In 2021 I am joining the #ReadChristie challenge! This means that each month I will read a book by Agatha Christie, following the themes proposed by the Agatha Christie foundation. The theme for January is: story set in a grand house 🏠
If you would like to join the challenge or find out more information, here’s the official page.
The Hollow in a nutshell
The Angkatells, a wealthy family, invites a diverse group of friends to their place, The Hollow. Their plans for a relaxing weekend get-together are ruined when someone is murdered … and the weekend vibes turn into an ongoing investigation. Luckily, Hercule Poirot is there to help solve the mystery.
Overall impression
I enjoyed reading The Hollow, it was a captivating story to devour during a lazy Sunday afternoon. Once again, Agatha Christie showcased her mastery of first building the context and getting to know the characters, and then moving on to the murder mystery. I am sure each reader already has some suspects in mind when the murder happens.
But the most simple answer is not always the correct answer… or is it?
Hercule Poirot – confidant rather than leading detective
This was my second Poirot story, and I must say his role in The Hollow was quite different than his role in Death on the Nile (my review). Poirot was the main investigator for solving the murder mystery from Egypt. In contrast, in The Hollow Poirot had a secondary role, being more a confidant for key suspects rather than leading the investigation.
It seems that Agatha Christie chose to not include Poirot in the theatrical version of the story. I could see the story being similarly good also without Poirot, but I personally prefer the version that includes the charm of the detective.
Further reading
If you are keen on reading insightful posts about Christie’s book, check out this blog: Ah Sweet Mystery Blog! I discovered it through the discussion of The Hollow written by Brad – the post is extremely interesting (contains spoilers!) and provides an in-depth view on the whole story.
Wrap-up
To conclude, The Hollow is an entertaining murder mystery novel. The complex relationships among the characters and the dynamics of the story will keep you hooked until you reach the final page, when justice is made (or maybe not?!)
Next month I will be reading a story featuring love – Parker Pyne Investigates! ❤
‘Till next time … happy reading!
Georgiana
Readers' High Tea 
Christie wrote so many books. This is one I haven’t read. I’ll have to look for it.
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There are so many of her books to discover! This was only the third book I read by Agatha Christie (after Death on the Nile and Midwinter Murder) and I am already eager to read the next ones! 😀
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I think Midwinter Murder might be a rename, or was it a collection? I’ve noticed some publishers renaming some of the older books, which I think stinks. You’ll think you discovered one that you never read and then find you have under another name.
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Midwinter Murder is a collection of short stories built around the winter theme.
It’s very strange when books are renamed or they have different names in the US versus the UK. For example, The Hollow was also published in the US with the name Murder after Hours … Not sure whether it was published under both names, at different times, but it is very confusing!
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Yes, but what I’ve come across lately is older books that were originally published in the US under the same name as the UK but then are brought back out under a new name years later. An example is Envious Casca by Georgette Heyer, which I originally bought way back in the 70’s. I found a book that I thought was an Heyer I had never read called A Christmas Party, and it was Envious Casca! They did the same thing with her Pistols for Two, although that was a story collection, and it seems to happen more often with those.
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Ah, that is very weird and does not seem fair at all to me!
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I agree. It’s very misleading if you’re a book buyer. And by the way, I’ve encountered it with old music CDs, too, where I think I’ve found a new one for an artist I like and it turns out to be one I already have with a different album title. Of course, we’re getting so no one uses CDs anymore, but I do!
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Agatha Christie is amazing 🙂 I haven’t read this book by her, but I have so many of her works on my TBR list so will definitely be adding this one. Great post!
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I hope you’ll enjoy it! This year I am planning to read a book by Agatha Christie each month, can’t wait! 😀
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Wow! Can’t wait to hear all your thoughts
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