Death on the Nile

I have read very few Agatha Christie novels. I dont't know if all of them have the same pattern..
In part one, she arranged different characters like long thin threads next to each other, clean and distinct, in the next part she mangled all of them together, that I could barely follow the connections...throw in a few red herrings here and there, towards the end I felt this was going to be an obscure unsatisfactory ending, that sprouted mid story - but no! everything was carefully crafted beginning to end and kind of veiled in plain sight. Awesome read.

I first read this one ages ago, so even though this is a re-read, I pretty much went into this one without an idea of what the solution was. I had a vague recollection of the solution halfway through, though, and turns out my memory was better than I expected. Still, this was a great and entertaining read.

Though this seems pretty Egyptian on the outside, what with the title and the Egyptian-looking setting on the cover, the story is very much all-English (and a little bit American). There isn't much of Egypt in this one besides the names of the locations that the characters go to, which is a shame considering this book was inspired by Christie's own trip to Egypt with her archaeologist husband Max Mallowan. Christie herself became an archaeologist in later life!

Poirot in this one was at least very much involved in the mystery from start to end, which I enjoy a lot more than other stories where he just dips in in the last 30% to solve the mystery. We also meet some very memorable characters like Linnet Ridgeway, Simon Doyle, and Jacqueline de Bellfort. The love triangle between these three isn't anything fresh but I thoroughly enjoyed how much the emotions of guilt and betrayal popped off the page.

Even though I vaguely remembered the solution halfway through, this was still a pageturner for me. I stayed up hideously late because I couldn't stop reading it. There's something magnetic and so easy and even comforting about Christie's writing and the way her mystery unfolds.

I also went to look up the cast list of the 2022 film just to see who they would cast in each character. I have to say it was a pretty stellar list (without having actually seen the movie to judge their performances). Gal Gadot and Letitia Wright in particular being Linnet Ridgeway and Rosalie Otterbourne seemed very well-casted. Arnie Hammer, actually precisely because of all the sleaziness and controversy surrounding him at the moment, was also an ironically good fit for Simon Doyle as well.

Though perhaps not as mind-blowing as Murder on the Orient Express or the Murder of Roger Ackroyd, Death on the Nile is definitely a quintessentially great Christie to read and re-read, whether you're new to her or a long-time fan.

To keep in mind i) two previous Poirot mysteries are minorly spoiled in this book (Murder on the Orient Express and and Lord Edgware Dies ) ii) the polarity of the pacing between the first and second half of the book: the first half's leisurely-paced presentation of the characters switches to a dizzyingly fast-paced second-half where the crime and its resolution take place.

My first Agatha christie book. I would say that it was beyond what I hope, more than the credit that I was ready to give before reading it. considering that I don't have a lot of interest in mystery novels, Christie was able to entice me to read one (this one) non-stop. but the most impressive aspect of her work in this book has to be her undoubtably perfect writing.
storywise: this is a mediocre piece, the beginning (as much as it may seem important) is some of the most tedious pages I've ever read! however it becomes extremally better and better.
and in the case of vocabulary: I've learned a lot and enjoyed a lot.

Богатая леди отправляется в свадебное путешествие на пароходе по Нилу. Вокруг нее, как оказывается, совсем не случайные люди: половина просто темные личности, вторая половина хотят ей смерти, в том числе бывшая подруга богатой леди, у которой та увела жениха - того самого, кто стал ее мужем. Кто из них кто - непонятно, но леди, как водится, убивают, а Пуаро и неслучайно оказавшийся на борту Полковник Рейс начинают расследование....

I can never figure out with detective novels whether I should be disappointed that the reveal matched my guess or whether I should be pleased with myself for getting it right. I think I prefer being tricked so to speak so I can have that “Aha, that's a clever twist!” moment.

In truth, I think some of it easily telegraphed here. The sudden jump from Simon and Jacqueline being a couple to Simon and Linnet being married was an immediate eyebrow raiser to me. Then Poirot overhears a conversation “We have to go through with this...” and finally Christie shows her hand a bit too much when neither of the two are present on Race's list of possible suspects. I also did clue in that the shooting managed to give both of them an alibi, though I didn't quite figure out how Simon could then go commit murder with a wounded leg, so the reveal of the second bullet was clever.

Of course, the thought pops up in my head afterwards... why didn't he just “accidentally” push her overboard rather than hatching an overly elaborate plan to generate a murder mystery on a boat with a world famous detective onboard? But obviously that's all part of the fun with these books ;)

One side note: Christie's conservatism comes out here with her ridiculously silly portrayal of the leftist Ferguson as an Angry Young Man railing against the entire world and who is excessively rude and boorish to every single person he meets apparently.

I have been reading all of Christie's mysteries chronologically and this was number 25, I believe. I have to say, though, it stands out. It has a rich setting, interesting characters, and a challenging plot. It's definitely one of her better ones.

The one thing I will say is that if you have read as many of her books as I have you may notice a trend in her writing that gives you a good guess of who the murderer is right from the beginning. But don't let that stop you–it's good either way!

Sono affascinato dai libri gialli, più ne leggo e sono attirato da essi. Personalmente li vedo come una sfida tra me -il lettore- e l'autore, in questo caso, Agatha Christie. Sono affascinato soprattutto quando perdo ovviamente, è un gioco difficile quello del giallista, riuscire a mostrare il trucco di magia senza svelarlo, in questo caso però ho vinto con largo anticipo. Non saprei dire se è stata colpa di un eccesso di indizi, o semplicemente ho iniziato ad avere occhio per alcune cose, ma devo ammettere che onestamente se avevo intuito il chi, non ho di certo indovinato il perché. Anche perché solitamente le soluzioni proposte sono così ben costruite (e al limite della realtà) che difficilmente uno si può immaginare per filo e per segno tutto quanto.

Ricapitolando, si tratta del romanzo che meno mi è piaciuto dell'autrice (di quattro). La prima metà è molto lenta a introdurre i personaggi, o meglio, lo “spaccato umano” del romanzo. Tutta una lunga serie di personaggi particolarmente (e volutamente) esagerati, che in tutta franchezza non mi hanno né entusiasmato né suscitato interesse, complice anche averli introdotti poco a poco in maniera disordinata. Ho preferito infatti la seconda parte del romanzo, dedicata al delitto.
Tuttavia mi piace lo stile dell'autrice, e anche se trovo che la narrazione di questo romanzo non sia un granché, i dialoghi sono sempre molto curati e interessanti (anche se questa volta un po' ridondanti). La Christie proviene da un'epoca in cui non esisteva il politicamente corretto e infatti si nota molto, rendendo per assurdo i personaggi che ho criticato, molto più umani di tanti di quelli che si leggono al giorno d'oggi. Un'ultima critica che sento di fare, è che in questo romanzo il troppo stroppia. C'è tanto di tutto, e alla fine l'intera faccenda ne risente e francamente non la ritengo molto credibile.