REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY: AGATHA CHRISTIE

An Autobiography

As much as I love biographies, I'm often hesitant about autobiographies.  Everyone has an interesting story -- that doesn't meant they know how to tell it.  There is no doubt Dame Agatha Christie knew how to tell a story.  Hundreds of them.  But her best may be her own.

She begins at the beginning (sort of) and tells a roughly chronological series of events.  In fact, her fanciful meanderings are part of what makes the book so endearing.  Her descriptions of late Victorian / early Edwardian society are not only priceless anthropologically, but an absolute joy to read.  The tone is light and joyful, as a small child might tell her grandmother about the fairies at the bottom of the garden.  Indeed, her young life was rather ethereal.  One of those English upbringings that one wonders if it actually ever existed.  Imagination was encouraged to run rampant and adventure was to be met head-on. 

Her observations on life itself, too, are absolute gems.  One could extract an entire philosophy from her thoughts.   While recalling her studies in Paris, she muses, "It seems to me that teaching can only be satisfactory if it awakens some response in you.  Mere information is no good, it gives you nothing more than you had before."  Or her recollections of Christmas as a child.  "After the pleasurable inertia of Christmas afternoon - pleasurable, that is, for the elders: the younger ones read books, looked at their presents, ate more chocolates and so on -- there was a terrific tea with a great idea Christmas cake as well as everything else, and finally a supper of cold turkey and hot mince pies.  About nine o'clock there was the Christmas tree, with more presents hanging on it.  A splendid day, and one to be remembered till next year, when Christmas came again."  These and other memories of dances, parties, traveling to Egypt with her husband archaeologist and trips with grandchildren are an entirely enjoyable read.  In fact, one doesn't need to be a fan of Agatha Christie or even mysteries to enjoy it.  

My review copy does not include the audio disc of Agatha's actual voice dictating her memoir.  I can only imagine it, too, is nostalgic and lovely.

In honor of this reissue from HarperCollins, we have teamed up to host a giveaway in honor of Dame Christie.  

I've got a great little prize pack:  A copy of Cards on the Table, a delightful little Hercule Poirot murder mystery surrounding a game of bridge in a strange scenario; a pack of Agatha Christie bookmarks; and a black and red Agatha Christie totebag.  (This image is not to scale -- obviously.)

So, do you want to win?  Leave a comment below with your NAME, EMAIL (at) DOT COM, and why you think you would be a good detective.  This giveaway is open to anyone with a US mailing address.  Have your comment posted before Friday, November 18, 2011 at 10:00 p.m. EST to be entered.  Winning entry will be chosen by Random.org.  

A huge thanks to Danielle at HarperCollins for the great gifts and the review copy of An Autobiography. 

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ISBN: 9780062073594

ISBN10: 0062073591

Imprint: Harper 

On Sale: 11/22/2011

Format: Hardcover

Trimsize: 6 x 9

Pages: 544; $29.99; Ages: 18 and Up

REVIEW: MURDER IN A FIRST-CLASS CARRIAGE by Kate Colquhoun

The First Victorian Railway Killing

I'm a sucker for these sorts of books.  In fact, when I received the review copy, my husband joked, "Well, someone said, 'Let's write a book for you!'"  It has so many themes I love: mystery, the Victorian era, trains, and a murder trial.  AND it's British.  

Drawn from the annals of the Old Bailey and newspaper accounts, it traces the murder of one Mr. Thomas Briggs, an older but successful business man who was traveling home via the rail. Among many of the mysterious circumstances are the seeming lack of motive, the sort timespan in which the crime could have been committed and the loss of a hat (In fact, in Britain, this book was titled Mr. Briggs' Hat).  Even more intriguing is the setting.  The British Victorians had a love/hate relationship with crime even then.  As a society, they were obsessed to the last, bloody detail of the darkest side of human nature -- while at the same time obsessed with repressing and destroyed every shred of it within. 

