I remember reading Agatha Christie’s books long, long back and stopping after I found one of them boring (I don’t remember which one).
But now, I had just finished reading an utterly disappointing “psychological” thriller and I was in need of a rebound. Besides, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd fit in nicely with a readathon I’m participating in, so I figured I’d give it a shot!
I think my tastes have improved now, because I fell in love with her style. And this, is apparently not even one of her best books!
But more on that later.
First, the blurb:
(Trigger warning: Murder)
People are dropping dead in quick succession in the peaceful English village of King’s Abbot. First, Mrs Ferrars dies, overdosing on sleep medicine. Not even a day later, Roger Ackroyd, a nice man with no enemies is murdered. Suspects abound. It seems like everyone who had the opportunity to kill Mr Ackroyd is hiding something. Luckily for the hapless police, Hercule Poirot has just recently settled in the village.
Narrated by Poirot’s sensible neighbour, Dr James Sheppard, the story is complex and full of intrigue, involving blackmail, suicide, and of course, murder. Poirot’s “little grey cells” are taxed to the core in this case before the book reaches its (not really) startling conclusion. There are so many little twists throughout the book, making it a rollercoaster of a ride.
My thoughts:
I thoroughly enjoyed the book!
I agree with the people who say this doesn’t live up to her standards. I remember being much more surprised by the happenings of Murder on the Orient Express. This was…predictable, to an extent. I guessed the killer long before the end.
But here’s the thing. I still enjoyed the book.
It wasn’t exactly a whodunnit mystery for me, because I guessed who did it. But the ‘how’ was still a mystery! And I couldn’t put the book down.
Maybe I enjoyed it more than I otherwise would because I had just finished reading a hugely disappointing so-called psychological thriller. Maybe.
I don’t know.
But the fact is that I loved the book to bits, predictable as it was. It was a how-dunnit for me rather than a whodunnit, but who cares? It kept me intrigued till the end.
I’m definitely going to pick up many more Agatha Christie books from now on…After all, it takes real talent to keep a reader intrigued even when the end is (sort of) predictable!
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