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Dear Reader, it is with the greatest delight that I invite you to participate in the Agatha Christie Reading Challenge.
… *twirls a Poirot-esque moustache* …
Let us take you on a series of literary adventures, where we recommend books inspired by the very letters of the name ‘Agatha Christie’. Each letter, a clue, leading you to discover some new favourite reads and a little bit more about Agatha herself.
Begin with ‘A’ is for Alibi’, and help Kinsey Millhone solve a cold case. Each letter will lead you to a new story, from ‘The Tea Ladies’ to ‘The Three Dahlias’, each tale filled with mystery and intrigue in honour of one of the greatest fiction writers of all time.
As you read, see if you can unravel fact from fiction. There are 7 false accusations for you to spot, and 7 true tidbits to learn.
Settle into your favourite armchair with a sweet cup of tea and prepare for an enchanting journey, courtesy of Agatha Christie.
* * *
We encourage you to always source books from your local independent bookshop. However, we understand this is sometimes not practical based on location or budget.
Therefore, this post contains Amazon affiliate links. This means, if you click on the link and purchase the book from that link, I get a few dollars at no extra cost to you! This way we can both stock up on Agatha inspired fiction! 😀
Happy Sleuthing, Friends!
Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
Agatha Christie had a deep interest in archaeology, which influenced many of her novels. She often accompanied her second husband, Sir Max Mallowan, on archaeological digs in the Middle East!
"A is for Alibi" Book Blurb:
My name is Kinsey Millhone. I’m a private investigator, licensed by the state of California. I’m 32 years old, twice divorced, no kids. The day before yesterday I killed someone and the fact weighs heavily on my mind.
When Laurence Fife was murdered, few cared. A slick divorce attorney with a reputation for ruthlessness, Fife was also rumoured to be a slippery ladies’ man. Plenty of people in the picturesque Southern California town of Santa Teresa had reason to want him dead. Including, thought the cops, his young and beautiful wife, Nikki. With motive, access and opportunity, Nikki was their number one suspect. The Jury thought so too. Eight years later and out on parole, Nikki Fife hires Kinsey Millhone to find out who really killed her husband. But the trail has gone cold and there is a chilling twist even Kinsey didn’t expect.
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Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
Agatha Christie secretly trained as an astronaut and wrote an unpublished mystery novel set on the moon, where Poirot solves a murder involving alien life forms.
"The Ghost Rock Cafe" Book Blurb:
An old hermit has been killed in Utah’s wildlands, and Sheriff Bud Shumway knows it’s murder, even though some say it was a cougar kill. Others think it was done by a Bigfoot who has roamed the area for years, killing cattle and leaving people so traumatised that they never want to go into the wilderness again. But Sheriff Shumway can’t afford to believe in Bigfoot, given the huge area he’s responsible for, most of it wildlands.
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Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
Agatha Christie wrote 6 romance novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott, showcasing her versatility as a writer and a trickster.
"Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Lord" Book Blurb:
London, 1815. Lady Petra Forsyth, daughter of the Earl of Holbrook, has made a shocking proclamation. After losing her beloved fiance in an accident 3 years earlier, she announces in front of London’s loosest lips that she will never marry. A woman of independent means–and rather independent ways–Petra sees no reason to cede her wealth and freedom to any man now that the love of her life is gone. Instead, she plans to continue enjoying the best of society without any expectations. But when ballroom gossip suggests that a longtime friend has died of a fit due to her “melancholia” while in the care of a questionable physician, Petra vows to use her status to dig deeper. Just as Petra has reason to believe her friend is alive, a shocking murder proves more danger is afoot than she thought. And the more determined Lady Petra becomes in uncovering the truth, the more her own headstrong actions and desire for independence are used against her, putting her own freedom–and possibly her life–in jeopardy.
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Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
Agatha’s play “The Mousetrap,” is the longest-running play in the world, having debuted in 1952 and still running in London’s West End!
"The Tea Ladies" Book Blurb:
Sydney, 1965: After a chance encounter with a stranger, tea ladies Hazel, Betty and Irene become accidental sleuths, stumbling into a world of ruthless crooks and racketeers in search of a young woman believed to be in danger. In the meantime, Hazel’s job at Empire Fashionwear is in jeopardy. The firm has turned out the same frocks and blouses for the past twenty years and when the mini-skirt bursts onto the scene, it rocks the rag trade to its foundations. War breaks out between departments and it falls to Hazel, the quiet diplomat, to broker peace and save the firm. When there is a murder in the building, the tea ladies draw on their wider network and put themselves in danger as they piece together clues that connect the murder to a nearby arson and a kidnapping. But if there’s one thing tea ladies can handle, it’s hot water.