Favored suspect Franz Muller

The book is very well researched and chock full of quotes from eyewitnesses and reports.  Yet all of this studiousness makes it feel at times a bit more academic than a mystery to be solved.  Between an inquest, an extradition and two trials, some of the information begins to feel redundant, if complete.  The author also chooses to italicize the quotes she uses, rather than surround them with quotation marks.  Rather than getting used to it, I found it increasingly distracting.  Still I read happily to the end, devouring the gripping tale of the crime and investigation itself. 

Murder in a First-Class Carriage explores a completely fascinating chapter of Victorian crime that has been lost to time somehow.  I am admittedly obsessed with this idea and often read from The Old Bailey Online for a voyeuristic peek into the past.  This book brings one of those many, dusty stories back to life.

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Many thanks to Kate at Overlook Press for the review copy.

Murder in the First-Class Carriage
By Kate Colquhoun 
352 pages
ISBN 13: 978-1-59020-675-1
Trim Size: 6 x 9
Release Date: October 27, 2011

WINNER: MEMOIRS OF SHERLOCK HOLMES

And we have a winner!  Terry's comment was chosen on random.org.

Of Sherlock, Terry said: "As to why I love Mr. Holmes, he's the original, brilliant misanthrope. Before there was Gregory House, almost before there was even Allan Quatermain, there was Sherlock Holmes."


Thanks to everyone who entered and to the folks at Penguin Classics for providing the prize!

Keep sleuthing everyone!

REVIEW: THE CRADLE IN THE GRAVE by Sophie Hannah

Hannah's tireless cops are on the case again in her newest procedural novel.  Strangely enough, its publication rather coincides with the real life of Casey Anthony.  Never one to shy away from difficult subject matter, Hannah, through her characters, explores the emotional and societal impacts of such an unthinkable crime.

The main action surrounds the making of an investigative journalism documentary about mothers who had been convicted of killing their children - only to be acquitted with later evidence.  Its executive producer and mastermind quits his job at the BBC rather abruptly, leaving heroine Fliss Benson with the reins.  As she begins to sift through the files and interviews, she uncovers questionable statements, missing evidence and doubtful witnesses.  All the while, MPS is on the case, tracking down the murderer of one of these acquitted women.  The two narratives run like the two hypothetical trains at 60 and 70 mph, destined to collide in St. Louis.  Or in this case Notting Hill. 

The original BBC building, Regents Street, London.

Author Sophie Hannah's strength, as always, lies in her dialogue.  It truly informs her entire story.  Her characters all have different voices and thought patterns.  Their vocabulary and speech patterns are unique.  I couldn't tell you what Fliss Benson looks like, or even if Hannah gives a physical description, but I could tell you what she would say, think, or do in any situation.  Each of the police officers varies.  They range from lovesick to crass to solitary.  It is these characters that engross the reader.  The "whodunit" aspect becomes secondary.  It is hardly a surprise then that Hannah's stories has been adapted into a mini-series called "Case Sensitive" on Britain's ITV1.  I can only hope it will run in America as well.

This storyline is nowhere near as graphic as The Truth-Teller's Lie, but the subject matter is quite unsettling.  Its immediacy is part of what makes it so gripping, but readers should be warned that it pulls no punches.  Readers should also know that Hannah does her utmost to explore every possible point-of-view.  She tries to shed light on the grey areas of guilt and innocence, public scrutiny and private grief.  Only the murderer is a villain  (and even that character is somewhat sympathetic).  Everyone else is portrayed as conflicted, confused and struggling -- imperfect.  It reminds the reader that a trial can prove only a sliver of truth, while the rest is unseen.

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Many thanks to the folks at Penguin for the review copy.

ISBN 9781101543733 | 480 pages | 30 Aug 2011 | Penguin | 18 - AND UP 

Visit Sophie Hannah's site.

REVIEW: THE WHITE DEVIL by Justin Evans

I can't be sure how I became entirely sucked into this story.  Perhaps it was the easy, seductive charm of the setting; or the way the era was not obvious at the outset; maybe how it took on the genres of ghost story, coming-of-age tale and historical fiction all at once.

It is set in the exclusive Harrow on the Hill boarding school, just outside of London.  Alma mater for Byron as well as other fabled graduates, it becomes a torturous last chance for a young American studying abroad.  Escaping his own troubled past, our narrator seeks some sort of firm footing and perhaps a bit of acceptance.  Instead he finds himself the victim of an angry spirit's torments. 

