why they would ever ask Evans anything at all after we're done discussing this mid-career Christie thriller.... But let's focus on the positive, shall we? This episode posts on the birthday of our beloved Dame Agatha, born a whopping 127 years ago, her legacy stronger than ever.... We look forward to celebrating many more together.

A.k.a. the one that got away. Yes, friends, this is the *only* Poirot short story not to be adapted by the ITV series starring David Suchet. And while it's a bit... out there, we found ourselves wishing this tale of madness and murder had been adapted in the earlier, peppier seasons featuring the whole crime-solving gang. What would Miss Lemon have made of a centuries-old inherited family curse? What sport would Hastings have been obsessed with as a side-pursuit? When would Japp and his trench coat have made their much-needed appearance? How would a car chase have been shoehorned into the proceedings? The fact that we'll never know just may be our own curse, but we'll learn to live with it together.