By the Pricking of My Thumbs (Tommy & Tuppence, #4)

by Agatha Christie

[Mystereity Reviews]

“I hate mourning," she said. "It always smells of moth balls because it’s been laid up somewhere."

I will admit, I was never a fan of Agatha Christie after I was disappointed by Murder on the Orient Express back in high school. But there's an Agatha Christie square on the r/CozyMystery Book Bingo, so I picked up this one because it qualified for hard mode (Not Marple or Poirot.) and because I was intrigued by the blurb. And I have to admit, I was pleasantly surprised to be drawn into it from the beginning, mostly because I liked Tuppence so much. While Tommy has good instincts, Tuppence has the detecting skills and I liked how well they played off each other, but Tuppence was definitely the star of this story.

As for the plot; possible shenanigans at an old folks home, a sophisticated crime ring, and a mysterious house in a painting all served to compel to Tuppence that something was amiss and required further detecting. It was thoroughly enjoyable and quintessentially Christie, complete with a surprise twist at the end. I was surprised to like it as much as I did, but then again, not really surprised because let’s face it, there’s a reason why Agatha Christie is the queen of cozy mystery. Overall, it was a fun, intriguing and a bit fanciful and I might just pick up the other books some time.