Publishers Weekly
11/08/2021
The 14 entries in this fine collection amply display Christie’s gifts as a short-form storyteller, though it’s a bit of stretch to label them all love stories. Her best-known creations, Hercule Poirot and Jane Marple, distinguish themselves, as do such now obscure recurring characters as Parker Pyne, who presents the deceptively benign facade of a dull civil servant. In “Death on the Nile,” Pyne attracts clients via a laconic and enticing newspaper ad (“Are you happy? If not, consult Mr. Parker Pyne”). When a fellow British passenger on an Egyptian cruise, the wealthy Lady Grayle, expresses fear for her life, Pyne must act swiftly to avert tragedy and apprehend the would-be murderer. Poirot’s focus on out-of-place details serves him well in “The King of Clubs,” in which the cleanliness of a pair of shoes points the way to the truth about a murder. By linking mysteries that have affairs of the heart at their center, this volume allows the reader to appreciate better Christie’s facility at crafting variations on a theme. (Jan.)
From the Publisher
If you’re thinking murder on Valentine’s Day, ask Cupid for a copy of A Deadly Affair. This new paperback collects 14 of Christie’s short stories. You’ll find it in the library by the candlestick." — Ron Charles, Washington Post
“Agatha Christie [is] the maestro of murder tales.” — People
“I read everything by Agatha Christie.” — Gillian Flynn, New York Times bestselling author of Gone Girl
"A Deadly Affair is not to be missed for fans of Dame Agatha’s work, as well as those who are just discovering the Mistress of Murder." — Book Reporter
"Amply display Christie’s gifts as a short-form storyteller . . . By linking mysteries that have affairs of the heart at their center, this volume allows the reader to appreciate better Christie’s facility at crafting variations on a theme." — Publishers Weekly
“With its gorgeous and moody cover, this themed collection of Agatha Christie's short stories would be a delightful introduction for new readers or a lovely return for those long familiar with the Queen of Mystery's work.” — Fresh Fiction
"The diversity of the stories, both in terms of plot as well as the multiple detectives featured, made this feel a bit more fresh than many of her other short story groupings.” — Sugar & Suspense
"It is a pleasure to spend some cold winter nights in the comfort of Agatha Christie's special stories, where the holiday spirit is helped along by some expert detectives who make sure that things remain merry and all is made right again by Christmas Day." — Book Reporter on Midwinter Murder
"Amply display the author’s storytelling gifts. . . . Both fans and newcomers looking for suspenseful escapism will be pleasantly diverted." — Publishers Weekly on Midwinter Murder
"Winter months are a great time to stay in and read a great book and one that is sure to please is Midwinter Murder. Christie is at the top of her game with many different types of short mysteries with some of her most famous characters. Christie continues to dominate the genre and it is easy to see why her works continue to thrill. Midwinter Murder is a welcome addition to the succession of Agatha Christie." — Midwest Book Review
“Reading a perfectly plotted Agatha Christie is like crunching into a perfect apple: that pure, crisp, absolute satisfaction.” — Tana French, New York Times bestselling author of the Dublin Murder Squad novels
“Agatha Christie is the reigning Queen of Suspense, her tales always the perfect addition to any list of books to read for Halloween. ” — Women.com
“I always wanted to be Agatha Christie when I grew up. I still do.” — J. A. Jance, New York Times-bestselling author of the Joanna Brady and J. P. Beaumont novels
“The Last Seance shows that Christie could pull off stories of supernatural suggestion, and that she was fantastic at creating atmosphere.” — New York Journal of Books
“This collection overall gets that balance between horror and mystery exactly right...That’s part of Dame Christie’s spooky brilliance, knowing when to satisfy readers with the mundane monstrosity of a human murderer and when to leave us with the chilling touch of the unknowable.” — CriminalElement.com
“Agatha Christie’s books are both wonderful crime novels and studies in contrast and duality, and I adore them still. Underestimate them at your peril.” — Louise Penny, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of the Inspector Gamache novels
“It’s tempting to say that Agatha Christie is a genius and let it go at that, but the world’s had plenty of geniuses. Agatha Christie is something special.” — Lawrence Block, New York Times bestselling author
“Agatha Christie taught me many important lessons about the inner workings of the mystery novel before it ever occurred to me that I might one day be writing mysteries myself.” — Sue Grafton, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of the Kinsey Millhone novels
“Any mystery writer who wants to learn how to plot should spend a few days reading Agatha Christie. She’ll show you everything you want to know.” — Donna Leon, New York Times-bestselling author of the Commissario Brunetti novels
“Agatha Christie’s indelibly etched characters have entertained millions across the years and a love of her work has brought together generations of readers—a singular achievement for any author and an inspiration to writers across the literary landscape.” — Jacqueline Winspear, New York Times bestselling author of the Maisie Dobbs novels
“What better way to pre-game for Halloween than with a compilation of spooky stories from none other than Agatha Christie?” — InStyle
Book Reporter on Midwinter Murder
"It is a pleasure to spend some cold winter nights in the comfort of Agatha Christie's special stories, where the holiday spirit is helped along by some expert detectives who make sure that things remain merry and all is made right again by Christmas Day."
