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15 May 2010

Which is YOUR best Agatha Christie?

I saw this question posted on a blog yesterday and so I've queried my database to see what my "top 10" look like.

In some cases I read these (or listened to them) before I began the current Agatha Christie Reading Challenge where I have literally begun again, reading the novels in order of publication, so there aren't necessarily reviews of these on my blog.

My top 10, with ratings,  are

MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS    4.7
THE MURDER AT THE VICARAGE    4.7
THE MYSTERY OF THE BLUE TRAIN    4.6
DEATH IN THE CLOUDS     4.6
AND THEN THERE WERE NONE     4.5
SLEEPING MURDER     4.5
THE MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR AT STYLES    4.5
LORD EDGWARE DIES    4.5
THE THIRTEEN PROBLEMS    4.5
PERIL AT END HOUSE    4.5

I really can't pretend that there is a lot of difference between 4.5 and 4.7 though.
What are your best 10, or even 5, or even best?

Here are the rest of my database list
AT BERTRAM'S HOTEL 4.4
THE BIG FOUR    4.4
THE MYSTERIOUS MR QUIN    4.4
THE HOUND OF DEATH    4.4
THREE ACT TRAGEDY    4.4
WHY DIDN'T THEY ASK EVANS?    4.3
THE SITTAFORD MYSTERY    4.3
PARKER PYNE INVESTIGATES    4.2
AFTER THE FUNERAL     4.2
POIROT INVESTIGATES    4.2
THE MURDER ON THE LINKS    4.2
THE MURDER OF ROGER ACKROYD    4.2
THE LISTERDALE MYSTERY    4.2
PARTNERS IN CRIME    4.1
THE SECRET ADVERSARY    4.1
THE SEVEN DIALS MYSTERY    4
PROBLEM AT POLLENSA BAY and other stories    4
THE MAN IN THE BROWN SUIT    3.8
THE SECRET OF CHIMNEYS    3.8

My reviews:
LORD EDGWARE DIES
THE BIG FOUR
THE HOUND OF DEATH
THE LISTERDALE MYSTERY 
THE MAN IN THE BROWN SUIT
THE MURDER AT THE VICARAGE
THE MURDER OF ROGER ACKROYD
THE MURDER ON THE LINKS
MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS
THE MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR AT STYLES
THE MYSTERIOUS MR QUIN
THE MYSTERY OF THE BLUE TRAIN
PARKER PYNE INVESTIGATES
PARTNERS IN CRIME
PERIL AT END HOUSE
POIROT INVESTIGATES
PROBLEM AT POLLENSA BAY and other stories
THE SECRET ADVERSARY
THE SECRET OF CHIMNEYS
THE SECRET OF CHIMNEYS (comic strip version)
THE SEVEN DIALS MYSTERY
THE SITTAFORD MYSTERY
THE THIRTEEN PROBLEMS
THREE ACT TRAGEDY
WHY DIDN'T THEY ASK EVANS

14 comments:

  1. Kerrie - Now, that's an interesting question, as I've so many that I've liked! Hmmm... Well, let me give it a go:

    The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
    And Then There Were None
    Murder on the Orient Express
    Evil Under the Sun
    Mrs. McGinty's Dead
    Hickory Dickory Dock
    The Hollow
    The Thirteen Problems
    Ordeal by Innocence
    The Murder at the Vicarage

    Of course, if you ask me next week, this list may change..; )

    ReplyDelete
  2. That's a good question, Kerrie. Let's see. Off the top of my head and not in any particular order, other than the fact that these are among my favorite Christie novels:

    Murder on the Orient Express
    Cards on the Table
    Death in the Clouds
    A Caribbean Mystery
    Nemesis
    And Then There Were None
    A Murder is Announced
    4:50 From Paddington
    Evil Under the Sun
    Death on the Nile

    Hmmm...it was difficult to have just 10. If I had more chances, I would add:

    The Moving Finger
    A Pocket Full of Rye
    Sleeping Murder
    The Mousetrap (play)

    Let's face it, I'm an Agatha junkie!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I can't really answer this as I don't remember enough to know what I thought about the bulk of the books that I read many (many) years ago. As you know I've recently re-read a few of the books but it wouldn't be fair to name just them. My all time favourite though remains Death on the Nile.

