Newly-orphaned Anne Beddingfeld is a nice English girl looking for a bit of adventure in London. But she stumbles upon more than she bargained for! Anne is on the platform at Hyde Park Corner tube station when a man falls onto the live track, dying instantly. A doctor examines the man, pronounces him dead, and leaves, dropping a note on his way. Anne picks up the note, which reads "17.1 22 Kilmorden Castle". The next day the newspapers report that a beautiful ballet dancer has been found dead there-- brutally strangled. A fabulous fortune in diamonds has vanished. And now, aboard the luxury liner Kilmorden Castle, mysterious strangers pillage her cabin and try to strangle her. What are they looking for? Why should they want her dead? Lovely Anne is the last person on earth suited to solve this mystery... and the only one who can! Anne's journey to unravel the mystery takes her as far afield as Africa and the tension mounts with every step... and Anne finds herself struggling to unmask a faceless killer known only as 'The Colonel'....
Blurb taken from Goodreads.
✼
Agatha Christie is definitely my most-read author of all time, and probably my favourite. I can always rely on her stories for adventure and a solid and enjoyable read. There have only been a few of her books that I haven't loved; most of them I could read again and again.
I wasn't really looking forward to reading The Man in the Brown Suit. I'm a really huge fan of Poirot, and I've found that all of the books that I've not been as keen on have been those without the Belgian detective. I just had a feeling I wouldn't enjoy this one, despite loving other stand-alones such as And Then There Were None.
I'm really glad that I enjoyed this book a lot more than I was expecting to. The narration provided by the character Anne Beddingfield was really easy to read and enjoyable, and it had a lot of different twists and turns, as well as a good final reveal. It wasn't my favourite Christie novel, by any stretch, but I did enjoy it. Given it was one of her earliest works, I love it even more.
Rating: ✫✫✫
SPOILER ALERT
The Story
The story opened with a prologue that didn't particularly fill me with much confidence. I remember my partner rifling through the book before I had actually started it, and asking if I planned to read the prologue. I said, of course! I kind of wish I hadn't now. I understand why it was there, but I didn't enjoy it. It didn't really add to my suspense, and made me think I wasn't going to enjoy the novel.
Thankfully, the actual novel starts with Anne Beddingfield's narration, which was far more enjoyable and much easier to read. I really liked how relatable her character was, and it felt far more like I was reading a classic Christie novel. The way she chose to pursue her own line of enquiry, and her desire for adventure over everything made for a really dynamic character.
The actual story had so many different twists and turns that I was surprised. When the original murder happened, then the second, i thought that was going to be the main focus of the story. Anne witnesses a murder, and then there is a second linked. I assumed that the setting would continue to be England, and yet all of a sudden, all of the interesting characters were on a voyage to Africa, to remain there for the rest of the book! It all felt so sudden and so random. I wouldn't say I really minded, but it felt a little chaotic. It felt like two different book ideas were combined, and I wouldn't say it was entirely successful, but the story still worked. There is just a part of me that would have really loved to have seen the book play out on home soil.
Nonetheless, they alighted the ship to Africa. A bold move from Anne, but interesting. Having read the Poirot novels, I was glad to see Colonel Race make an appearance. It was a little confusing having Colonel Race be part of the action while there was also a mystery 'Colonel' mastermind, but I got over that quickly. My main concern was the confusion between the different characters, especially Sir Eustace Pedler's secretaries. There were so many little details to keep an eye out for, which I normally love, but it was a little hectic this time around. Plus, Anne was tricked and captured and attacked a few too many times for my taste. There comes a point where it stops becoming feasible. Plus, she fell in love with Harry all of a sudden. Maybe I missed the little hints, but it came out of nowhere for me.
Nonetheless, despite the fact I've just criticised a lot of the book, I did enjoy it. Christie has a great formula that always works. This novel had an intriguing murder, and another one to boot. There was the innocent bystander-turned-sleuth, and the seasoned government official too. Then, of course, there were a few disguises, a plot twist, and some diamonds thrown in for good measure.
I don't know who I really expected to be 'the Colonel', as I wasn't really thinking that far ahead. Normally I go through every possibility in my mind, but this time I was too busy trying to keep up with the rest of the adventures. I'm secretly glad it was Sir Eustace Pedler. If it had been anybody else I think I would have been disappointed, and he made such a good villain. I'm not at all surprised that Anne had a sneaky soft spot for him. I enjoyed their interaction towards the end of the book, and the letter she received from him later. There are some villains that you just can't hate.
The Verdict
I don't mean it as a criticism when I say that this was clearly one of Christie's earlier books. She knew what worked, but the subtlety wasn't there; a trait that makes some of her later books so memorable. Everything was thrown at it, and I'm not sure it was entirely successful.
Nonetheless, it was enjoyable because it had solid foundations. A fun narrator, plenty of mystery and intriguing details, and a real reveal.
I really enjoyed navigating this story, even if it isn't, in my opinion, one of her best.
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