And Then There Were None
(Agatha Christie)
Ten deaths and possibly nine (or more) murder suspects await the reader of Agatha Christie's novel, And Then There Were None, also published as Ten Little Indians. Christie, acknowledged as one of the most popular authors of the contemporary mystery novel, skillfully leads the reader into the psyches of the main characters as their disturbing secrets are revealed.
The intriguing mood of the story is set in the opening page with the introduction of the first of ten main players. This intrigue is developed with the subsequent introductions of each of the other characters. The tool by which the intrigue is maintained is a letter received by each of the characters inviting him or her to a weekend retreat on Indian Island. The invitations themselves are composed in an enticing manner, alluding vaguely to the host's knowledge of some aspect of the prospective guest's life. The invitations are made more mysterious by the fact that the host is not someone whom any of the prospective guests have met, nor is the host's name one that any of them recognize. For personal reasons mixed with a seemingly healthy dose of curiosity, the prospective guests accept the invitations. However, once on the island, they soon learn the disturbing reasons that their attendance has been sought and the unsettling intentions of their host.
The story is set in a modern mansion on a privately-owned Island which is sometimes inaccessible for a week or longer due to inclement weather. Christie contrasts the pleasant interior of the mansion with a story that grows moodier with the mysterious death of each guest, one by one. The sinister mood is maintained by exposing the unstable psyches and growing suspiciousness of the remaining guests who find themselves trapped on the island as preys of their unseen, maniacal host. Christie's description of the deteriorating weather, and the guests' realization that the host has ensured that no one else approach the island, progressively enhances the fearful mood that envelops the guests and permeates the story.
The reactions of the guests to the devastating knowledge that their fate is to be determined by their host, along with the maniacal actions attributed to the host, maintains a level of suspense that propels the reader through the story to the diabolically clever and unsettling culmination.
And Then There Were None, is an insightful and ingenuous study of the machinations of guilt, suspicion, and fear and the warped intentions of unstable personalities which under other circumstances may appear as normal as our own.
Not recommended for all personality types.
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