tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post6512522895791174159..comments2024-03-18T11:01:42.459-05:00Comments on Pretty Sinister Books: FFB: The Hound of Death - Agatha ChristieJ F Norrishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comBlogger10125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-47467842342526819602012-10-14T12:38:36.180-05:002012-10-14T12:38:36.180-05:00Never read any of these that I can remember, John....Never read any of these that I can remember, John. I'm not a completist when it comes to my favorite authors but I will say I thought I'd read every book Christie wrote under her own name. Though I am not and never was a short story hyper-fan. I just prefer novels.<br /><br />But thanks anyway, for this post. I am intrigued. I must add this title to my TBR list and hope for the best. <br /><br />Algernon Blackwood? Cool name.Yvettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08919246184376538331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-76495149391920163522012-10-14T03:30:48.226-05:002012-10-14T03:30:48.226-05:00The Last Seance – read it once and can never bear ...The Last Seance – read it once and can never bear to read it again. Not because it's bad, but because it's sooooooo creepy. I like these Blackwood-style stories. (E.M. Forster also wrote several in this genre and they're brilliant too.) Agreed, her romantic novels are less good (which is odd, because she is good at the "love" theme in her detective stories). Early in her career an adviser warned her against being "preachy", but this often creeps into her romances. However, Unfinished Portrait is a pretty good depiction of her unhappy first marriage. In her detective stories (and in life) Christie was robustly skeptical about the supernatural, and often uses the fake seance for dramatic effect. (Apart from the Mr Quin stories, which are a bit supernatural, and there is a seance with the usual vulgar, pretentious medium that makes contact with... You'll have to read it.)Lucy R. Fisherhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08632983296994349550noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-49278812942978569002012-10-12T22:05:10.295-05:002012-10-12T22:05:10.295-05:00I can recall having read some of the stories in th...I can recall having read some of the stories in the book but not all. Thanks for posting about it. It'd be fun going thru them this season.neerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01986509319841061021noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-37429655682919491622012-10-12T20:09:44.728-05:002012-10-12T20:09:44.728-05:00Great! Looking forward to it, Alyce.Great! Looking forward to it, Alyce.J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-20696793847391880502012-10-12T20:09:08.879-05:002012-10-12T20:09:08.879-05:00I absolutely agree about the title story. My notes...I absolutely agree about the title story. My notes say "very much like Lovecraft and Wellman and 'the Old Ones' style tales." The whole ancient civilization bit is done very well. It's one of her creepiest stories in the collection. "...Arthur Carmichael" could've been just as creepy, but the cat business is sometimes just silly especially with Arthur wanting only to drink milk and curling up in a ball on the floor and all that. Her youthfulness -- as in books like MAN IN THE BROWN SUIT and SECRET ADVERSARY -- shows prominently in these stories.<br /><br />I could've written the entire post on "The Call of Wings" alone which is remarkably accomplished and truly original, I think, for a story written so early in her career. "Wireless" reminded me of old time radio and has a motif that has been recycled many times since the 1920s so it had less power for me. "Accident," too, is minor IMO. It was more like a poor man's Roald Dahl story with its twist ending that wasn't very surprising. The others you cite are most definitely classics.J F Norrishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06473487417479127354noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-32724958928425042752012-10-12T18:50:52.198-05:002012-10-12T18:50:52.198-05:00Thanks for signing up for my best & worst seri...Thanks for signing up for my best & worst series! I just sent you an email about it and wanted to leave a message too, just in case the message gets sorted as spam (which has been known to happen).Alycehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10919057159829023714noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-24503721313542901652012-10-12T17:05:34.575-05:002012-10-12T17:05:34.575-05:00I thought the title story had rather a Lovecraftia...I thought the title story had rather a Lovecraftian feel too, if I am recalling it correctly (the visions of some other, alien plane). The Red Signal, Wireless, Witness for the Prosecution and Accident all are mystery classics, I think. Wireless is similar to a 1920s John Rhode novel in some ways, though his specific inspiration is a Rudyard Kipling story, also called Wireless.<br /><br />I also liked The Mystery of the Blue Jar, though this is a bit different in nature from the others.The Passing Tramphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09830680639601570152noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-87576437248795648922012-10-12T12:28:55.785-05:002012-10-12T12:28:55.785-05:00I've read these stories in the collections you...I've read these stories in the collections you've listed: THE WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION, THE GOLDEN BALL, and DOUBLE SIN. But I've never seen THE HOUND OF DEATH. I'll have to track down a copy. Like Sergio, I prefer Christie in spooky mode rather than romantic mode.Georgehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04546161337366365635noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-13522227317337471092012-10-12T07:35:06.808-05:002012-10-12T07:35:06.808-05:00Great choice John - I just read one of her romanti...Great choice John - I just read one of her romantic novels and was not all that impressed but Christie's few supernatural tales suggest that maybe that could have been a more profitable route beyond her mystery stories. THE LAST SEANCE was turned into a fantastic TV film with Jeanne Moreau as I recall. Sergio (Tipping My Fedora)http://bloodymurder.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8787364257168822822.post-50779826335695986782012-10-12T07:25:09.367-05:002012-10-12T07:25:09.367-05:00Christie dabbled in various genres and fantasy was...Christie dabbled in various genres and fantasy was certainly one of them. I didn't know much about the publishing history behind THE HOUND OF DEATH and I'm looking forward to reading some of her early short stories. Fortunately, I have a copy of this novel. This FFB is inspiring me to read more of Christie than I ever did all these years.Prashant C. Trikannadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16079354501998741758noreply@blogger.com