And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
Mysteries is one of the most entertaining genres. It is so fun to get caught up in the fun and try to figure out "Whodunit?" before the detective can. When reading a mystery I feel like I am the faithful sidekick to the suave detective. As sidekick I piece together clues and try to draw up the same conclusion as the detective. When I finally read the truth in the detectives all revealing monologue at the end I hope that I am right in my hypothesis just so I can shriek, "I TOLD YOU SO!" to no one in particular. Then spend the rest of my day celebrating my solved case. However fun it is to figure out the culprit all on your own there is a feeling that is so much better. The best mysteries are the ones that surprise you. A book that makes you feel like you are solving the case, but then when all is revealed you are put in your place with the other blindsided characters. A book that doesn't make you shriek, "I knew it!", but a book that leaves you in a pregnant silence as you try to comprehend what happened. Then it slowly dawns on you how completely this artistic masterpiece of mystery has come together. I promise not to spoil ANYTHING ever about mysteries because I would just be a mean book killer. Only a select few books have ever thrown me, and astounded me in their complexity and majestic detail. The Queen of Mystery, Agatha Christie, has done it. Ladies and gentlemen I am proud to present my favorite mystery yet. And Then There Were None;
Synopsis:
Ten people, seemingly unconnected, are invited to Soldier island. Philip Lombard, Dr. Edward George Armstrong, Judge Lawrence Wargrave, William Henry Blore, Emily Brent, Thomas Rogers, General John Gordon Macarthur, Anthony Marston, Vera Claythorne, and Ethel Rogers. Under different reasons they all come to the island. Boats only go out to the rocky island once a week, so they must stay for an entire week. After they all have dinner together a record is played that instead of sounding music had a voice recording from the mysterious U. N. Owen, or unknown, accusing all the guests of murderer. The rest of the book is spent with them trapped on the island slowly being killed off trying desperately to find out the murderer is because it has to be be one of them. One by one they are killed following the childrens poem "Ten Little Indian Boys" by Frank Green written in 1869. One by one they went and then there were none.
"Ten Little Indian Boys"
Ten little Indian boys went out to dine;
One choked his little self and then there were nine.
Nine little Indian boys sat up very late;
One overslept himself and then there were eight.
Eight little Indian boys traveling in Devon;
One said he’d stay there and then there were seven.
Seven little Indian boys chopping up sticks;
One chopped himself in halves and then there were six.
Six little Indian boys playing with a hive;
A bumblebee stung one and then there were five.
Five little Indian boys going in for law,
One got in Chancery and then there were four.
Four little Indian boys going out to sea;
A red herring swallowed one and then there were three.
Three little Indian boys walking in the Zoo;
A big bear hugged one and then there were two.
Two little Indian boys sitting in the sun;
One got frizzled up and then there was one.
One little Indian boy left all alone;
He went and hanged himself and then there were none"
The construction of this book is amazing. Agatha Cristie states that she wrote this book simply to see if she could. An impossible case. Ten characters all accused of murder stuck on an island. One of them is killing the others for some kind of justice. While I read this I was switching back and forth between the characters trying to find the murderer. As soon as I thought I had it all figured out the character I had bet on being the murderer would die! Slowly the choices narrow, but never a moment of certainty. This is the most fluid and complex book I have had the pleasure of reading. I highly recommend it. This story will grab you by the collar of your shirt and pull you in. Your heart will race and once you experience the ending you will be so floored that you may cry out of pure awe. I bless my lucky stars that Agatha Christie wasn't a twisted killer because if she was we would all be in terrible danger. Thank you for not being a psycho Agatha!