    ReplyDelete
  4. My answer is based on the books I've read in the last few years when I started to re-read her books and read ones I'd not read before. I've read 15 and 2 books of short stories. These my top 10in a-z order, not order of preference:

    The Body in the Library
    By the Pricking of My Thumbs
    The Crooked House
    Dead Man’s Folly
    Hercule Poirot’s Christmas
    The Hollow
    The Mysterious Affair at Styles
    The Pale Horse
    Peril at End House
    A Pocketful of Rye

    It's much to hard to decide which one is the best!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Funny to see this post today Kerrie. Only yesterday evening I asked my mother what her favorite mystery ever was (and she has read way more than I have and not just because she is older) and she replied: Murder at the Vicarage :-)

    I think she has read all Agatha Christie-mysteries plus a gazillion other mysteries. I do remember Murder at the Vicarage myself, but I think that Death on the Nile or Murder in Mesopotamia are my number one AC-mystery.

    Have a great weekend

    ReplyDelete
  6. I am not good at coming up with favourites, but The Murder at the Vicarage is a book I like a lot. Both because I am a great fan of Miss Marple and because my husband always pretends to be very scared when he sees THAT title :D

    ReplyDelete
  7. Great list. From what I've read so far, my list looks like this -

    Death Comes As the End
    And Then There Were None
    The Murder at the Vicarage
    The Labors of Hercules
    Murder on the Orient Express
    The A.B.C. Murders
    Cat Among the Pigeons
    The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
    Why Didn't They Ask Evans?
    Dumb Witness

    ReplyDelete
  8. There are a few Christie titles which have remained my all-time favourites til now. I started reading Christie's when I was 13, and completed 64 titles as of now (yes, I do count!!!)

    My top 5 Christie:
    Sad Cypress
    Murder of Roger Ackroyd
    Death in the Clouds
    After the Funeral
    And Then There Were None

    Of course, my list may change anytime I find a new title to read. Right now I'm simply dying to get my hands on "Death Comes as the End", but nowhere here I can find it!!! Also, not all Christies are easy to obtain in my country, so sometimes I buy the translated versions.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Not sure what my top ten would be but my top five is a little easier.

    And Then There Were None
    The Mysterious Affair at Styles
    Man in the Brown Suit
    Murder on the Orient Express
    The Secret Adversary

    I'm not finished with, The Mysterious Mr. Quin yet, but it will be a contender.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Kerrie most of my Agatha Christie reading was done back in the sixties when I was in my early teens. My mother loved them and after Enyd Blyton was probably my fist crime and mistery books. I will have to read them again and thanks to your post you have provide me with an excellent guide. Now to the point if I do have to mention at least my favourites in no particular order: MURDER AT THE VICARAGE, THE MURDER OF ROGER ACKROYD, AND THEN THERE WERE NONE, SLEEPING MURDER and POIROT INVESTIGATES.

    ReplyDelete
  11. In no particular order:

    Death on the Nile

    What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw*

    Evil under the Sun

    Cards on the Table

    13 at Dinner*

    Murder at the Vicarage

    The Moving Finger

    The Murder of Roger Ackroyd

    The Mystery of the Blue Train

    Murder in Mesopotamia

    (*I think these have alternate titles.)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Good question Kerry. I enjoyed reading yours and all the other lists. At this point I am only up to number 16 in publication order so I can only list three.
    1. Murder On the Orient Express
    2. Murder At the Vicarage
    3. The Man In the Brown Suit

    ReplyDelete
  13. 1. CURTAINS : This is my favourite book from all Agatha's novel that I ever read.
    2. PARKER PYNE INVESTIGATES : I like it for how Agatha Christie illustrates romance and psychology in the stories.
    3. THE BIG FOUR : this is detective story with more action.
    4. THEY CAME TO BAGHDAD
    5. PERIL AT THE END HOUSE
    6. DEATH ON THE NILE : pretty tragic ending
    7. N OR M
    8. THIRD GIRL : I still managed to guess one of the murderer but the ending explanation is unexpected :)
    9. The Murder of Roger Ackroyd : I'd knew the murderer after reading half of the book and my guess was right :) he he...
    10. Cards on the table

    I'm a fan of agatha christie, read her novels since I was 15.
    Btw I'm happy to find ur blog :)
    Reading crime novel is one of my hobby and I'm glad I can read many useful reviews in here :)

    baladapenulisamatir.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete

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