CBR Bingo: Cozy
Once a man is imbued with the idea that he knows who ought to be allowed to live and who ought not—then he is halfway to becoming the most dangerous killer there is—the arrogant criminal who kills not for profit—but for an idea.
Agatha Christie’s Cards on the Table is a pretty good cozy mystery. A Mephistophelean host, Mr. Shaitana, invites what he purports are four murderers who got away with their crimes to dinner. He also invites four sleuths, including Hercule Poirot. Over the course of an evening playing bridge, Mr. Shaitana is stabbed to death. Who of the four nefarious guests is the killer ? And what were their past murders, exactly? The sleuths are on the case.
This book is not strictly a Hercule Poirot joint. There is also Superintendent Battle and Agatha Christie’s stand-in, mystery writer Ariadne Oliver, who I always get a kick out of, especially her weird hair-do’s. The sleuths are determined to figure out who murdered Mr. Shaitana in the middle of the festivities, and they see each guests’ criminal past as a clue to the present crime. However, Mr. Shaitana never told anyone the precise nature of the guests’ crimes, so the sleuths must delve into the suspects’ histories to try to determine the guilty party.
I really enjoyed the set-up, especially since the four suspects are all presented benignly and it’s hard to see any of them as murderers, let alone capable of carrying out a second brazen murder in front of other people. My one quibble is Christie goes into excruciating detail about the bridge games, with detailed questions about everyone’s hands, plays, and movements. There is even an illustration of the score sheets with each suspect’s handwriting given close examination. I was worried the solution was going to be tangled up in the game’s technicalities, as I didn’t understand the details at all, but in the end things were clear.
Unfortunately, not uncommon for Christie, there is some racism in the book. I hate liking her books and then coming across that crap. It definitely diminishes things. So while it does fulfill the cozy spot for the most part, there is a disappointing intrusion on the warmth.