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Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
Agatha pioneered the use of holograms in the 1920s to give live readings of her books, mesmerising audiences with her ghostly, yet engaging, tales.
"The Hacienda" Book Blurb:
During the overthrow of the Mexican government, Beatriz’s father was executed and her home destroyed. When handsome Don Rodolfo proposes, Beatriz ignores the rumours surrounding his first wife’s sudden demise, choosing instead to seize the security that his estate in the countryside provides. She will have her own home again, no matter the cost. But Hacienda San Isidro is not the sanctuary she imagined. When Rodolfo returns to work in the capital, visions and voices invade Beatriz’s sleep. The weight of invisible eyes follows her every move. Rodolfo’s sister, Juana, scoffs at Beatriz’s fears-but why does she refuse to enter the house at night? Why does the cook burn copal incense at the edge of the kitchen and mark the doorway with strange symbols? Beatriz only knows two things for certain. Something is wrong with the hacienda. And no one there will save her. Desperate for help, she clings to the young priest, Padre Andres, as an ally. No ordinary priest, Andres will have to rely on his skills as a witch to fight off the malevolent presence haunting the hacienda and protect the woman for whom he feels a powerful, forbidden attraction. But even he might not be enough to battle the darkness. Far from a refuge, San Isidro may be Beatriz’s doom.
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Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
In 1926, Christie disappeared for 11 days, which remains a topic of much speculation and intrigue, leading to numerous theories and a touch of mystery befitting her own novels.
"Above Suspicion" Book Blurb:
Anna Travis, a rookie female detective about to embark on her first murder case. The murders couldn’t be more gruesome. The method of killing is identical, the backgrounds of the girls very similar–all are prostitutes. As the book opens, a seventh body is found, same modus operandi but the victim this time is a sweet young student. Anna stumbles on a vital piece of information that links one man to the killings, a well-known, much-loved actor. His protestation of innocence is convincing, and Anna might be succumbing to his flattering attention. What if he is arrested, the media erupts, and he is the wrong man?
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Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
Christie claimed to have telepathic abilities, which she used to communicate with fictional detectives from other authors’ books for cross-novel advice.
"Cat on the Edge" Book Blurb:
It’s been quite a week for Joe Grey. First the large, powerful feline discovers that, through some strange, inexplicable phenomenon, he now has the ability to understand human language. Then he discovers he can speak it as well! It’s a nightmare for a cat who’d prefer to sleep the day away carefree, but Joe can handle it. That is, until he has the misfortune to witness a murder in the alley behind Jolly’s Deli – and worse, to be seen witnessing it. With all of his nine lives suddenly at risk, Joe’s got no choice but to get to the bottom of the heinous crime – because his mouse-hunting days are over for good unless he can help bring a killer to justice.
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Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
The Pera Palace Hotel in Istanbul, where Christie wrote “Murder on the Orient Express,” now has a room dedicated to her, filled with memorabilia.
"Has Anyone Seen Charlotte Salter?" Book Blurb:
1990: When beautiful and vivacious Charlotte Salter fails to turn up to her husband Alec’s 50th birthday party, her kids are worried, but Alec is not. As the days pass and there’s still no word from Charlie, her daughter, Etty, and her sons, Niall, Paul and Ollie, all struggle to come to terms with her disappearance. How can anyone just vanish without a trace? Left with no answers and in limbo, the Salter children try and go on with their lives, all the while thinking that their mother’s killer is potentially very close to home. Now: After years away, Etty returns home to the small East Anglian village where she grew up to help move her father into a care home. Now in his eighties, Alec has dementia and often mistakes his daughter for her mother. Etty is a changed woman from the trouble-free girl she was when Charlie was still around – all the Salter children have spent decades running and hiding from their mother’s disappearance. But when their childhood friends, Greg and Morgen Ackerley, decide to do a podcast about Charlotte’s disappearance, it seems like the town’s buried secrets – and the Salters’ – might finally come to light. After all this time, will they finally find out what really happened to Charlotte Salter?
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Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
Christie wrote her first drafts in invisible ink, readable only under moonlight, to prevent prying eyes from stealing her brilliant ideas.
"Rattle" Book Blurb:
On still nights, when the curve of a winter moon is smudged in the flow of the River Quaggy, the dead clamour for him. And sometimes he coaxes the living to join them. To other people, his victims might be mere medical oddities. To him, they are fascinating specimens, worthy of display. Above all, he is a collector, eager for recognition even as he hides in the shadows. Detective Sergeant Etta Fitzroy is the first to recognise the connection between the disappearance of a young girl and a cold case that almost cost her the career she’s sacrificed so much for. A faceless psychopath is walking the streets of London, tantalising the authorities with clues, taunting them with his ability to spirit his victims out from under their very noses. Better than anyone, Etta Fitzroy understands loss. But this is one contest she will win if it kills her.