It seems the ghost of Lord Byron's jilted lover has turned his sights on the main character and those that surround him.  With a few faithful friends and professors, they seek to sooth the phantom and release themselves, and the school, from his scornful mischief.  

It is enjoyable to explore Byron's past through the eyes of this author and his characters.  His imaginative story is based on numerable biographical facts.  Byron did attend this school, there is a play called The White Devil, Byron did have a close friend, who did die of tuberculosis and Byron did leave England suddenly in 1809.  (Read more from author Justin Evans here.)  The weaving of all of these unusual circumstances into a ghost story would have been too much for any author to resist.  Luckily they were picked up by Justin Evans who clearly enjoyed letting his imagination wander the underground chasms disguised by time.

   

All in all, the book is great fun.  The point-of-view changes fairly seamlessly.  The narrative style of inner thoughts that break in is particularly well-used.  What is not perfect in every aspect (sometimes the villainy of the Snape-like headmaster gets a little overdone), it more that makes up for in chills and creativity. 

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Thanks to the folks at Harper for the review copy.

ISBN: 9780061728273; ISBN10: 0061728276

Imprint: Harper

On Sale: 5/10/2011

Format: Hardcover

Trimsize: 6 x 9; Pages: 384; $24.99

Ages: 18 and Up; BISAC1:FIC031000

QUICK REVIEW: The Englishman Who Posted Himself...

And Other Curious Objects

By John Tingey

A light biography of W. Reginald Bray, the undisputed Autograph King.  In Edwardian England, Bray decided to have a little fun with the postal service.  He mailed unusual objects (a turnip, coin, piece of seaweed, himself) to test the regulations of the Post.  Then he started testing the postman's ingenuity by writing the address is code, riddle or rhyme. 

 

Sometimes he just tried to see how many postmarks he could get on one card before it was returned.  Eventually he began asking for autographs through the mail - first from various generals in the Boer War (often with just their photo and a vague regional place name).  With the rising popularity of films, he turned to collecting autographs from the stars on the screen.  His collection was massive and included Lawrence Olivier, Dorothy Lamour and hundreds of others.  

This book brings together family photos, remembrances, images and clippings of the day.  

While it seems, based on Bray's own meticulous records, that he sent out some 32,000 items, most of his collection was sold after his death.  With "mail art" now a much more popular and recognized form, some efforts have been made to locate and archive his works.  

A great site to view is http://www.wrbray.org.uk/

This book is terrific fun and a lovely little story of a man with a sense of humor and creativity.  Great book design and numerous illustrations.

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ISBN 9781568988726
Publication date 11/15/2010
6 x 9 inches (15.2 x 22.9 cm), Hardcover
176 pages, 130 color illustrations, 16 b/w illustrations

REVIEW: THE TRUTH-TELLER'S LIE by Sophie Hannah

This gripping mystery from the UK is not for the faint of heart.  Naomi, the main protagonist, has endured the most unspeakable of personal horrors yet found a way to carry on.  So unspeakable that three years later her closest friends are still unaware of it.  That is until she becomes obsessed with finding her missing lover.  Further complicating her story is the fact that her lover is an unhappily-married man.  Knowing the police will be unlikely to look for him if she reveals herself to be the "other woman", she lies about her relationship with him.  And thus begins a tenuous string of truth among lies, leading to the underlying reality.

The novel alternates perspectives between Naomi and Detective Sargaent Charlie Zailer, the tomboy, hard boiled officer assigned to the case.  Their voices are the ones we hear as the bizarre tale unravels. Author Hannah has a natural, believable way of writing the female psyche -- one that is refreshing in a book list burgeoning with immature narratives.  The characters are complicated and display questionable judgement, perhaps, but are not two-dimensional or predictable.  It stretches the psychological boundaries of first-person narrative, especially from a doubtful narrator.

Author Sophie Hannah lives in Yorkshire, England.

