In addition to posting regularly in 2021, I hope to post longer, more thoughtful reviews than in past years. However, I’d never forgive myself for ruining Agatha Christie’s The Murder of Roger Ackroyd for anyone, so this review will be very, very short. This isn’t a review, really; it’s more of a suggestion that you read this book if you haven’t.
Blurb from Goodreads (I’m leaving the summarizing to the pros to not let anything slip):
The peaceful English village of King’s Abbot is stunned. First, the attractive widow Ferrars dies from an overdose of veronal. Not twenty-four hours later, Roger Ackroyd—the man she had planned to marry—is murdered. It is a baffling, complex case involving blackmail, suicide, and violent death, a case that taxes Hercule Poirot’s “little grey cells” before he reaches one of the most startling conclusions of his fabled career.
This book is every bit as tightly plotted and cleverly written as my other favorite Christie novel—And Then There Were None—with one key difference: I figured it out!! My big epiphany wasn’t long before Poirot did his thing and announced the murderer, but it counts! That ticklish thought of, “Wait…can it be? IT IS!!” was one of the most satisfying reading experiences I’ve ever had. I don’t often solve mysteries on my own, so it’s worth clarifying that this one isn’t easier than others, I was just trying harder.
While I’ve enjoyed every novel I’ve read by Christie so far, I expect The Murder of Roger Ackroyd to stick in my memory the longest.
Overall: 5.0 (out of 5.0) I was going to quibble over something near the end, then I was going to quibble over something else, but both quibbles disappeared when I thought more about them. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd is an extraordinarily well-written book and my new favorite by Agatha Christie.
Image credit: Goodreads
Haha, yes, it’s a very difficult one to review without spoilers! Glad it got the full five stars. 😀
I considered leaving it unreviewed, but couldn’t resist telling everyone to read it. 🙂