Reading the Detectives discussion

Welcome, Sandy.

Welcome to the group, Sandy.

Hello. My name is Sandra, I'm retired with a husband, 2 grown up children, 3 delightful grandchildren and I live in Dorset. My favourite detective author is of course Agatha Christie and I read my first of her novels aged 11. I'm looking forward to the reading challenge and finding new authors too. Thank you for having me.

Hi Sandra and welcome to the group. My favourite author is also Agatha Christie and we are doing a Miss Marple challenge this year which you are welcome to join in with.

Welcome Sandra. I'm sure you will find some new authors here that you will like. This group lengthens your tbr list no end. Nice part of the country you live in.

Welcome, Sandra. Agatha Christie is my favorite detective writer as well so that is why I joined. I hope you enjoy it here.

Welcome Sandra! Agatha Christie in this group is a no brainer!

Hello all. I have just joined this group as I am particularly interested in Agatha Christie since joining a crime writers/readers tour of Cornwall several years ago. The tour took us to Greenway and it was marvellous to see the Poirot house of cards on a table and other items that feature in her books as well as so many of Christie's books in different covers. I've just read The Woman on the Orient Express, a novel about AC which is really quite worth while. I've not yet read a biography but while on the tour met a scholar who has worked on her papers. I've read all of her novels and will read them again with pleasure so I can join the challenges. What fun!

Welcome Robin!

Thank you, Marcus.

Welcome Robin. I'm a newbie too and looking forward to the reading challenges.

Thank you everyone for welcoming me into the group.

Welcome Sandy, Sandra and Robin.

That tour sounds interesting.

I'm sure you will all find more authors to interest you. I know I have.

Welcome Sandra and Robin! Great to have you both with us. Both Dorset and Cornwall are beautiful! It's good to hear that you are both Christie fans.

Thank you everyone for your welcome. It's also good to see another new person coming in at the same time, Sandra.

Robin wrote: "Thank you everyone for your welcome. It's also good to see another new person coming in at the same time, Sandra."

And Sandy joined just a day earlier. Welcome all. There at least two of us Sandy's now. And my given name is Sandra. Could get confusing.

Sandy wrote: "Robin wrote: "Thank you everyone for your welcome. It's also good to see another new person coming in at the same time, Sandra."

And Sandy joined just a day earlier. Welcome all. There at least tw..."

Think that is where the avatar gets useful. There are two jill's

Welcome to Sandy, Sandra and Robin!

Always good to welcome new members. Lots of Christie fans too, I am delighted to see :)

Hi everyone, I was introduced to reading at a young age and have been hooked ever since. I have signed up for the Agatha Christie Challenge, books on order can't wait.

Welcome Melanie!

Marcus wrote: "Welcome Melanie!"

Thank you Marcus!

Welcome, Melanie :-)

Hi Melanie - welcome to the group :)

Welcome Melanie, glad you have joined!

Hope you enjoy Miss Marple, Melanie.

I'm so excited to find this group! I'm a bit late to the Miss Marple challenge, but I am happy to join in!

My favorites ever since I was a kid are Doyle and Christie (although I have mainly read her Poirot books and actually havent read any Marple ones.) I have seen some Marple movies/tv series, but I know that doesn't count! I am looking forward to diving right in.

Welcome to the group, Tara. We're glad you found us too :)

Welcome Tara, glad you're here! The Miss Marple challenge is proving to be a lot of fun and it's great that you want to join in.

welcome Tara and Melanie. I'm just about to start reading January's book. I've been waiting for it to come in at my village library. Got the next 6 months reserved too.

Welcome Tara and Melanie. I recently found this group and am playing catch up on the Miss Marple books as well. I hope you enjoy them as much as I am.

Hi everyone, I'm RC from London - I think I read most of Agatha Christie as a teenager and would love to revisit them. I also like Dorothy L. Sayers, and Josephine Tey but don't think I've read other Golden Age authors so look forward to meeting them with you!

p.s. Thanks, Susan, for the invite! x

Welcome to the group, RC! We're glad you joined us. We are currently doing a Miss Marple challenge this year. We also have a monthly read and lots of buddy reads. Everyone is welcome to join in with as many/few books as they wish and, not having read the book, is no reason not to join in the conversation :)

Hi RC welcome to the group

Welcome, RC - as Susan says, we are reading lots of Agatha Christie at the moment via our Miss Marple challenge, but we also read a lot of other authors too. It's great that you've joined us!

Thanks for the welcome, everyone - I'll certainly be rummaging around for my old Miss Marple books this weekend!

Hi everyone! I'm Polly, from Canada. I grew up reading like a termite through all of Agatha Christie (my mother handed me Roger Ackryod when I turned 11, and I've never looked back), Dorothy Sayers, Margery Allingham, plus as much of every other detective author of the period when I could get them and lots of slightly more modern English detective writers since (Robert Barnard, Michael F. Gilbert, and others). I will look forward to joining the monthly reads whenever I can! I'm checking to see what Miss Marple I have right now.

