Appointment With Agatha discussion

GR is currently not letting me create new threads, so I'm only opening the spoiler-free threads for our November reads right now. Hopefully I'll be able to get in and open the spoiler threads later today.

I recently completed a re-read of this book, and I enjoyed it much more this time around. Slightly ridiculous, but still good, clean fun. I can see why T & T are not on the top of people's favorite Christie books, as they are clearly more thriller than mystery.

Tara wrote: "I recently completed a re-read of this book, and I enjoyed it much more this time around. Slightly ridiculous, but still good, clean fun. I can see why T & T are not on the top of people's favorite..."

I have read this one relatively recently as well, but I will give it a quick reread for the monthly discussion.

My copy is a Bantam Books paperback which has a 1967 publication date. It's in pretty good condition. This cover is near identical, although this picture is of a later printing:



I can tell it is later because my copy has a price of .60 cents on the cover. In addition, the tagline for mine is "The Unsurpassed Mistress of Mystery," as opposed to "The Queen of Crime."

The dedication reads:

To all those who lead
monotonous lives
in the hope that they may experience
at second hand
the delights and dangers of
adventure

I read this last year-it's a nice light read for this time of year.

Oh Christine, how nice having an old copy of the book! I only have the one in my library.

I read about a quarter of this today and I love the light-hearted tone that Tommy and Tuppence set. Tuppence is just downright hilarious. The plot so far has had too many coincidences to be believable, but the pairing of T&T has made it fun and enjoyable to read.

I've never read this book before. What a delightful surprise it is. It seems to take 'The Thirty-Nine Steps', push all the stuffy stuff to one side and replace the omni-competent male hero with a young couple who are clearly winging it and where the young woman is the one with the drive and flair.

Could you have a more dramatic start that being in the Lusitania on the day it's torpedoed? How Hollywood is that?

I love the lightness of tone, including the willingness to pile on co-incidence after co-incidence and just smile through it.

The dialogue between Tuppence and Tommy is wonderful. I've just heard Tuppenence upbraid Tommy, saying 'You're more conceited than I am but with less excuse.' What a great line.

Then there are the period touches that make me smile, like hearing Tuppence's dress being described as short and then understanding that this meant that it displayed her ankles.

This was just what I needed to lift my mood on a dreary grey day.

I read this ahead last week as I had access and time. I really enjoyed T & T, the introduction to them was really fun. It was a first time reading a T & T by Christie.

I love this book. Will start my reread later tonight ... for the time being, I'm ringing in the holiday season (can't come soon enough this year) with a double feature of "Murder in the Mews" (Guy Fawkes Night) and "Hercule Poirot's Christmas", courtesy of Mr. Suchet. (Though, come to think of it, I already watched "The Theft of the Royal Ruby" the other night, so I guess the holiday season has already been rung in in this household.)

@Mike: With you in every respect, as far as "Secret Adversary" is concerned.

@Christine: What a great cover.

I've been listening to our intrepid duo via Hugh Fraser's narration and although I can see where some of Christie's international intrigue got started, here it's just lighthearted and doesn't seem to take itself too seriously. This is a reread for me.

I've just finished this, What a rollicking good read. A true ripping yarn. Tuppence and Tommy are irrepressible. Tommy is sort of Hastings with a brain. Tuppence is.. well... Tuppence and all the better for it.

I was playing 'Will the real Mr Brown please stand up' right to the end.

The politics is nonsense but I didn't mind that as it was just a pattern on the wrapping paper for the McGuffin.

Of course, this kind of nonsense is what made the Zinoviev Letter plausible when the Fascist-friendly Daily Mail published it just before the 1924 General Election., so I can't absolve it of all harm but it didn't spoil my enjoyment when I was romping through the plot.

This adventure novel is a great escape! I have now read it three times and in three different formats.

1. 10 years ago digitally on a tiny cell phone
2. This summer with a physical book
3. Last week in audio format

It is hard for me to separate my feelings for this novel from the circumstances of my first reading. It was an Agatha Christie that I could download for free from Project Guttenberg on my semi-smart phone. I was fairly young and relatively newly married living in NYC spending 4 hours commuting by subway from one end of the city to the other for work. I immediately identified with the young couple trying to figure out how to make it in a world of uncertainty (Recession) and the fact that in a bustling city you can end up running into anyone. It was kind of the perfect book at the perfect time.

Upon rereading it this year, I had forgotten exactly how it turned out (I had my suspicions) but it brought back all the excitement of a time in my life when anything seemed possible.

Happy Reading!

I’m not quite halfway, and am loving it. The tone of the writing is so different from the poirot and Marple stories we’ve already read. For me this has been pure fun.

I do like what Tuppence says about girls form long ago being the same as now, just with different clothes. And that was almost 100 years ago.

Deborah wrote: "I’m not quite halfway, and am loving it. The tone of the writing is so different from the poirot and Marple stories we’ve already read. For me this has been pure fun."

I'm about halfway through now, and agree. Once I decided to suspend disbelief and go along for the ride, it became a lot of fun. I do like Tuppence, thats a great quote Natalie.

This is my first time reading this one, I have read other T&T mysteries in the past, but too long ago to remember which one.

I agree with this. I loved the characters of T & T. I should have taken your course to suspend belief, I would have had a better time with it. It is a lot of fun tho

Just started this, my first time reading it or any other T&T mystery, and the two are quite funny. The story seems a bit far-fetched, but will see how it all ends.

There is, I believe, a very good adaptation of The Secret Adversary from the early 80s, with Francesca Annis and James Warwick (and I believe Honor Blackman, for that matter). Annis is an excellent Tuppence.

Susanna, I watched those episodes and agree with you-Francesca Annis did a great job.

I agree. I watched the episode right after I finished the book (last week or so) and thought it was well done.
Annis was a wonderful Tuppence.

FYI, there's a chapter-a-day podcast reading of The Secret Adversary going right now. link.

Christine PNW wrote: "FYI, there's a chapter-a-day podcast reading of The Secret Adversary going right now. link."

Oooh, that looks fun. Thanks for sharing.

This is a first read for me and I'm hoping to start tonight. Going by all the comments here I'm in for an enjoyable read.
I'll be reading a paperback. It's a 1976 edition with a horrible cover.

I'm up to chapter 11 and I'm enjoying it so far. It's definitely light hearted. What I like is the short chapters. I can pick it up, have a quick read, get on with whatever and have another quick read later.

I started reading the novel last night, and I was enjoying it right up until chapter five when a realization dawned about a possible plot development. The end of the chapter only reinforced it, though I hope that I'm wrong -- there are few things worse in a mystery story than predictibility!

I hate that feeling. The "boy, I hope this book doesn't go there" feeling. So often it does go there.

Susanna - Censored by GoodReads wrote: "I hate that feeling. The "boy, I hope this book doesn't go there" feeling. So often it does go there."

Fortunately in this case it didn't.

Oh good!