And Then There Were None

 And Then There Were None (1939) by Agatha Christie

Ten house guests found themselves trapped on an island--the prey of a diabolical killer. The first guest was poisoned after dinner. The second just didn't wake up in the morning. When the general was clubbed to death, they realized that the murderer was one of them. As their number grew smaller with each killing, their terror mounted. Was there no way out? Somehow, soon this vicious killer would have to be caught--before he had the pleasure of announcing: "and then there were none."

And so I've had my almost annual visit to Indian/Soldier Island. Various challenges have resulted in my reading and/or listening to this about every other year. This year's reading results from the Agatha Christie challenge--where I am reading her work in order of publication. I'm up to 1939 now. And Then There Were None (aka Ten Little Indians) is one of my all-time favorite Agatha Christie novels. Even though I've read it many times, I still get nearly the same pleasure from it each time I reread it--or re-listen to it. Of course, the pleasure would be complete if I could conveniently forget the solution--but the story is told so well that I don't mind knowing ahead of time what will happen. It was great fun to sit down and listen to Hugh Fraser read the story to me. He does the voices of all the characters very well and makes everything seem very fresh.  ★★★★★--every time.

First Line: In the corner of a first-class smoking carriage, Mr. Justice Wargrave, lately retired from the bench, puffed at a cigar and ran an interested eye through the political news in the Times.

Last Line: And they will find ten bodies and an unsolved problem on Indian. Island. 

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Deaths = 21 total (11 current in narrative: four poisoned; one strangled; one stabbed; two shot; one drowned; two hit. Plus 10+ caused by our current murder victims: two run over; three neglect/medical malpractice; one shot [war]; two drowned; one hung; one overdose [and a bunch of unnamed natives left to die in the jungle]