THE MAN IN THE BROWN SUIT
UK publication: 1924 (John Lane, The Bodley Head)
US publication: 1924 (Dodd, Mead)
Detective: Anne Beddingfeld
Genre: Novel
Plot summary and comments: A puzzle-thriller rather than a straight mystery. The heroine is Anne Beddingfeld, a spirited and romantic young woman who is seeking adventure (and money) after the death of her father. She witnesses a suspicious-looking "accidental" death, and persuades a newspaper to commission her to investigate. After a second death occurs in the house of Sir Eustace Pedlar, MP, she sails for Cape Town to follow the trail, travelling with Sir Eustace and his malicious-looking secretary Guy Pagett. Most of the story occurs on the boat, and then on a train in South Africa and Rhodesia, presented through the diaries of Sir Eustace and Anne. The villain is a master criminal, and Anne eventually unmasks him, while the reader is kept guessing as to which characters are friends and which are enemies. One of the characters, the silent Colonel Race, will reappear in three subsequent novels. The setting and characters were inspired by Christie's recently completed round-the-world trip with her husband.
Courtesey of: http://stout.physics.ucla.edu/%7eyoder/mystery/christie.html
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::READERS REVIEWS::
nitya_14 (see more about me) from Pluto
"I think this is one of the BEST work of myatery by Agatha Christie. Not only was the plot intriguing, the murderer (murderess?) was totally unexpected. I mean, in ALL her books, the murderer is unexpected, but I usually guess who it is. (I'm not boasting!)But in this book, I HAD my theories as to who the murderer was, but when I learnt who the real person was.. I was stunned! OK, I think I've said enough. Time for you to read it yourself & find out. "
"This is one of my favorite Christie mysteries. Even though Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot are missing, the deductions and suspense are present in abundance.
The plot revolves around a young girl who is suddenly without family and longs for adventure. Sure enough, little time passes before she finds it, and romance as well. The book travels from England to north Africa, and through many plot twists and turns.
The characters are, as usual in a Christie novel, charming and engaging, and you root for this cunning woman to find the answer to the mystery, as well as love."
A reader from Providence, RI
I'm a huge Agatha Christie nut and this is one of her best. Anyone who liked this (especially the romance side of it) ought to try and find Giant's Bread, one of the 5 or 6 true romance novels (NOT trash, though) she wrote (under a different name, but they're all published now with her real name)
A reader from NZ
I truly enjoyed this book, it is one of my favourite amoung Agatha Christie's works.
::YOUR OPINION::
