The Man in the Brown Suit

Thursday, June 9, 2011


The Man in the Brown Suit
by Agatha Christie
★★☆

A newly orphaned young woman, Anne Beddingfield, heads off to make her way in the world and finds herself embroiled in the midst of an unexpected adventure. Anne is spunky, if a bit too naïve and reminded me a bit of Catherine in Northanger Abbey. Anne’s read too many mystery novels (as opposed to Catherine’s penchant for gothic novels) and sees a bit of mystery in everything.

I wasn’t thrilled with this one. I won’t get into the plot too much, except to say Anne witnesses a death, meets lots of people and ends up falling in love. It was nothing to keep you up at night flipping pages, which is kinda what I want from a mystery. It was less creepy goodness and more whodunit with a dollop of romance.

It’s not a bad book, just a light entertaining read. It’s not quite up to par with some of Christie’s darker murder mysteries, like my favorite, And Then There Were None. I’d skip this one and pick up a different Christie instead.

14 comments:

Jillian said...

I haven't really read anything from Agatha Christie before. Would you recommend any?

Anne said...

I have been thinking about reading an Agatha Christie book. I think I will try And Then There Were None.

Melissa (Avid Reader) said...

Jillian/Anne - You've both got to read And Then There Were None, it's brilliant.

She said...

Oh no! I'm sorry you didn't like this one! I really enjoyed it, but I think I read it during a time when I read about a thousand (slight exaggeration) Christies in a row, and this one was the one that was different, like you said, but I was ready for something different.

Kristi said...

I've only read on Agatha Christie--And Then There Were None. I enjoyed it, but didn't really love it so I haven't picked up another. I'll have to try another one soon. It might have just been my mood at the time.

Sorry you didn't like this one as much as her others.

Melissa (Avid Reader) said...

She - I thinked I would have liked it more in that circumstance. As it was, I hadn't read a Christie for a couple years and picked this one up because I wanted a good, dark mystery. Sometimes it's just timing and expectations that ruin a book for you.

Kristi - Hmm, maybe try The Orient Express. That one isn't as dark, but it's a good mystery.

BookQuoter said...

Thanks for your review. I trust your taste so one less for my TBR:)

Rebecca Chapman said...

I am reading The Secret Adversary at the moment and feel very similarly about it. The best Agatha Christie books are the ones that have Poirot or Miss Marple in them

Carey said...

I just finished Murder on the Orient Express - my first Christie. I liked it, but wasn't blown away. You suggest And Then There Were None ... any others?

Melissa (Avid Reader) said...

Becky - I've never tried any of the Miss Marple books. I'll have to make one of those my next Christie.

Carey - That's the only one I've really loved, but I do need to try the Miss Marple books.

Jillian said...

I bought And Then There Were None. Haha.

Melissa (Avid Reader) said...

Jillian - Yay! I can't wait to hear what you think of it. I hope it lives up to the hype.

Carl V. Anderson said...

This is one I actually really like. It, along with Why Didn't They Ask Evans? and The 7 Dials Mystery are ones that remind me of the kind of stories Wodehouse told merged with Christie's more well-known mysteries. I listened to all of these on audio which may have helped me enjoy them more.

Melissa (Avid Reader) said...

Carl V. - I haven't read those yet, but I love Wodehouse. I'll have to make those my next Christie's.