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Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
The idea for “The Murder of Roger Ackroyd,” one of her most famous novels, came to Agatha during a pleasant evening where she was called upon to kill a man named Roger Ackroyd.
"If We Were Villains" Book Blurb:
Oliver Marks has just served 10 years for the murder of one of his closest friends – a murder he may or may not have committed. On the day he’s released, he’s greeted by the detective who put him in prison. Detective Colborne is retiring, but before he does, he wants to know what really happened 10 years ago. As a young actor studying Shakespeare at an elite arts conservatory, Oliver noticed that his talented classmates seem to play the same roles onstage and off – villain, hero, tyrant, temptress – though Oliver felt doomed to always be a secondary character in someone else’s story. But when the teachers change up the casting, a good-natured rivalry turns ugly, and the plays spill dangerously over into life. When tragedy strikes, one of the 7 friends is found dead. The rest face their greatest acting challenge yet: convincing the police, and themselves, that they are blameless.
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Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
Despite her immense success as a writer, Christie suffered from stage fright and rarely made public appearances.
"Sawkill Girls" Book Blurb:
Who are the Sawkill Girls? Marion: The newbie. Awkward and plain, steady and dependable. Weighed down by tragedy and hungry for love she’s sure she’ll never find. Zoey: The pariah. Luckless and lonely, hurting but hiding it. Aching with grief and dreaming of vanished girls. Maybe she’s broken-or maybe everyone else is. Val: The queen bee. Gorgeous and privileged, ruthless and regal. Words like silk and eyes like knives; a heart made of secrets and a mouth full of lies. Their stories come together on the island of Sawkill Rock, where gleaming horses graze in rolling pastures and cold waves crash against black cliffs. Where kids whisper the legend of an insidious monster at parties and around campfires. Where girls have been disappearing for decades, stolen away by a ravenous evil no one has dared to fight…until now.
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Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
Agatha claimed to have found the lost city of Atlantis and used it as the setting for a never-released underwater detective series.
"The Three Dahlias" Book Blurb:
Three rival actresses team up to solve a murder at the stately home of the author who made them famous – only to discover the solution lies in the stories themselves. In attendance: the VIP fans, staying at Aldermere; the fan club president turned convention organiser; the team behind the newest movie adaptation of Davenport’s books; the Davenport family themselves – and the 3 actresses famous for portraying Lettice’s 1930s detective, Dahlia Lively. National treasure Rosalind King, from the original movies. TV Dahlia for 13 seasons, Caro Hooper. And ex-child star Posy Starling, fresh out of the fame wilderness (and rehab) to take on the Dahlia mantle for the new movie. Each actress has her own interpretation of the character – but this English summer weekend they will have to put aside their differences, as the crimes at Aldermere turns anything but cosy. When fictional death turns into real bodies, can the 3 Dahlias find the answers to the murders among the fans, the film crew, the family – or even in Lettice’s books themselves?
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Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
Christie was an accomplished chess player who once defeated a reigning world champion in a private match, using strategies inspired by her intricate plot twists.
"In My Dreams I Hold a Knife" Book Blurb:
Six friends. One college reunion. One unsolved murder. Ten years after graduation, Jessica Miller has planned every detail of her triumphant return to Duquette university. Everyone will see who she wants them to see – confident, beautiful, indifferent. Not the girl she was before, back when Heather Shelby’s murder fractured everything. But not everyone is ready to move on. Someone is determined to make the guilty pay. When Jessica and her friends are reunited, they are forced to confront not only what happened that night, but the secrets they would do anything to hide.
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Agatha Christie Fact or Fiction? :
Agatha was awarded the Grand Master Award by the Mystery Writers of America in 1955, recognising her significant contributions to the genre.
"Elementary, She Read" Book Blurb:
Gemma Doyle, a transplanted Englishwoman, has returned to the quaint town of West London on Cape Cod to manage her Great Uncle Arthur’s Sherlock Holmes Bookshop and Emporium. The shop—located at 222 Baker Street—specialises in the Holmes canon and pastiche, and is also home to Moriarty the cat. When Gemma finds a rare and potentially valuable magazine containing the first Sherlock Homes story hidden in the bookshop, she and her friend Jayne (who runs the adjoining Mrs. Hudson’s Tea Room) set off to find the owner, only to stumble upon a dead body. Gemma is the police’s first suspect, so she puts her consummate powers of deduction to work to clear her name, investigating a handsome rare books expert, the dead woman’s suspiciously unmoved son, and a whole family of greedy characters desperate to cash in on their inheritance. But when Gemma and Jayne accidentally place themselves at a second murder scene, it’s a race to uncover the truth before the detectives lock them up for good.
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