Also refreshing is the fact that the publisher/editor for the US did not alter the local flavor.  Characters use words that are only British, and they haven't been watered down for the American reader.  It makes a true difference in the mood and style of the novel.  (For example, a holding cell is a "nick".)

As I mentioned, it is not for the faint of heart.  It is not gory, but it is disturbing and unsettling.  But it is so well-written that you want to keep reading.  Expect to be up late at night. This is a great book to start on a winter afternoon with a cup of hot chocolate, a warm fireplace and a cat for your lap.  I look forward to reading more from Sophie Hannah. 

Thanks to Meghan at Viking/Penguin for the review copy.

Book: Paperback | 5.43 x 8.07in | 400 pages | ISBN 9780143115854 | 28 Sep 2010 | Penguin | 18 - AND UP

REVIEW: MAD WORLD by Paula Byrne

Evelyn Waugh and the Secrets of Brideshead

"Thorough" is the first word I would use to describe this biography.  Intense, assured, incisive. America had Hemingway and Fitzgerald, while England had Waugh and Wodehouse.  

Wodehouse found the whole scene rather silly and made hysterical fun of it.  Waugh, on the other hand, had a more complicated view.  

The Great War had left aristocratic families in tattered remnants.  Elder sons were dead, or maimed.  A heavy tax was levied against the very wealthy, forcing many to close up or sell manor homes.  A few found themselves forced to take jobs.  The younger siblings of these wayward families felt they had their own marks to make and became known as the Bright Young People.  Waugh, for his part, was a member of the club, but not to the manor born.  His inclusion was based solely on his friendships with various hosts of the ongoing party. He felt distinct self-loathing both for participating in their debauchery, and in desiring to be a part of it.  

It seems his cynicism ebbed and flowed, depending on his mood (or more likely, his standing within an important family).  But his wit remained intact and was employed in varying thicknesses upon all of his writing.  

This biography chooses the writing of Waugh's most famous work, Brideshead Revisited,  as its ultimate target, but as I mentioned before, it is nothing if not thorough.  At times, it can see a little too tangental.  For instance, the chapter exploring the secret scandal of the Lygon family is a bit to muddled, although it makes for good gossip.  

All in all, the author has approached her subject with supreme respect, and bravely included even the unsavory bits for her readers. 

Many thanks the folks at Harper Collins for the review copy.  The paperback will be available March 8, 2011.  Hardcover available now. 

CLASSIC REVIEW: Postern of Fate by Agatha Christie

I've been a bit slow in the review area lately.  I'm still reading, have no fear, but I am on vacation with limited internet access... and limited time!  It's lovely to unplug but I had to share a few words about this unlikely find. 

I finished the book I brought with me entirely too quickly and was on the lookout for something to amuse myself.  I visited my aunt & uncle's hardware store in the small town of Hidalgo.  I saw a stack of books, gathering dust and possibly holding up the cables for the computer.  I asked if I could borrow the Agatha Christie title, one I had not heard.  She gave me the whole stack.

The book opens with a retired couple moving into a nice country home in need of a bit of TLC.  Her nosey nature leads her to a room full of books, some of which have been made into a cipher.  She translates it - Mary Jordan did not die a natural death.  It was one of us.  She is convinced it was written by the young owner of the book, Alexander Parkinson, whose family owned the house generations ago.

Greenway, Christie's country home in Devon.

What begins out of innocent curiosity, becomes an intrigue of increasing dangerousness.  The list of clues grows as Tuppence and her husband Tommy try to casually gather information from neighbors.  Yet when accidents seem to be more than accidents, and a beloved old gardener dies in a suspicious manner, the couple slowly begins to realize someone doesn't want them to uncover the past of the house.

It's is a great little read.  Most of it is told in dialogue, which Christie uses to extend the narrative, drawing out the tension.  The main characters can be maddening because of their nattering on, but it's of course effective.  They are assisted by their Manchester terrier, Hannibal - rather like an older Nick and Nora with their Asta.  And the settings often remind one of a Daphne du Maurier novel.  Yet it smacks thoroughly of the dame of murder mysteries.

