EVIL UNDER THE SUN
UK publication: 1941 (Collins)
US publication: 1941 (Dodd, Mead)
Detective: Hercule Poirot
Genre: Novel
Plot summary and comments: Poirot is holidaying on a resort island off the coast of Devon, and feels certain there will be murder committed, but cannot prevent it. The victim is envied and disliked by many, and the suspects are other guests at the Jolly Roger Hotel on Smuggler's Island. An American couple, the Odell Gardeners, provide comic relief. Poirot enjoys the assistance of the chief constable, Colonel Weston. A well-known film version was released in 1982, with the scene changed to the Adriatic, and with Poirot played by Peter Ustinov.
Courtesey of: http://stout.physics.ucla.edu/%7eyoder/mystery/christie.html
::READERS REVIEWS::
In this novel, Agatha Christie does what she does best: assembles a group of diverse characters on holiday, has one of them murdered, and provides the rest with plenty of opportunity and motive to have committed the crime.
Arlena Marshall is a beautiful woman known for her affairs with men, both before and during her marriage. While on holiday at the Jolly Roger Hotel on England's South Coast, she openly cavorts with Patrick Redfern while her husband and his wife watch helplessly. Tragedy is inevitable and few are surprised when Arlena is murdered.
What sets Christie apart from other mystery writers is the wonderful skill she exhibits with characterizations. This novel, one of her best in my opinion, is complete with many well-developed ones which make for a believable crime. Miss Rosamund Darnley, a talented dress designer, and Mr. and Mrs. Odell Gardener, the outspoken American woman and her long-suffering husband, are just a few of the many who fill this story. And of course, the famous detective Hercule Poirot also happens to be on holiday here at the time of the murder. Everybody is a suspect as voodoo practices, drug-smuggling, religious mania, and two murders from the past add intrigue.
This book....hmmm...what can i say. It was too good!!! The murderer was completely unsuspected. The cast of characters was marvelous, each with their own separite image and identity. In this book, one wouldn't even feel sorry for the murder victim because the victim, Arlena Marshall, was just too cruel and conceited! This book is Poirot at his very best, and his 'little grey cells' are working to maximum potential. READ IT NOW!
Perhaps I am coming to this book a little biased, who knows. But seeing as I just read the poorest addition to mystery there is, this book seems like a work of genius. The book I was referring to is Pretend You Don't See Her, by MHC. I think that Christie is just about as fine a mystery writer as you can get, excepting AC Doyle, perhaps. So, in any event, you might ought to try this book. Give Dame Christie a little clout. After all, compare her to the likes of Mary Higgins Clark!! Then you'll think even the worst of Christie is pretty damn good.
::YOUR OPINION::
