If I see any weaknesses in this book, this is without a doubt the last scene. It is completely sentimental and unrealistic and in my opinion spoils the entire effect of this book. This story would be great without this silly scene. Fortunately, that's basically the only thing that annoyed me.

Chimunīzu-kan no himitsu is the title of a Japanese manga album published in 2006. The album contains manga adaptations in Japanese of The Secret of Chimneys, Sparkling Cyanide and Towards Zero. When the Lady Tressilian was murdered, all evidence pointed to her late husband's ward, Nevile Strange — the two had been heard arguing before her death, and her blood was found on Nevile's golf club and coat. Battle delayed making an arrest, to the confusion of the other officers, until one of the maids provided him with a solid alibi. In October and November 1944, it was serialized with illustrations under that same title as a supplement to The Mail (Adelaide), in Australia. Portions are missing from the newspapers scanned by Trove, so the exact dates are not certain, save for the start on 7 October 1944. [7] Adaptations [ edit ] Stage [ edit ] What makes a good detective story? Suspense? Atmosphere? An outrageous plot? Memorable characters? Twists?

In 1956, Christie adapted the book into a play with Gerald Verner. It was first published by Samuel French Ltd. in 1957. The play was first staged in September 1956 at the St James Theatre in the West End of London. [8] Christie first wrote a stage play under this title in 1945, with one week of performances in Martha's Vineyard in the US. The script was uncovered in 2015 by Julius Green. [9] Loving a Shadow: Thomas Royde's affections for Audrey are mostly based on the image of the girl he once grew up with, and not the woman she is now. Audrey then asserts that he'd be better off with Mary Aldin as she prepares to go to South America with Angus, feeling she's a far better match for him. First, his daughter is accused of stealing, when the school headmistress pressured the girl to confess to the crime. This incident played a part in his deduction of the murder case. Well, perhaps I was going a bit too far. But at any rate once the thing had happened, there it was. You’ve got to accept these things!’

Everyone Must Be Paired: At the end of the book, everyone that wasn't guilty is happily paired off, in a way that neatly solves the All Love Is Unrequited issues above. Audrey goes to marry Angus, while Ted is free to pursue Kay after her husband is convincted as the murderer. It is implied that Thomas would eventually get over Audrey and get together with Mary instead. Red Oni, Blue Oni: Kay is the red to Audrey's blue. A character compares them to Snow-White and Rose-Red. Christie is a master of weaving cleverly constructed mysteries, I loved the various red herrings throughout as my suspicions kept changing between the different guests. Ascended Extra: Downplayed. Superintendent Battle has been featured in several other works by Christie, such as Cards on the Table, but he was only a supporting character in those books. He has a much more prominent role in this case than in his previous appearances, though his role is still overshadowed by the suspects. Arguably the best known adaptation of Agatha Christie’s novel, Towards Zero, was that of prolific writer, Gerald Verner, in 1956. However, a few years ago, it was discovered that Agatha Christie had in fact written her own stage adaptation of the novel which was commissioned by the Shuberts in 1944 and we present both plays as part of The Collection.Superintendent Battle: Vacationing with his nephew, he is assigned to the case with him; husband and father of five children, the youngest of whom gives him an insight useful to solving this case.

Barnard, Robert. A Talent to Deceive – an appreciation of Agatha Christie (revised edition, p. 208). Fontana Books: 1990; ISBN 0-00-637474-3 So, nachdem ich mal wieder willkürlich eins der vorgeschlagenen Monatsbücher für die Challenge ausgewählt habe, musste ich leider feststellen, dass das Buch hier der letzte Band in Christies „Inspector Battle“-Reihe ist, von der ich bisher kein einziges Buch gelesen hatte. Das hat dann aber doch weniger ausgemacht als erwartet und ich habe ganz gut in die Geschichte reingefunden. Das Setting ist nicht so mega außergewöhnlich, der Krimi lebt viel mehr von der interessanten Figurenkonstellation. Fast 2/3 des Buches spielen vor dem Mord, der nur den krönenden Abschluss von menschlichen Turbulenzen im gemeinschaftlichen Miteinander bildet. Nevertheless as Nevile Strange went downstairs this fine morning a shadow went with him. A shadow perceptible, perhaps, to no eyes but his. But he was aware of it, the thought of it furrowed his brow and made his expression troubled and indecisive.Framing the Guilty Party: Neville frames himself in a way that's easily explained away and makes Audrey look like she's framing him, and that she actually committed the murder. In 2010, Joy Wilkinson adapted Towards Zero as a radio play, first transmitted in January 2010, in four parts, each 30 minutes by BBC Radio 4. [13] The cast includes: Lady Tressilian invites her ward for his annual visit at Gull's Point. He insists on bringing both his former wife and his present wife, though Lady Tressilian finds this awkward. Her old friend Treves dies, then she is murdered as well; Superintendent Battle and his nephew are called in. The book is the last to feature Superintendent Battle. This is probably one of the less known books of Christie, which is a shame, because it is a really good book. Which in my opinion would also make a fantastic film. The general structure of this story, of course, does not differ from Christie's typical pattern. A murder in a closed house that could only be committed by one of the small group of people who were there at the time. Each of these people had a motive, sometimes more than one. And basically everyone had the opportunity. Suspicion falls on everyone one after the other. And just as recently I was completely tired of this scheme in After the Funeral, here I truly enjoyed this classic scheme. The Reveal: Audrey was never in love with Nevile to begin with, and it was never her idea to reunite with him and Kay under the same house. In fact she was scared of him and she was the one who left, but Neville made everyone believe the contrary with some supreme Manipulative Bastard qualities.