Gillian Flynn
I read everything by Agatha Christie.
People
Agatha Christie [is] the maestro of murder tales.”
Ron Charles
If you’re thinking murder on Valentine’s Day, ask Cupid for a copy of A Deadly Affair. This new paperback collects 14 of Christie’s short stories. You’ll find it in the library by the candlestick."
Sugar & Suspense
"The diversity of the stories, both in terms of plot as well as the multiple detectives featured, made this feel a bit more fresh than many of her other short story groupings.
Fresh Fiction
With its gorgeous and moody cover, this themed collection of Agatha Christie's short stories would be a delightful introduction for new readers or a lovely return for those long familiar with the Queen of Mystery's work.
Book Reporter
"A Deadly Affair is not to be missed for fans of Dame Agatha’s work, as well as those who are just discovering the Mistress of Murder."
Midwest Book Review
"Winter months are a great time to stay in and read a great book and one that is sure to please is Midwinter Murder. Christie is at the top of her game with many different types of short mysteries with some of her most famous characters. Christie continues to dominate the genre and it is easy to see why her works continue to thrill. Midwinter Murder is a welcome addition to the succession of Agatha Christie."
Women.com
Agatha Christie is the reigning Queen of Suspense, her tales always the perfect addition to any list of books to read for Halloween.
J. A. Jance
I always wanted to be Agatha Christie when I grew up. I still do.
New York Journal of Books
The Last Seance shows that Christie could pull off stories of supernatural suggestion, and that she was fantastic at creating atmosphere.
Lawrence Block
It’s tempting to say that Agatha Christie is a genius and let it go at that, but the world’s had plenty of geniuses. Agatha Christie is something special.”
CriminalElement.com
This collection overall gets that balance between horror and mystery exactly right...That’s part of Dame Christie’s spooky brilliance, knowing when to satisfy readers with the mundane monstrosity of a human murderer and when to leave us with the chilling touch of the unknowable.
Louise Penny
Agatha Christie’s books are both wonderful crime novels and studies in contrast and duality, and I adore them still. Underestimate them at your peril.”
InStyle
What better way to pre-game for Halloween than with a compilation of spooky stories from none other than Agatha Christie?
Donna Leon
Any mystery writer who wants to learn how to plot should spend a few days reading Agatha Christie. She’ll show you everything you want to know.
Jacqueline Winspear
Agatha Christie’s indelibly etched characters have entertained millions across the years and a love of her work has brought together generations of readers—a singular achievement for any author and an inspiration to writers across the literary landscape.”
Sue Grafton
Agatha Christie taught me many important lessons about the inner workings of the mystery novel before it ever occurred to me that I might one day be writing mysteries myself.”
Criminal Element
This collection overall gets that balance between horror and mystery exactly right...That’s part of Dame Christie’s spooky brilliance, knowing when to satisfy readers with the mundane monstrosity of a human murderer and when to leave us with the chilling touch of the unknowable.
Kirkus Reviews
2021-11-16
Fifteen reprinted stories, most of them originally published between 1923 and 1933, for those who think the doyenne of golden-age detective fiction had no time for love.
Fans of Christie’s novel-length puzzlers won’t be surprised to learn that love doesn’t conquer all. In “Death by Drowning,” Miss Jane Marple announces Rose Emmott, unmarried and pregnant, has been murdered, and she knows by whom. A pair of lovers confess separately to killing the woman’s husband in the Harley Quin mystery “The Love Detectives.” Hercule Poirot intervenes in a lovers’ triangle only just in time to prevent murder in “Wasps’ Nest,” as does Quin’s friend Mr. Satterthwaite in “The Face of Helen.” Soon after asking the vacationing Mr. Parker Pyne to determine whether she’s being poisoned in “Death on the Nile,” the importunate Lady Grayle is dead. Tommy and Tuppence do their best to compete with the Father Brown franchise in “The Man in the Mist.” It would be a stretch to call most of these love stories, and amateur sleuths would have to look even more closely to find the romance in “Fruitful Sunday,” in which a jeweled necklace appears in a just-purchased bowl of fruit, or “The Case of the Caretaker,” in which Miss Marple’s physician gives her a mysterious story to read and solve. But love plays a more central role in the lesser tales “The Case of the Rich Woman” (a client of Mr. Parker Pyne’s who is seeking happiness finds it through an unexpected romance) and “Magnolia Blossom” (a straying wife is torn between loyalty to her husband and the creditor she loves), and in the best of the bunch, “The King of Clubs,” Poirot deftly uncovers the truth about a lothario who deserved exactly what happened to him. The collection is capped by Christie’s reminiscences of two abortive romances of her own.
A decidedly mixed bag, not unlike love itself.