Polly wrote: "Hi everyone! I'm Polly, from Canada. I grew up reading like a termite through all of Agatha Christie (my mother handed me Roger Ackryod when I turned 11, and I've never looked back), Dorothy Sayers..."

Hi Polly, good to see another Christie fan- I am one too- also Sayers.

Welcome Polly, great that you've joined and are planning to join in on the monthly reads when you can. That's a great selection of favourite authors. :)

Welcome to the group, Polly. Glad you found us. :)

I wish I'd found this group earlier! I finished my own reread of the Miss Marple books earlier this year, and it would have been fantastic to share the experience with the members of this group.

I'm Gillian, and I am a huge fan of Agatha Christie, Ngaio Marsh and Dorothy L. Sayers. I live in Christchurch, New Zealand, and hope to become a volunteer guide at the Dame Ngaio Marsh House. Recently I've also enjoyed Gladys Mitchell and I just started the Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters.

My favourite Christie novel is Murder At the Vicarage, my favourite Marsh is Light Thickens, and my favourite Sayers are Strong Poison and Gaudy Night.

Gillian wrote: "I wish I'd found this group earlier! I finished my own reread of the Miss Marple books earlier this year, and it would have been fantastic to share the experience with the members of this group.

I..."
Hi Gillian. We still have five books left to discuss so you can still join in- plus one ongoing one of course.

Welcome Gillian, glad you have found us now anyway. :) A great selection of favourite authors - we have several members from New Zealand and please do tell us more if you become a guide at Ngaio Marsh's house.

As Lady C says, there are still some Miss Marple books to discuss and you are very welcome to join in on those - also the threads for the previous books are still open so it's not too late.

Hi Gillian, welcome to the group. Hopefully you will find some new favourites among the books we choose, along with your own, impressive list of authors you love. Still plenty of Miss Marple reads to come, also lots of buddy reads as well, along with our monthly choices. Our buddy reads start mid-month and our Oct/Nov read is, "The Life and Times of Miss Jane Marple." Full list (so far!) below:

August/Sept: Heads You Lose: Christianna Brand Heads You Lose
September/Oct: There's Trouble Brewing There's Trouble Brewing
Oct/Nov: The Life and Times of Miss Jane Marple The Life and Times of Miss Jane Marple
Nov/Dec: Not a Creature was Stirring: Jane Haddam Not a Creature was Stirring
Jan/Feb: Green for Danger: Christianna Brand Green for Danger

That's true! I usually try to wait a few years between Christie rereads (so I forget enough of the plot to be surprised), but I don't have to... And Bertram's Hotel is a favourite.

Thanks for the warm welcome!

Gillian, I love the Amelia Peabody series. The characters and the dialogue are great; the mysteries less so. And Amelia is not an unbiased narrator. But what a family!

Sandy wrote: "Gillian, I love the Amelia Peabody series. The characters and the dialogue are great; the mysteries less so. And Amelia is not an unbiased narrator. But what a family!"

I've only read one of these so far but enjoyed it- one more is waiting on my TBR.

Hi, Gillian. Welcome. Agatha Christie is one of my favorites too and that's why I joined. Being a curator at a museum sounds like an amazing experience and I can't wait to hear about it.

Welcome Gillian. I am enjoying the Marsh books. I am reading through them and am only on Death in Ecstasy, which, I think, may be #5. Years ago a friend at work got me started on them, but they were just putting me to sleep then. Enjoying them much more now.

That sounds exciting about the Marsh house.

I don't live too far from the Thomas Wolfe house (took the tour) and the Carl Sandburg house (had to leave the tour because I couldn't breathe in there, but beautiful grounds). I recall Sandburg visiting my kindergarten in Illinois - who could ever forget that shock of white hair.

Hi Sandy! I have a weakness for biased narrators, so I think I'll be able to over look the weaker mystery aspect. I started with book one, so I have yet to meet the extended family, but I'm looking forward to it.

Lady Clementine, I hope you enjoy when you get to it (guessing you have a long TBR list).

Hi Brina! The Marsh house--I was about to say it's not like a museum but it actually is. She lived in the house since she was a small child until her death, and the house has a lot of her possessions still in it. Some of her dresses hang in the wardrobe, and you can sit in the chair she did all her writing in. I'm not entirely sure what my role as volunteer entails yet, but my homework is to read the Marsh biographies so that I'm familiar with her life as well as her stories.

Hi Jan C! It's interesting that they didn't work for you the first time, but you're enjoying them now. I had the same experience with Gladys Mitchell and Margery Allingham the first time I read them. I'm glad you're enjoying Marsh though while there are books of hers I love, there are others that I don't feel were as successful.

Not one but two author houses near you? That's very cool.