Evil under the Sun by
Agatha Christie
hbk out October 99
Published by Collins Crime
at £15.99
Anyone who reads plenty of Agatha Christies cannot fail to notice the
extent to which the author was preoccupied by the concept of evil. The
discussions in her books of evil are never heavy-handed, but it is
striking that, to a much greater extent than most of her peers, she kept
returning to the subject and this book, as its title indicates, is a prime
example. It is typical of Christie, however, that most of the people in her
story misunderstand altogether where the evil of which they are conscious
is actually concentrated.
The setting is memorable - Smugglers' Island, a holiday spot off the south
west coast, in Leathercombe Bay. When the novel was adapted for the silver
screen, the backdrop was transposed to the Adriatic (and filming actually
took place in Majorca), but to my mind the Englishness of the background is
one of the appealing elements of the story. Even by the high standards of
Poirot mysteries, this ranks as an above-average outing for the little
Belgian detective. As happened all too often in his career, he is taking a
holiday at a time when an ingenious murder, this time of sexy Arlena
Stuart, is committed in the vicinity. Of course, he investigates and his
solution to the puzzle is plausible and enjoyably explained. The only
reservation about the story is that it reworks a plot device which Christie
had previously used to very good effect in both two short stories and an earlier novel. The device is so clever, however, and the way in which the
variation of the theme is contrived here is so entertaining, that perhaps
Christie can be forgiven a little self-plagiarism.
(
Martin Edwards
- author of the highly acclaimed Harry Devlin Mysteries)