REVIEW: THE QUICKENING MAZE by Adam Foulds

I always look forward to starting new books -- ones to review or otherwise.  When I knew this one was on its way, I watched the mail everyday.  It is by a British author.  It's about an asylum ... and poets ... and madness ... and takes place in Victorian England. What more could I want?

The novel is a fictional imagining about real people and places.  Dr. Matthew Allen was a psychiatrist, phrenologist and steampunk inventor who owned and ran the High Beach Private Asylum, situated on the edge of Epping Forest, east of London.  

At the time, the forest was a netherworld between bustling London and country idyll.  The old growth trees were a hiding place for gypsies and become a perfect metaphor for the tricky, surprising line between sanity and madness.

The forest was also an inspiration for nature poet John Clare - inmate at the asylum.  He is joined in the sanitarium by Septimus Tennyson, brother to Alfred who takes a home in the village to be nearby his ailing brother  (Foulds often references Tennysons as yet unwritten tribute to friend Arthur Hallam, one of my favorite poems).

Fould's book wound up short-listed for the Man Booker Prize in late 2009 as a work of "intense and atmospheric imagination."  It is a very addicting read, even if it seems deliberately obtuse at times.  Foulds manages to create distinct voices for each of his characters, ones that leave the reader sympathetic to each delusion.  

The book is written in numerous first-person, inner thoughts from these characters and Allen's family.  As Dr. Allen sinks further into his ill-fated machinations, as  Margaret falls victim to her own imaginings and Hannah attempts to navigate courtship, we wonder if anyone will leave High Beach the better for it. Ironically, we never hear the thoughts of Dr. Stockdale, who, seen though the eyes of others, becomes the villain of the tale.  

Foulds' most impressive feat, however, is not the story-telling.  He truly has a refreshing way with words.  It is not affected or forced.  Descriptions simply drip with tangibility.  However, a word of warning.  This is not a source for historical accuracy.  Anyone looking for or expecting the concrete and clear excitement of something like The Devil In the White City will be quite lost and frustrated.  

Thanks to Meghan Fallon for the review copy

Book: Paperback | 5.23 x 7.87in | 272 pages | ISBN 9780143117797 | 29 Jun 2010 | Penguin | 18 - AND UP

THE BOOK OF FIRES

Jane Borodale’s first novel, THE BOOK OF FIRES, is a vivid portrait of 1750s England.  The heroine, Agnes Trussel, leads the reader from countryside squalor to a sooty, bustling London.  Part of a large family, struggling to even survive, Agnes clearly stands out from her siblings.  Her interior thoughts, expertly drawn in present tense, add insight and immediacy to the tale.  Finding herself at a crossroads, the teenage Agnes leaves the only place she has ever known via a wagon bound for London.  Relying partially on the kindness of strangers, but mostly on her own wits, Agnes arrives wet, bedraggled and desperate on the steps of a gruff man’s home, in answer a “housemaid wanted” sign in his window.  But instead of emplying her with household duties, Mr. Blacklock starts to teach her about the basic ingredients of fireworks.

Borodale’s descriptions, through Agnes’ eyes, are almost those of a synesthete.  Acrid smells intermingle with hues and textures and bring to life a gritty, difficult reality.  The writing is fresh and precise.  She strikes a balance between exposition and story that is seemingly rare among historical fiction authors.  Borodale uses an economy of language while still evoking the style of the time.

Still, the reader will have to employ some suspension of disbelief to fully enter the world which Agnes inhabits.  Her acceptance into apprenticeship at a fireworks shop is fitting to her personality, if not entirely plausible.  This is offset by the other details of class distinctions, and the unlikely ways in which they cross over.  For example, the evening when Agnes gets to view her first fireworks display at a high society party is especially touching.  The reader too has spent hours at the work bench with Agnes and is anxious to see the fruits of her labor.

This book is layered, very readable and will be particularly enjoyable to young teenage women and is an excellent foray into the world of fiction for this new novelist. 

Book: Hardcover | 5.98 x 9.01in | 368 pages | ISBN 9780670021062 | 21 Jan 2010 | Viking Adult | 18 - AND UP

More information: http://us.penguingroup.com/nf/Search/QuickSearchProc/1,,Author_1000075257,00.html