Another month over, and another #ReadChristie2021 choice down. It's hard to believe we're racing so quickly to the end of the year, and that I'm now just two novels away from finishing this campaign!
The prompt for October was: a story set on a mode of transport
I decided to move away from the official choice this month, which was Death in the Clouds. I'm already very familiar with that story, and it's not one of my favourites. One I was keen to tuck into, however, was 4:50 From Paddington, which I was intrigued by.
I thought the idea for the story was fascinating, and I was interested to see where it went. I don't think it was quite as good as I was anticipating, but I did still very much enjoy it.
As I didn't go with the official choice this month, I don't have specific questions to answer. However, you can read my thoughts on the novel below.
You can find out more about #ReadChristie2021 on the Official Agatha Christie website.
The Plot
I absolutely love when Christie does something a little bit different with a plot. When the setting is unique, the idea really original, or the solution really impossible, that's exactly what I want to read! Which was why I was so taken with this idea - there was so much potential!
The actual story wasn't really what I thought it was going to be. The train doesn't really feature an awful lot after the first couple of chapters, and it went off on a bit of a tangent that I wasn't expecting. I would have liked to have seen more discussion about the train journey and the implications of the murder, which would have made for some really original content.
That being said, I did enjoy the story. It was very easy to read and had some interesting sub-plots that kept me intrigued.
The Characters
I think the star of the show in this book is the range of characters that we get. It did take me quite a while to get to grips with who all the characters were, but once I did I found it very intriguing. There's just an awful lot of male characters who are very similar - a necessity, given the plot, but confusing nonetheless.
However, I think the character who really shines is Lucy Eylesbarrow. She plays an interesting character, because there's no real reason for her to be in the story. However, I'm very glad she is, because she ties everything together very well! I don't think the story would have been half as inviting if we didn't have her as a character to follow.
I actually think Miss Marple was a background character again - far more than I thought. I've only read a few Marple stories so far but she always seems to be a secondary character. I'm looking forward to seeing a bit more from her, and I'm hoping that's what I get!
Overall Rating
Rating: ✫✫✫✫
Overall, I genuinely did enjoy this novel. It had an interesting concept, characters with a surprising amount of depth, and some fun twists and turns. It was a little underwhelming after such an intriguing initial concept though, which did let it down for me ever so slightly. However, I'm enjoying my journey into Miss Marple stories, and this one has made me excited for my next one!
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