Being a huge
fan of Dame Agatha Christie, I have read many of her books—maybe most of them
(she wrote not less than 73 novels—source: wikipedia).
Still, her books never bore me. When I thought her method must have been more
familiar with my next read, I would be amused to found yet a new unexpected
one. And Towards Zero was one of
these.
"When you read the account of a murder--or say, a fiction story based on murder, you usually begin with the murder itself. That's culmination of a lot of different circumstances, all converging at a given moment at a given point. People are brought into it from different parts of the globe and for unforseen reasons. […] The murder itself is the end of the story. It's Zero Hour."
It was
quoted from Superintendent Battle, who was our detective in this book. If you
are familiar with Agatha Christie’s, Battle has appeared with Poirot on several
cases. In this one he worked alone, though Poirot’s name still had chance to
appear as his inspiration. Anyway, what made Towards Zero very special (at least to me) is the unusual order in
which Christie wrote it. Usually a murder committed; then the detective started
the investigation. With Poirot (because I am more familiar with him than
Marple), it means taking himself into the circle of people connected with the
murder—and into their confidence—in the
hope that they will unintentionally reveal their secrets. The order would be: first,
the major event (the murder) which leads to small incidents (maybe more murders
to cover the murderer’s secret), then Poirot or other detective completed the
puzzle, and finally the revelation.
Towards Zero was started from minor
unrelated events of some people. Then on certain point they were gathered in a
same place, where eventually the murder would happen. This new method allowed
us to see the characters unprejudiced, because we still don’t know the
victim-to-be and the crime scene. I have never encountered the same method in
Christie’s before, and I liked it. Finally, after so many years with my three
favorites: Curtain, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, and And Then There Were None, now I
officially declare that Towards Zero
has become my fourth favorite!
Intentionally
I did not tell you what the story is about, because it’s almost impossible to
tell anything without spoiling the surprises—and there were many, including the
ending twist! And, of course, the interesting psychological aspect! Maybe I can only safely say that there would be many coincidences
in this story; that it involves a triangle love story of a husband and two
wives (ex and current) in the centre, but there are also other lovers beyond
it; that there are invalid old lady and old gentleman; and there is also a
stranger who had attempted suicide. One of them is cunningly and methodically planning
a would-be-perfect-murder. But—and this is what Christie was trying to tell us—there
are a lot of things beyond us that can happen; that even the most complex
murder could possibly be revealed. Sometimes, the thing can just be a tiny, completely
unrelated coincidence. We might call it… miracle.
Final
verdict: 5 of 5 - Perfecto!
It's one of my favourite Christes too. I also love "The Pale Horse" and "The Secret Adversary", the latter mostly due to the great main characters.
ReplyDeleteAhh.. The Secret Adversary, the first Tommy & Tuppence! I agree, it was unforgettable. I'm not sure whether I have read The Pale Horse--I have read so many Christie's, sometimes I can't remember the titles :)
DeleteHai Fanda. I am here because of a friend's recommendation. I want to ask you, as a Agatha's book lover, which book(s) is/are appropriate for a junior high schooler? I am a mom, and I want my kids to love Agatha's books. Thanks a lot!
ReplyDeleteHi Felicia.. I think there's no inappropriate Agatha Christie for teenager. I myself started reading Christie when in junior high. But maybe your kids won't appreciate the ones with political theme such as The Secret Adversary. I think the best one to start is The Crooked House, or The Dumb Witness, or Cat Among Pigeons.
DeleteGood luck, then! I wish you kids would end up loving Christie as I did.