The heat continues, unabated. Luckily, I can travel somewhere cooler and greener through my books.
Cat Among the Pigeons by Agatha Christie The story begins with Jennifer and her mother visiting Jennifer's uncle Bob at his posting abroad in the Middle Eastern country of Ramat. Political unrest is brewing, and Julia and her mother have to suddenly and urgently leave the country. Bob and Prince Yusuf fly out days later, but are killed when the plane Bob is piloting crashes. It's a tragic accident, but Julia returns to her boarding school, Meadowbank. A couple of new teachers and a new gardener have joined the prestigious girls school. Among the new students is Shasta, a cousin of Prince Yusuf. As school begins, Miss Bulstrode the headmistress begins contemplating retirement, and which of the teachers she thinks should succeed her. One of the teachers is murdered, and Jennifer's friend Julia begins to suspect that something is not right at Meadowbank, and that someone sinister is after something or someone hiding at the school. Another great Hercule Poirot, with Dame Agatha deftly weaving a revolution with murder at a girl's school. Perfect summer escapism.
The Clocks by Agatha Christie When Sheila Webb, typist for hire, arrives at her afternoon job, she walks in to find a dead man and runs screaming out of the house, straight into the arms of Colin Lamb, Special Branch agent. Miss Pebmarsh, the blind homeowner where the dead man was found, insists she never called the secretarial agency for a typist. The police cannot identify the dead man and seem stumped. Then one of Sheila's coworkers is killed, and Hercule Poirot is faced with a very difficult mystery, full of mistaken and hidden identities, secrets buried for years, and plenty of red herrings to fool even the savviest of Christie fans.
The Nightingale Before Christmas by Donna Andrews (No. 18) Time to escape to Christmas in Caerphilly! Caerphilly's annual Christmas celebration has a special attraction this year--a competition among several local decorators, each of whom will decorate one room in an empty house with a holiday theme. The public will get to view the rooms and soak up inspiration, and a winning room will be chosen by committee. Meg's mother is decorating one of the rooms, which means Meg gets to see and hear the fierce competition and backstabbing amongst the designers firsthand. Clay Spottiswood, the snidest and meanest of the decorators, is found murdered. Was one of the decorators so obsessed with winning that they would kill for it?
Before Midnight by Rex Stout Contestants all over the US are participating in a riddle contest sponsored by Pour Amour, a popular perfume. The final round of clues is about to revealed to the five remaining contestant, who have all come to New York City for the grand finale. The documents with the answers disappear. from the wallet of the man who created the riddles while he was at a party with the contestants and the advertising agency. Did one of the contestants steal the riddles? Pour Amour's company wants to hire Nero to find the papers before word gets out that and the competition compromised, but Nero is not interested. He finally agrees, but tempers flare when he fails to find the riddles, and Wolfe is fired. And then rehired instantly. And then one of the advertising executives is murdered in Nero's own office.
Six Geese A-Slaying by Donna Andrews (no. 10) Luckily for me, Donna Andrews has written several Meg Langlsow mysteries that occur during the holidays, so I can escape to snowy and cold Virginia multiple times during a hot desert summer. Meg and Michael's house outside Caerphilly proper is the perfect staging point for the town holiday parade. This year, the theme is a live action Twelve Days of Christmas, with real animals (including camels and camels) and humans dressed as animals, floats, a nativity scene with a very pregnant Mary, and Santa in a sleigh, creating a maelstrom of merriment. Ralph Doleson, town curmudgeon, is playing Santa again, because he looks the part, but Meg is worried that his brusque manner will ruin the parade for the towns' children. It looks like the parade will proceed without a hitch until Meg's nephew Eric whispers that "something is not right with Santa." Someone has killed Ralph, and since just about no one in town liked him, there are plenty of suspects.
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